8.2 /10 1 Votes
Language English Publication date 1999 Pages 408 pp Originally published 1999 Genre Thriller | 4.1/5 Goodreads Publisher Penguin Books Canada Media type Print (Hardback) ISBN 0-670-88909-1 Country United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Awards Dilys Award, Anthony Award for Best Novel Nominations Edgar Award for Best Novel Similar Val McDermid books, Crime Fiction books, Police books | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A Place of Execution is an acclaimed crime novel by Val McDermid, first published in 1999. The novel won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, the 2001 Dilys Award, was shortlisted for both the Gold Dagger and the Edgar Award, and was chosen by the New York Times as one of the most notable books of the year.
Contents
It has two parallel storylines; the first, set in 1963, follows Detective Inspector George Bennett, who attempts to locate a missing girl in Derbyshire. The second, set in the present day, follows journalist Catherine Heathcote, whose plans to publish a story of the investigation are derailed when Bennett inexplicably stops cooperating and she attempts to find out why.
Television adaption
A three-part drama entitled Place of Execution based on the novel was screened on ITV in the UK from 22 September to 6 October 2008. The series was nominated for The TV Dagger at the 2009 Crime Thriller Awards, and star Juliet Stevenson was awarded Best Actress on 21 October 2009. It also aired as a two-part series in November 2009 in the US as part of the anthology series Masterpiece: Mystery!. The teleplay won the 2010 Edgar Allan Poe Award for best television episode teleplay from the Mystery Writers of America.