Hidden Depths
A Vera Stanhope Mystery
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4.4 • 262 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
From Ann Cleeves—New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of the Vera and Shetland series, both of which are hit TV shows—comes Hidden Depths.
“Ann Cleeves is one of my favorite mystery writers.”—Louise Penny
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…
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Cleeves's captivating third mystery featuring Det. Chief Insp. Vera Stanhope of the Northumberland police (after Telling Tales), Vera and the members of her team look into the murder of teenager Luke Armstrong, who was found strangled in his bathtub. The way Luke's body was laid out, anointed with perfumed oils and surrounded by wild flowers, suggests a certain respect for the victim. A college student is later discovered on a beach, once again with flowers scattered around the corpse. The two murders appear to be related, but Vera and crew will have to do a lot of digging to determine the exact connection between them. All the players the suspects, police officers, and surviving relatives of the victims are fully realized individuals. Vera, a reflective middle-aged woman who doesn't suffer fools gladly, is particularly vivid. She drinks her beer straight from the bottle and seldom says no to a drop of whisky. Readers will want to devour the entire series just for the pleasure of spending time in Vera's complex and inviting world.
