Purchase
Minotaur Books
June 2009
On Sale: June 9, 2009
400 pages
ISBN: 031238114X
EAN: 9780312381141
Hardcover
Add to Wish List
Suspense | Mystery
Clara Benning, a veterinary surgeon in charge of a wildlife hospital in a small English village, is young and intelligent, but nearly a recluse. Disfigured by a childhood accident, she generally prefers the company of animals to people. But when a local man dies following a supposed snakebite, Claraβs expertise is needed. Sheβs chilled to learn that the victimβs postmortem shows a higher concentration of venom than could ever be found in a single snakeβand that therefore the killer must be human.
Assisted by a soft-spoken neighbor and an eccentric reptile expert, Clara unravels sinister links to an abandoned house, an ancient ritual, and a fifty-year- old tragedy that has left the survivors secretive. But for someone the truth must remain buried in the pastβeven if they have to kill to keep it there.
Awakening is a disturbing tale of dark secrets and insidious rituals that will have readers unable to stop for a breath until theyβve reach the stunning climax of this extraordinary read from the author of the acclaimed debut novel Sacrifice.
| 
© 2003-2026