A winter's evening and a trio of unruly youths board a bus and gang up on teenager Luke Murray, hurling abuse and threatening to kill him. The bus is full but no one intervenes until Jason Barnes, a young student, challenges the youths with devastating consequences.Split Second tackles questions of bravery, fear and kindness and explores the real human impact of violent crime.

Praise for Cath Staincliffe,

A book about courage and compromise, about how sometimes it's kinder and braver to lie. Stunning. Anne Cleeves.

Modest, compassionate...a solid ingenious plotter with a sharp eye for domestic detail.' Literary Review

'Complex and satisfying.' The Sunday Times

'About as good as the British private eye novel gets.' Time Out

'An engrossing read'. Sunday Telegraph