Reginald Hill's “Dialogues of the Dead is a bridge that spans the classic English whodunit and the dark heart of contemporary crime fiction, the serial-killer novel....The fertility of Hill's imagination, the range of his power, the sheer quality of his literary style never cease to delight.” (Val McDermid)

Normally, there would be nothing sinister about a death by drowning and a motorcycle fatality—had these tragic occurrences not been predicted before the fact in a pair of macabre "Dialogues" submitted to a Yorkshire short story competition. Yet the local police department is slow to act—until the arrival of a third Dialogue...and another corpse.

A darkness is settling over a terrorized community, brought on by a genius fiend who hides clues to his horrific acts in complex riddles and brilliant wordplay. Now two seasoned CID investigators, Peter Pascoe and "Fat Andy" Dalziel, are racing against a clock whose every tick signals more blood and outrage, caught in the twisted game of a diabolical killer who is turning their jurisdiction into a slaughterhouse.

Bestselling and Diamond Dagger award-winning mystery writer Reginald Hill sets up a battle of wills between determined cops Andy Dalziel and DCI Peter Pascoe and an elusive and ingenious villain in a “dazzling” novel of psychological suspense (New York Times Book Review).

Three times Yorkshire policeman Peter Pascoe has wrongly accused ex-con Franny Roote of a crime, only to have Roote walk free. Now Roote is sending out strange and threatening letters and Pascoe fears there is worse to come. This time he’s determined to get his man.

Meanwhile, Pascoe’s colleague Edgar Wield rides to the rescue of a boy in danger and in return, the boy tips him off about the heist of a priceless treasure. Soon Wield is torn between protecting the lad and doing his duty.

Over all this activity broods the huge form of Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel. As trouble builds, Dalziel discovers that omniscience can be more trouble than it’s worth. 

"A complex and deeply satisfying tale...one part traditional English whodunit and one part shadowy corporate thriller." –Publishers Weekly (starred review)

From Reginald Hill, acclaimed mystery writer and winner of the prestigious Diamond Dagger Award, comes a brilliant psychological story of a mysterious death that echoes one in the past.

Prominent businessman Pal Maciver locked himself in his study and shot himself. It's an open-and-shut case, as far as Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel is concerned. Except...Maciver's father died in an almost identical manner ten years earlier, and "Fat Andy" was the investigating officer. Pal's strange and strained relationship with his beautiful, enigmatic stepmother, Kay Kafka, also raises warning flags. And the family's shady corporate dealings carry two apparent acts of self-slaughter far beyond the borders of Yorkshire, causing policeman Peter Pascoe to question his superior's reticence...and his motives.