Kathy Shuker

Silent Faces, Painted Ghosts Kathy Shuker

Terri is a talented art curator, stagnating in a dead end job in London. Her ex-boyfriend, Oliver, is violent and abusive and now he's stalking her; a post curating the retrospective of a famous but reclusive artist seems the perfect escape. Portrait painter, Peter Stedding, lives in the mountains of Provence, in a house he shares with his wife, daughter and eccentric sister, Celia. The setting is idyllic; the atmosphere is not: Peter is rude and obstructive, his household strained and silent. The place holds secrets, it becomes clear: stories no-one is allowed to tell. So what is Peter hiding? And why should Terri care? Her past has its own dark ghosts. Anyway, she's got an exhibition to organize. Searching through Peter's old paintings, Terri finds a tantalising clue. Soon she is caught up in a cat and mouse game in search of the truth. But is it wise to start digging up the past?