The Heron's Cry

by Ann Cleeves

First published 2021

Detective Matthew Venn arrives at a crime scene that hits uncomfortably close to home. Dr Nigel Yeo lies dead in an artists' commune, stabbed with glass from his own daughter's broken vase. The staging appears deliberate. The victim seems wrong for murder. Yeo served the public faithfully and earned his daughter's devotion. Venn discovers the daughter knows Jonathan, his husband. A second body appears, killed by similar methods. The detective must navigate deceptions that run deep in his own community. North Devon bakes under unusual summer heat as tourists crowd the coast. Venn faces a case where personal connections threaten professional judgment. The investigation forces him through layers of local lies while the killer remains active.

Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective

Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, suspenseful

Tropes: amateur-sleuth, personal-stakes

Setting: North Devon

Period: 21st-century

382 pages · Hardcover · Minotaur Books

More by Ann Cleeves

• The Long Call
• The Darkest Evening
• The Rising Tide
• The Killing Stones
• The Raging Storm
• The Dark Wives
• The Crow Trap
• Many Deadly Returns

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