A USA TODAY Bestseller!
One of PEOPLE's "Best Fall Books"
One of AARP.com's "Best Fall Books"
One of Mystery Tribune's "18 Best Crime, Mystery, and Thrillers of September"
“A friend of mine once joked that the work of Ann Cleeves is the closest the crime-fiction genre comes to evoking ASMR — the euphoric, pleasant, spine-tingling sensation that’s all the rage on YouTube. The books never get too dark, never venture too far into dangerous territory, but aren’t outright cozy, either…. This is the work of a pro — a diverting, solidly crafted mystery that’s guaranteed to entertain.”—New York Times Book Review
"Vera…roots her way to the truth with the charm of a next-door neighbor and the steely resolve of an army general.”—The Wall Street Journal
“What a pleasure to be back in the hands of Ann Cleeves… it is a joy to watch a writer as skilful as Cleeves lay out her version of a locked room mystery. As ever, Cleeves goes deeper, examining the precarious nature of life and what it is to age and face your own mortality. I’m still absolutely reeling…”—The Guardian
“As she always has, Ann Cleeves really grabbed my attention with her latest book, The Rising Tide. And didn’t let go... Vera Stanhope is one of the literary world’s most realistic detectives… This just might be my favorite Vera book, at least thus far.”—Free-Lance Star
"The Rising Tide picked up the pace dramatically as it headed for a crashing conclusion. Eager to ID the killer and find out why early reviewers were commenting as they were, I turned to the book for the final chapters. That’s the definition of a page turner."—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
"A thrilling tale with an ending that catches you by surprise, it’s a story both newbies to Vera and diehard fans will enjoy. 9/10"—The Independent
"A character-driven puzzle that ends in a painful denouement."—Kirkus (Starred)
“Haunting… Flawed characters take center stage in an intense novel with a shocking conclusion.”—Library Journal (Starred)
"Cleeves crafts a clever central puzzle, then confers remarkable emotional complexity using her keenly drawn characters’ advancing age, wistful nostalgia, and thorny shared history. A pinwheeling third-person narrative drives the pace, while Vera’s candor tempers the plot’s darker elements. Fair-play mystery fans will delight."—Publishers Weekly
"The engrossing plot delves into the friends' reminiscences, which seem innocuous but possess an underlying menace. Vera—blunt, intelligent, frumpy and obsessive yet deeply affectionate toward her team—continues to prove her investigative mettle. A visit with Vera—whether in the series or via the television adaptation, now in its 11th season—is always welcome."—Oline Cogdill, Shelf Awareness
Praise for The Darkest Evening:
"Who doesn’t love “large and shabby” Vera Stanhope, the blunt detective in Ann Cleeves’s Northumberland police procedurals? She is already one of the genre immortals."—The New York Times
"Superb . . . This fair-play mystery brims with fully developed suspects and motives that are hidden in plain sight. Skillful misdirection masks the killer’s identity. This page-turner is must reading for fans as well as newcomers."—Publishers Weekly (starred)
"Fans will enjoy matching wits with Cleeves’ eccentric sleuth right up to the dangerous surprise in her denouement."—Kirkus
"Cleeves has a fine time constructing a clockwork murder plot...Loneliness plays both sides of the aisle here, afflicting both Vera and the murderer she hunts."—Booklist
“The Darkest Evening reminds us that the novels are richer, fuller, and more satisfying than any episode of television can be…[Cleeves] is a master of the genre and if anything has gained a step over the years.”—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“The suspense in this complex, extremely well-written mystery is as mesmerizing as the landscape.”—Free-Lance Star
★ 2022-06-22
Indomitable Inspector Vera Stanhope, whose lonely youth with a lawless father has given her a unique approach to crime and punishment, returns in a heartbreaking case.
On the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, off the northeast coast of England, the past drives the present. A small group of old school friends have been meeting there, at Pilgrims’ House, every five years for half a century. They first came to the island on a school trip organized by a young teacher hoping to "challenge their preconceptions" on "a kind of secular retreat." They bonded on that first trip, but what may have really brought them together was the death of Isobel, one of their number, at their first reunion five years later. At that time, Annie and Daniel were married and mourning the loss of a baby. Since then, Lou and Ken have also married, and now Ken has dementia. Rick has become a famous television personality, and Philip, a priest. Now, after a night of drinking and reliving the past, Annie, long divorced from Daniel, finds Rick’s body hanging in his room. The fact that Rick was recently fired from his job over allegations of sexual impropriety does not convince Annie that her notably vain friend would commit suicide and leave himself to be found naked. Soon after Vera and her crew are called in, she confirms that Rick was smothered and hanged. The Holy Island is an island only when the tide covers the causeway; indeed, trying to drive through the water caused Isobel’s death all those years ago. Although there are certainly present-day reasons why someone might have killed Rick, Vera and her team do a deep dive into the past and find an unexpected motive.
A character-driven puzzler that ends in a painful denouement.
