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David Raker book cover 1
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David Raker
Series · 15
books · 2009-2024

Books in series

Chasing the Dead book cover
#1

Chasing the Dead

2009

It starts out as a sad but hopeless case of mistaken identity. A year after the death of her son Alex, Mary Towne is convinced she's seen him alive - and wants missing persons investigator David Raker to find him. Reluctant at first, but haunted by a loss of his own, Raker eventually agrees.
The Dead Tracks book cover
#2

The Dead Tracks

2011

"The Dead Tracks" is the second in the David Raker series from Tim Weaver. A serial killer more terrifying than you could ever imagine...Seventeen-year-old Megan Carver was an unlikely runaway. A straight - a student from a happy home, she studied hard and rarely got into trouble. Six months on, she's never been found. Missing persons investigator David Raker knows what it's like to grieve. He knows the shadowy world of the lost too. So, when he's hired by Megan's parents to find out what happened, he recognizes their pain - but knows that the darkest secrets can be buried deep. And Megan's secrets could cost him his life. Because as Raker investigates her disappearance, he realizes everything is a lie. People close to her are dead. Others are too terrified to talk. And soon the conspiracy of silence leads Raker towards a forest on the edge of the city. A place with a horrifying history - which was once the hunting ground for a brutal, twisted serial killer. A place known as the Dead Tracks...Hot on the heels of "Chasing the Dead", "The Dead Tracks" by Tim Weaver revisits David Raker and his complex missing persons cases. Fans of Mo Hayder's "Gone" and Michael Marshall Smith's "The Straw Men" should look this way. Praise for Tim Weaver: "Impressive debut...Fans of Mo Hayder will be in seventh hell". ("Guardian"). "Perfect plotting, great characterisation, and the kind of payoff that a thriller of this calibre deserves". (Bookgeeks). "A taut thriller". (Barry Forshaw). Tim Weaver was born in 1977. At eighteen, he left school and started working in magazine journalism, and has since gone on to develop a successful career writing about films, TV, sport, games and technology. He is married with a young daughter, and lives near Bath. "Vanished" is Tim's third David Raker novel, which follow his highly acclaimed debut "Chasing the Dead" and its sequel, "The Dead Tracks". Tortured by his wife's early death, David Raker is one of the most charismatic, sensitive and unique missing persons investigators in current crime fiction.
Vanished book cover
#3

Vanished

2012

For millions of Londoners, the morning of 16 December is just like any other. But not for Sam Wren. An hour after leaving home, he gets on a Tube train - and never gets off again. No witnesses. No trace of him on security cameras. Six months later, he's still missing. Out of options and desperate for answers, Sam's wife Julia hires David Raker to track him down. Raker has made a career out of finding the lost. He knows how they think. And in missing person cases, the only certainty is that everyone has something to hide. But in this case the secrets go deeper than anyone imagined. For, as Raker starts to suspect that even the police are lying to him, someone is watching. Someone who knows what happened on the Tube that day. And with Raker in his sights, he'll do anything to keep Sam's secrets to himself.
Never Coming Back book cover
#4

Never Coming Back

2013

A bestseller in the UK, this gripping thriller of a family that vanishes into thin air is Tim Weaver’s American debut Emily Kane arrives at her sister Carrie’s house to find the front door unlocked, dinner on the table, and the family nowhere to be found—Carrie, her husband, and two daughters have disappeared. When the police turn up no leads, Emily turns to her former boyfriend David Raker, a missing persons investigator, to track the family down. As Raker pursues the case, he discovers evidence of a sinister cover-up, decades in the making and with a long trail of bodies behind it. Tim Weaver’s thrillers have been hugely popular in the UK, and now Never Coming Back will introduce his beloved character David Raker to American audiences. Set in Las Vegas and a small fishing village in England, the novel is a smart, fast-paced thriller sure to keep readers guessing until the very end.
Il giornalista inglese book cover
#4.5

Il giornalista inglese

2013

Lucinda Berrington started out life as a travel photographer in London, but four years later she's in Cape Town, working with the South African Police Service, under the command of the damaged and lonely Bill Zill. When a student is murdered, Ben and Lucinda suspect the killer is using social media to target his victims. But how do you find a killer who's invisible online? With every lead a dead end, an English journalist might hold the key...
Fall From Grace book cover
#5

Fall From Grace

2014

No Goodbye When Leonard Franks and his wife, Ellie, leave London for their dream retirement in the seclusion of Dartmoor, everything seems perfect. But then their new life is shattered. Leonard heads outside to fetch firewood from the back of the house - and never returns. No Trace Nine months later, with the police investigation at a dead end, Leonard's family turn to David Raker - a missing persons investigator with a gift for finding the lost. But nothing can prepare Raker for what he's about to uncover. Nowhere to Hide Because at the heart of this disappearance lies a devastating secret. And by the time Raker realises what it is, and how deep the lies go, it's not just him in danger - it's everyone he cares about.
What Remains book cover
#6

What Remains

2015

\\Alternative cover edition for ASIN: B00SGJ5GRE https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...\\ From the bestselling author of Never Coming Back and the chart-topping Missing podcast, comes the latest David Raker missing persons investigation. 'Weaver has become one of this country's most respected, bestselling crime writers, and he fully deserves to be. Written with elegance, care and craft, What Remains is a luminous example of what a considerable talent Weaver has become. Catch him at once' Daily Mail \\\* Missing persons investigator David Raker specializes in finding the lost. Whether dead or alive, he brings home the truth to the families left behind. But there's one person he's never been able to save. Colm Healy was one of the Met's best detectives - until the unsolved murders of a mother and her twin daughters consumed his career, his family and his life. For him, there can be no redemption without justice. Re-opening the case together, Raker soon learns the hard way how this puzzle breeds obsession. But the worst is yet to come. Because, at the end of this trail of tragedy and darkness, an elusive killer watches, waits - and prepares to bury the truth forever... 'Impressive ... a lacerating investigation, which takes readers into the furthest reaches of obsession. A dark, complex and visceral read' Financial Times \\\* Praise for Tim Weaver: 'Weaver's books get better each time - tense, complex, sometimes horrific, written with flair as well as care'Guardian 'I couldn't put it down' Sun 'Weaver has delivered another cracking crime thriller' Daily Mail 'Weaver knows how to construct a complex plot ... you will be kept guessing until the last few pages. David Raker has joined a select band of fictional characters whose return in a new book excites existing fans and collects new ones with every publication' Crime Fiction Lover
Broken Heart book cover
#7

Broken Heart

2016

FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF RICHARD & JUDY THRILLER PICK NO ONE HOME \\LONG-LISTED FOR THE CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION IAN FLEMING STEEL DAGGER AWARD\\ Lynda drives to a secluded beauty spot on the Somerset coast. CCTV watches her arrive, but never sees her leave. She is never seen again. Why would a woman with no reason to run leave her entire life behind? Missing and presumed dead, only Lynda knows the truth . . . Was it her decision? Or did someone make it for her? 'I can't remember a thriller containing so many twists and surprises. It grips from the start' The Times, Book of the Month
I Am Missing book cover
#8

I Am Missing

2017

'Tim Weaver is the rising star of British crime and I Am Missing will haunt your dreams' Tony Parsons, Sunday Times Number One bestselling author of the DC Max Wolfe series When a young man wakes up bruised, beaten and with no memory of who he is or where he came from, the press immediately dub him 'The Lost Man'. Ten months later, Richard Kite - if that is even his real name - remains as desperate as ever. Despite appeals and the efforts of the police, no one knows this man. Kite's last hope may be private investigator David Raker - a seasoned locator of missing people. But Raker has more questions than answers. Who is Richard Kite? Why does no one know him? And what links him to the body of a woman found beside a London railway line two years ago? I Am Missing is the outstanding new novel from Sunday Times bestselling author Tim Weaver. 'Tim Weaver writes books so meticulously researched that the reader is educated as well as entertained, enthralled and intrigued. David Raker is a most complex and engaging investigator, each case leaving its mark on his soul, and ours' Liz Nugent, Sunday Times bestselling author of Lying in Wait
You Were Gone book cover
#9

You Were Gone

2018

Three days after Christmas, a woman walks into a police station. She has no phone and no ID, just a piece of paper with the name of investigator David Raker on it. She tells officers that Raker is her husband. SHE SAYS SHE'S MY WIFE. When he turns up at the station, Raker is stunned. The woman looks exactly like his wife. She knows all about their marriage, their history, even private conversations the two of them had. There's just one problem: Raker's wife has been dead for eight years. MY WIFE DIED . . . DIDN'T SHE? The woman tells the police that Raker had a breakdown. A respected doctor backs up her account. Items are missing that prove Raker's side of the story - and, worst of all, he soon becomes the prime suspect in a disappearance. SHE'S EITHER A LIAR - OR I AM. Could Raker have imagined their whole marriage? Is he delusional? Is this really the woman he loved and grieved for? Hunted by the police, Raker will have to find out the truth before it costs him everything - his memories, his sanity, his life . . .
No One Home book cover
#10

No One Home

2019

On Halloween night, four households gather for a party in the tiny Yorkshire village of Black Gale. Three hours in, they head outside, onto the darkened moors, to play a drunken game of hide and seek. None of them return. There's no trail, no evidence and no answers. An entire village has just vanished. With the police investigation dead in the water, the families of the disappeared ask missing persons investigator David Raker to find out what happened. But nothing can prepare him for the truth.
The Shadow at the Door book cover
#10.5

The Shadow at the Door

2021

THE GRIPPING DAVID RAKER SHORT STORY COLLECTION FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR . . . 'The mystery behind the stories had my imagination running wild' 5\\\\\* READER REVIEW 'Draws you in right from the start . . . Full of suspense' 5\\\\\* READER REVIEW 'Each story is intriguing, compelling and addictive. Brilliant' 5\\\\\* READER REVIEW \\\\\\\\ FOUR MYSTERIES It's a night just like any other in the Conister home - but then Paul heads upstairs and never comes back. When his wife Maggie goes to see where he is, she can't find him. His phone and wallet are by the bed. The windows are locked from the inside. Paul has vanished. FOUR STORIES Missing persons investigator David Raker is an expert in locating the lost. So when he's hired by Maggie, he knows that in every disappearance - however impossible it seems - there's an answer. What he doesn't know yet is that his search for Paul Conister will become linked to three other mysteries . . . ONE CONNECTION A night patrolman on the London Underground makes a deadly discovery. A cold case is reopened - but the key witness appears to no longer exist. And thousands of miles away, a random shooting may not be random at all. David Raker is key to unlocking the truth . . . \\\\\\\\ Praise for Tim 'Smart, pacy and completely gripping' T.M. LOGAN 'So many twists and surprises' TIMES 'Impressive' GUARDIAN 'Terrific' SUNDAY TIMES 'I couldn't put it down' SUN 'Twisty, unpredictable and so gripping' CLAIRE DOUGLAS 'Packed with twists' DAILY EXPRESS 'Genuinely original' GILLIAN MCALLISTER
The Blackbird book cover
#11

The Blackbird

2022

THIS IS A MISSING PERSONS CASE LIKE NOTHING YOU'VE SEEN BEFORE . . . 'Tim Weaver is the master of clever, unpredictable plots' CLAIRE DOUGLAS 'If you haven't yet met Raker, you're in for a treat' MICK HERRON 'A fine addition to an excellent series' OBSERVER 'Brilliant . . . A jaw-dropping number of twists and turns. Truly excellent' B.A. PARIS \\\\\\ CCTV footage captures Cate and Aiden Gascoigne driving home seconds before their car plunges into a ravine and explodes. When fire crews arrive, the vehicle is empty. Cate and Aiden have vanished. Missing persons investigator David Raker has solved too many impossible cases. He knows that behind every disappearance lies a dark tale waiting to be uncovered. What he doesn't know is how dark this one is - or how close it will get to him . . . \\\\\\ 'Shocking, gripping, heart-pounding, The Blackbird is unputdownable . . . Bloody brilliant' NIKKI MAY 'The impressive Weaver triumphs again with this intricate mystery' DAILY MAIL 'A wonderfully complex, riveting and engaging read that kept me glued to the pages from beginning to end with its sky high levels of suspense and tension' 5\\\\\* Reader Review 'A superb twisty crime thriller - writing at its very best. Will keep you on the edge of your seat and guessing right up to the end' 5\\\\\* Reader Review 'I always look forward to a new Raker but The Blackbird blew me away. Brilliantly plotted, deliciously dark and so clever and unpredictable I was left reeling as I turned the last page. I'm already eagerly awaiting Tim Weaver's next. A writer at the top of his game' Claire Douglas 'Taut and immersive, with all the hallmarks of a true crime novel' Catherine Steadman 'Incredibly well-paced, with menacing, clever twists - Raker is back in this stunning read from one of the masters of the genre. Tim Weaver goes from strength to strength and this is his best book yet' Phoebe Morgan
The Last Goodbye book cover
#12

The Last Goodbye

2023

ONE DAY AGO... On the night Tom Brenner and his nine-year-old son Leo visit the Seven Peaks theme park, they head straight for the ghost house. They go in. But they don't come out. Somewhere inside the ride, impossible as it seems, the two of them simply vanish. FORTY YEARS AGO... When Rebekah Murphy was three, her mother walked out of their childhood home and never returned. Nearly four decades on, Fiona Murphy is still missing. But then, out of the blue, a letter arrives in the post. It says it's from Fiona. WHAT IS THE CONNECTION? Missing persons investigator David Raker is hired by Rebekah to find out if the letter is actually from Fiona - and, if it isn't, why someone would pretend to be her. But this is a mystery whose secrets were never meant to be found. And as Raker starts to connect the dots from Fiona to the Brenners, he begins to realise he can't trust anyone - even the people closest to him...
The Missing Family book cover
#13

The Missing Family

2024

One family... On a beautiful summer's day, at a remote lake in the middle of Dartmoor, three members of the Fowler family take a dinghy out onto the water, leaving mother Sarah at the shore. Less than sixty seconds later, she checks to see where they are. The boat is drifting in the middle of the lake. It's empty. Sarah's family have completely vanished. One killer... At the Skyline Casino in London, the security team have just made a headline-grabbing they've spotted and detained a man suspected of murdering a high roller. After locking him in one of their holding cells, the team station themselves outside and wait for the police. But when the cops arrive, they find something impossible. The killer is no longer inside the cell. Two detectives... David Raker is an expert at solving missing persons puzzles - but these mysteries are unlike anything he's ever seen. As he digs into the Fowler's, his long-time ally - ex-detective, Colm Healy - tries to get to the bottom of what happened at the casino. But the men are in danger. Because, buried in the shadows of both cases, is a deadly secret that was never meant to come out...

Author

Tim Weaver
Tim Weaver
Author · 18 books
Tim Weaver is the Sunday Times Top 3 bestselling author of the David Raker missing persons series, the standalone thriller, Missing Pieces, and the novella collection, The Shadow at the Door. His novels have been selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club three times, and his work has been nominated for a National Book Award and the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger. He is currently developing an original TV drama with the team behind Line of Duty. A former journalist and magazine editor, he lives near Bath with his wife and daughter. Find out more about Tim and his writing at www.timweaverbooks.com.
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