Title: The Dark WivesAuthor: Ann Cleeves
Series: Vera Stanhope #11
Published by: Pan Macmillan on Aug. 29, 2024
Genres: Mystery/Thriller, Police Procedural
Pages: 384
Format: ARC, Paperback
Source: Publishers Group Canada
Book Rating: 9/10
A LOCAL MYTH. A DEADLY THREAT.
A body is found by an early morning dog walker on the common outside Rosebank, a care home for troubled teens. The victim is Josh, a staff member, who never showed up to work.
DI Vera Stanhope is called out to investigate. Her only clue is the disappearance of fourteen-year-old resident Chloe. Vera can’t bring herself to believe that a teenager is responsible for the murder, but even she can’t dismiss the possibility.
Vera, Joe and new team member Rosie are soon embroiled in the case, but when a second body is found near the Three Dark Wives standing stones in the wilds of the Northumbrian countryside, folklore and fact begin to collide.
Vera knows she has to find Chloe to get to the truth, but it seems that the dark secrets in their community may be far more dangerous than she could ever have believed. . .
Review:
Sinister, mysterious, and tight!
The Dark Wives is an intense, intricate thrill ride featuring the dependable DI Vera Stanhope and her loyal, hardworking team as they work together as quickly as possible to solve the puzzling murder of a young group home worker and find a somehow connected missing teen.
The writing is sharp and meticulous. The characters are intelligent, multilayered, and persistent. And the plot is an unpredictable, ominous tale filled with twists, turns, deception, red herrings, suspicious personalities, corruption, secrets, deduction, greed, and murder.
Overall, The Dark Wives is another thrilling, addictive, well-crafted addition to a series that, with its credible characters, great pace, and constant sense of urgency, is still one of my all-time favourites.
This book is available now.
Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.
Thank you to PGC Books for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
About Ann Cleeves
Ann Cleeves is the author behind PBS’s Vera and BBC One’s Shetland. She has written over twenty-five novels, and is the creator of detectives Vera Stanhope and Jimmy Perez – characters loved both on screen and in print. Her books have now sold over 1 million copies worldwide.
Ann worked as a probation officer, bird observatory cook and auxiliary coastguard before becoming a crime writer. She is a member of ‘Murder Squad’, working with other British northern writers to promote crime fiction. In 2006 Ann was awarded the Duncan Lawrie Dagger (CWA Gold Dagger) for Best Crime Novel, for Raven Black, the first book in her Shetland series, and in 2012 she was inducted into the CWA Crime Thriller Awards Hall of Fame. Ann lives in North Tyneside, England.
