Author: Ann Cleeves
Publisher: Pan MacMillan
Reviewer: Sally Bothroyd
Ann Cleeves is a crime-writing powerhouse with a huge list of novels to her name, and many are set in some of the UK’s wilder locations, including the islands off the coast of Scotland.
Somehow I’d never read one of her forty-plus (!) novels before although I have seen the occasional episode of Vera. It’s hardly surprising, but from the moment I began reading this police procedural set on the Orkney Islands, I knew I was in expert hands.
There is mention of some of the backstory of the main protagonist Jimmy Perez (from Cleeves’ Shetland series), but it wasn’t belaboured, and it wasn’t necessary to have read the previous novels to understand what was happening in this one.
The Killing Stones centres on the murder of a childhood friend of Jimmy Perez, found dead at an archeological dig site on one of the Orkney islands.
Cleeves introduces the reader to the Orkney Islands ancient history and natural beauty, as well as describing the interconnected nature of the communities living on these islands, which are sometimes cut off from Scotland by bad weather.
It’s a standard procedural told with standard narrative style for the genre. There’s a biggish cast, with enough dodgy characters and red herrings to keep the reader guessing, but the police officers are well-developed and believable characters, and we follow them step by step as they take on the investigation.
In my backpacking days (many years ago) I visited the Orkneys and reading this novel made me want to go back there again, although I’d aim to visit in summer!
I am inspired to read some more Ann Cleeves (or watch Shetland on the TV if I’m feeling lazy). It’s also interesting to note that Ann Cleeves was awarded an OBE in 2022 for her services to reading and libraries! The UK knows how to show appreciation to its authors.
Publisher blur
When a violent storm descends upon Orkney, the body of Archie Stout is left in its wake. An unusual murder weapon, a Neolithic stone bearing ancient inscriptions, is found discarded nearby. Archie was a popular, larger-than-life character, and his death is a shocking blow to the community.
Detective Jimmy Perez, no stranger to the complexity of human nature and the darkness it can harbour, is soon on the scene. He counted Archie as a childhood friend, so this case is more personal than most. Now living in Orkney with his partner, Willow, and their son, Perez is soon drawn into the lives of the islanders, many of whom harbour secrets. Dark secrets, which could have led to the man’s murder.
Here, in these ancient lands where history runs deep, Perez must discern the truth from legend before a desperate killer strikes again . . .