Hidden Depths: A Vera Stanhope Mystery [Paperback]

Now available in the U.S.,Hidden Depthsis an early book in Diamond Dagger award-winning crime novelist Ann Cleevess Vera Stanhope series, brought to life in the hit TV seriesVera.

On a hot summer on the Northumberland coast, Julie Armstrong arrives home from a night out to find her son murdered. Luke has been strangled, laid out in a bath of water and covered with wild flowers.

This stylized murder scene has Inspector Vera Stanhope and her team intrigued. But now, Vera must work quickly to find this killer who is making art out of death. As local residents are forced to share their private lives, sinister secrets are slowly unearthed.

And all the while the killer remains in their midst, waiting for an opportunity to prepare another beautiful, watery grave&

I do love Vera! Val McDermid

Cleeves offers up evocative settings and flawed characters with depth, making her mysteries wonderfully addictive. Her latest is no exception. Library Journal(Starred Review) onHarbour Street

Praise for Ann Cleeves:

Captivating...Readers will want to devour the entire series just for the pleasure of spending time in Vera's complex and inviting world. --Publishers Weekly

Hidden Depthsis a subtle, nuanced book, and Cleeves draws her characters with care and compassion. The landscape of rural Northumberland is vividly evoked and Inspector Stanhope--overweight, fallible, and driven by personal demons--is a terrific central character. --Tribune

Hidden Depthsis another classic, traditional crime novel in a contemporary setting by Ann Cleeves, winner of last year's Duncan Lawrie Dagger... The story follows each of the main characters in turn, but it is fat, lonely Vera, awkward with her staff and unaware that they are frightened of her, who makes the biggest impression in this skilfully crafted mystery --Sunday Telegraph

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