North Devon is enjoying a rare hot summer with tourists flocking to its coast-line. Detective Matthew Venn is called out to a rural crime scene at the home of a group of artists. What he finds is an elaborately staged murder – Dr Nigel Yeo has been fatally stabbed. His daughter, Eve, is a glassblower, and the murder weapon is a shard of one of her broken vases.
Dr Yeo seems an unlikely murder victim. He’s a good man, a public servant, beloved by his daughter. Matthew is unnerved though to find that Eve is a close friend of Jonathan, his husband.
Then another body is found – killed in a similar way. Matthew finds himself treading carefully through the lies that fester at the heart of his community and a case that is dangerously close to home . . .
The Heron’s Cry is the second novel in Ann Cleeves’ Two Rivers series following her Sunday Times bestseller, The Long Call.
My Review
The dramatic murder of Dr Nigel Yeo using a shard of glass from a beautiful vase made by his daughter, Eve, puzzles all who knew him. Everyone liked Nigel, but his job investigating complaints against local medical authorities may have brought him enemies.
Detective Inspector Matthew Venn hopes to find the culprit soon, but his approach as usual is measured and careful. The case is a welcome distraction from the dinner invitation Matthew’s partner, Jonathan, has extended to Matthew’s estranged mother. Jonathan is a foil to Matthew’s tension, being open, friendly and a good communicator.
The police are horrified when another similar murder occurs and we are introduced to a range of possible suspects in the local community of North Devon. Their inquiries are further complicated by the discovery of a website where vulnerable young people are encouraged to commit suicide.
I enjoyed this book far more than the first in the series as we learn more about the motives and feelings of Matthew’s colleagues. Characterisation is excellent and the final solution is unpredictable.
The Heron’s Cry on Amazon UK
My Review of The Long Call Book 1 in this series
Lizanne lost in a good book 
I’ve only read the first one in this series, I must get to this one.
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Ann Cleeves is a ‘go to writer’ for sure.
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