Wilful Cruelty

A malicious attack on a dark street leaves a corpse, a widow and a town reeling. A case with all the hallmarks of orchestrated violence. But something darker swirls in the shadows.

With Warlow sidelined after surgery, DI Jess Allanby inherits a case that refuses to settle. Evidence is fragmentary. Motives blur. Senior officers care more about appearances than answers. Every decision is watched. Every mistake remembered.

As her team chases CCTV, scorched vehicles and reluctant witnesses, Warlow stumbles across a quieter abuse of power. One built on manipulation and manufactured fear. The echo between the cases becomes impossible to ignore and hinge on the same uncomfortable truth.

Cruelty doesn’t always look like rage.

Sometimes it looks like strategy.

Wilful Cruelty is the twentieth novel from bestselling crime author Rhys Dylan, delivering the series’ characteristic precision and unease. Recommended for readers of JD Kirk, TG Reid and Peter Robinson.