Hidden Norfolk · #13
Dead To Me
Let go of your past... or it will be the death of you...
When a man's body is discovered crammed into the boot of an abandoned car in a remote location, DI Tom Janssen and his team must unpick his life to find out how he came to be there.
The victim was a local man, popular with some although hated by others, and he had a habit of making enemies, enemies that any sane man would seek to avoid. For once, the team do not struggle to find a suspect or a motive for his murder, but with several to choose from, how can they determine who delivered the killing blows? Those who despised the man are unrepentant and as the investigation develops there seems to be more going on than a simple act of vengeance. What did the deceased have to hide and who was so intent on keeping their own secrets that they were prepared to brutally kill to do so?
With a killer at large the public are restless, reassured only by the suggestion that the murder is an act perpetrated by figures within the criminal community against one of their own, but when a troubled teenage girl disappears fear takes hold in the small coastal town. The only potential witness is an eccentric homeless man who comes and goes as he pleases, often disappearing for months at a time. Who did he see? What does he know? Will he be the next to be silenced?
What looked like a simple revenge attack will turn into a race against time for Tom and his team as they try to protect the innocent and reveal the guilty... only no one knows with any certainty who belongs in which camp.
Dead To Me is the thirteenth novel in the Hidden Norfolk crime series by the multi-million selling British crime writer, JM Dalgliesh, the author of the Dark Yorkshire books. Perfect for fans of JD Kirk, Damien Boyd, LJ Ross, Rachel McLean and Simon McCleave.
The series
Tucked away on England’s brooding east coast, where the land bleeds into mist and marsh, the Hidden Norfolk series unfolds with quiet intensity. It’s here—beneath the surface of a place known more for coastal charm than crime—that the past lingers like fog and truth is a slippery, shifting thing.
Read full series description
Following Detective Inspector Tom Janssen, each story peels back the veneer of village life, revealing the tension, trauma, and long-buried secrets that ripple just beneath. These aren’t crimes of convenience—they’re rooted deep in character, shaped by community and carried out in silence. In this world, justice isn’t clean-cut, and resolution rarely comes without personal cost.
What makes the series stand out in the realm of British detective fiction is its devotion to atmosphere over action. The sense of place is almost a character in itself—windswept beaches, fading skies, and forgotten lanes form the backdrop to crimes that echo long after the final page. The pacing is deliberate, the storytelling intimate, and the emotional weight unflinching.
Fans of slow-burn crime novels, rich in psychological complexity and steeped in setting, will find themselves drawn into the quiet power of these investigations. There’s nothing flashy here—just sharp writing, layered plots, and a protagonist whose quiet persistence mirrors the landscape he patrols. In Hidden Norfolk, every whisper of wind might be carrying a secret, and no one is ever quite as innocent as they seem.
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#12 · 2022Angel of Death 
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#18 · 2027Hidden Norfolk Book 18 Be the first reviewer
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