Joe McCabe

A sharp detective with a messy life, DCI Vera Stanhope patrols her “patch” of northeast England, pursuing the truth in cases of murder, kidnapping, and blackmail. Vera is obsessive about her work and faces the world with caustic wit, guile and courage.

While "working" for a travelling freak show, the Hillbilly Monster escapes his life of humiliation and servitude. Alone and afraid he becomes injured by an unfriendly bear trap. Befriended by a psychologist and a strange groundskeeper, he recovers from his ordeals in the wilderness and moves on to live a free and better life.