I was lucky enough to see the author Ann Cleeves give a talk about her novels and her writing a couple of years ago at the St Endellion ‘Litfest’. It goes without saying she was excellent and teh talk was really fascinating, telling us not only about her next book to be published in her Matthew Venn series, but also about the way she writes, how she thinks of her story-lines, how her characters develop, and her secret for the unexpected ending which always delights we her fans with. I am as ever excited that she’s got a new Matthew Venn story coming out next week. Here is the blurb:
Detective Matthew Venn is called in to investigate a puzzling death. The body of a young woman has been found in the swimming pool of Tide House, a luxurious holiday home in North Devon, and her best friend is missing. The property belongs to rising political star Paul Armstrong and the case quickly draws intense media scrutiny.
As a scorching heat wave rages and further tragedy strikes, Venn and his team begin questioning a community brimming with secrets. The dead woman and her friend had been spotted at a nearby music festival the day before, an event which brought locals and outsiders together – some of whom may have been more connected with the Armstrongs than first thought.
Caught between a powerful family’s secrets and a powder keg of local tensions, Venn must navigate a treacherous path. Knowing that the real answers lie not in what people say, but in the silence that they keep.
I haven’t read any of this blurb, copied and pasted it from Amazon with my eyes half-closed so I don’t spoil any surprises for myself. . . .
