Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsA tale told well
Reviewed in Australia on 21 May 2018
Another great novel by Ann Cleeves with Vera. I keeps you guessing right to the end. If you are astute you might spot the anomaly near the beginning but after that Vera chases down a list of people who could be suspects all as a result of anomalies and secrets revealed. All are reasonable outcomes and they remain live to the end. You just have to keep reading.
Vera is called in to review an old case where a teenage girl is found murdered by her best friend. The father's ex mistress is found guilty but ten years later a witness comes forward to confirm her alibi. Too late as she commits suicide before being told. This means that the murderer is still at large.
Before Vera can proceed very far there is another murder. They seemed linked but she is not part of that investigation. Joe joins her and they work through the three families involved and the original police investigators who have s kilocalories once left the force.
Ann is very good at presenting people's thoughts and reactions. Vera is not a handsome woman and seems to appear when least expected. The interplay in interviews is always interesting and well reported through the thoughts of those involved on top of their conversations.
At first this book moved fairly slowly and the great list of possible suspects have to be introduced before we move into the discovery phase. I was never really sure that people could be written off. So even at the end we can't be sure until the reveal.
These are great books with very well drawn characterisation. Vera is not lovely and is described as a bag lady in one scene. But it works. And this story works.
