The Smuggler's Bones
(2025)(The second book in the D I Rowan Penhallow series)
A novel by Wendy Cartmell
Justice delayed for fifty years. But justice nonetheless.
When builders renovating a centuries-old coastal pub discover human remains sealed behind a false wall, DI Rowan Penhallow and her faithful Jack Russell terrier Buddy are called to investigate. The victim, still wearing a faded Customs & Excise uniform, has been hidden for fifty years—but before the cold case can be fully opened, a present-day fisherman is found murdered on his boat, killed in an eerily similar manner.
As Rowan delves into Devon's secretive smuggling heritage, she uncovers a conspiracy that has poisoned families for generations. The fisherman had been decoding his late father's logbooks, mysterious documents filled with ancient symbols that point to something far more valuable than contraband spirits: a stolen painting worth over two million pounds, hidden somewhere in the treacherous cave systems beneath the cliffs.
Rowan must navigate family loyalties, coded smugglers' marks, and tide-dependent cave systems to catch a murderer before anyone else pays the price for getting too close to the truth.
In the tradition of Ann Cleeves, LJ Ross, Richard Osman and Midsummer Murders, The Smuggler's Bones is a gripping mystery that weaves historical injustice with modern police procedural, where the tide always turns and buried secrets inevitably come to light.
Genre: Mystery
When builders renovating a centuries-old coastal pub discover human remains sealed behind a false wall, DI Rowan Penhallow and her faithful Jack Russell terrier Buddy are called to investigate. The victim, still wearing a faded Customs & Excise uniform, has been hidden for fifty years—but before the cold case can be fully opened, a present-day fisherman is found murdered on his boat, killed in an eerily similar manner.
As Rowan delves into Devon's secretive smuggling heritage, she uncovers a conspiracy that has poisoned families for generations. The fisherman had been decoding his late father's logbooks, mysterious documents filled with ancient symbols that point to something far more valuable than contraband spirits: a stolen painting worth over two million pounds, hidden somewhere in the treacherous cave systems beneath the cliffs.
Rowan must navigate family loyalties, coded smugglers' marks, and tide-dependent cave systems to catch a murderer before anyone else pays the price for getting too close to the truth.
In the tradition of Ann Cleeves, LJ Ross, Richard Osman and Midsummer Murders, The Smuggler's Bones is a gripping mystery that weaves historical injustice with modern police procedural, where the tide always turns and buried secrets inevitably come to light.
Genre: Mystery
Used availability for Wendy Cartmell's The Smuggler's Bones