Snow
Snow by John Banville, published by Hanover Square Press in 2020, is a literary mystery that unfolds in 1957 County Wexford, Ireland. The narrative centers on Detective Inspector St. John Strafford, who is called to investigate the murder of a parish priest found dead in the ancestral home of the secretive Osborne family. As Strafford navigates the challenges posed by the local community and the oppressive influence of the Catholic Church, he uncovers layers of family secrets that complicate the investigation.
Readers will find a richly woven tale that explores themes of secrecy and societal pressure within a historical context. The story delves into the dynamics of the Osborne family and the obstacles Strafford faces, including his own deputy’s mysterious disappearance. With its evocative prose and intricate plot, Snow presents a compelling examination of crime and morality against the backdrop of a snow-covered landscape, inviting readers to unravel the mystery alongside the determined detective. This edition spans 299 pages and is presented in English.
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*NATIONAL BESTSELLER*
*SHORTLISTED FOR THE CWA HISTORICAL DAGGER AWARD*
A Globe and Mail Best Book of the Year
A New York Times Editors’ Choice Pick
“Banville sets up and then deftly demolishes the Agatha Christie format…superbly rich and sophisticated.”–New York Times Book Review
The incomparable Booker Prize winner’s next great crime novel–the story of a family whose secrets resurface when a parish priest is found murdered in their ancestral home
Detective Inspector St. John Strafford has been summoned to County Wexford to investigate a murder. A parish priest has been found dead in Ballyglass House, the family seat of the aristocratic, secretive Osborne family.
The year is 1957 and the Catholic Church rules Ireland with an iron fist. Strafford–flinty, visibly Protestant and determined to identify the murderer–faces obstruction at every turn, from the heavily accumulating snow to the culture of silence in the tight-knit community he begins to investigate.
As he delves further, he learns the Osbornes are not at all what they seem. And when his own deputy goes missing, Strafford must work to unravel the ever-expanding mystery before the community’s secrets, like the snowfall itself, threaten to obliterate everything.
Beautifully crafted, darkly evocative and pulsing with suspense, Snow is “the Irish master” (New Yorker) John Banville at his page-turning best.
Don’t miss John Banville’s next novel, The Lock-up!
Other riveting mysteries from John Banville:
- April in Spain
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