Ann Cleeves famous for her Shetland and Vera Stanhope series begins a new series following Detective Inspector Matthew Venn. Venn had an unusual childhood growing up in a strict religious sect. One day as a young man he had a crisis of faith and left the group and his family disowned him. Alone in the world and unused to society he tried college but felt a calling to the rules and laws of the police force.

Matthew followed his husband back to Barnstaple near where he, Matthew, grew up. Matthew's husband, Johnathan runs the Woodyard Center, a community center for adult learning, art and nature classes and a special area for learning disabled adults. A volunteer at the center has been found murdered on the beach near Matthew's home. Then a woman with Down Syndrome who visits the center is kidnapped, are the two connected and if so why and how. What was the volunteer planning and who was he really? Simon the volunteer seems to be a man of many secrets and great woe. Once they find the missing woman another woman with Down Syndrome goes missing, what secret does the woman know and who is killing to protect it.

Can Matthew find out who is behind the murder and find the poor woman before it is too late?
Ann Cleeves talent really shines in this new series. Mystery fans are going to love Matthew and his team.

This is my first book by Ann Cleves. I like and can appreciate a good mystery. This book just didn't work for me. It had very interesting parts but dragged on and on. I didn't connect with any of the characters. I definitely liked the plot basis but I needed a faster pace and less nonsense. Special thanks to NetGalley, Minotaur/ St. Martin's Press and Ann Cleaves for the advanced digital copy in return for my honest opinion.

The first entry in a new mystery series, The Long Call, by Ann Cleeves, features police detective, Matthew Venn. Although I was not familiar with the author’s work, I was excited to read this book because Cleeves is often compared to Louise Penny. Suffice to say, I am a bit in love with Inspector Gamache!

I really wanted to like this book. The characters are extremely complex, diverse, and interesting. However, there is a brooding quality that pervades and weighs down the story. It also seems that much of the narrative is in the thoughts of the characters rather than their actions or words. I found this is a slow read, partly because the plot plods and meanders.

I will probably give this series another try with the next book. Cleeves’ reputation is such that I wonder if I’m just not in the proper state of mind for this sort of mystery. If mystery is your genre, I would certainly give this book a solid chance.

Thanks to NetGalley, Ann Cleeves, and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

English crime writer Ann Cleeves launches new detective series
By Sandy Mahaffey For The Free Lance–Star Sep 7, 2019
Confession time: as much as I love the BBC series “Vera,” I have never read any of the books by Ann Cleeves that the show is based on.

Recently, I read that one of my favorite authors, Louise Penny, considers Cleeves to be one of her favorite writers. It was daunting to think about starting at the beginning of a series, so I was thrilled to get my hands on Cleeves’ “The Long Call,” the first in a new series.

Detective Matthew Venn and husband Jonathan have moved to North Devon, an English coastal town where Matthew grew up. The book begins with Matthew observing his father’s funeral from afar, knowing he is not welcome. He was disowned as a teen when he denounced the beliefs of the Barum Brethren, a strict religious sect.
During the funeral, a body is found on a local beach, and Matthew is given his first major crime to lead the local force in solving. It is the body of a homeless man, an alcoholic who had been struggling to get his life back in order. He was a volunteer at the Woodyard Center, run by a local church and community leaders. To complicate matters, Jonathan is the center’s director.

But the murder is not the only thing Matthew and his team have to deal with—several of the regulars at the center are girls with Down syndrome, and one of them goes missing.Cleeves is a master at police procedurals, at painting realistic pictures of the countryside and creating realistic characters with a lot of depth. Louise Penny has said her goal is to make her readers feel they are walking beside her books’ characters. That might be why she loves books by Cleeves, who does the very same thing. I was walking the village of Barnstaple between the rivers Taw and Torridge, right alongside Matthew.

Although the well-groomed and introverted Matthew is intelligent, he’s also somewhat unsure of his abilities. His team includes single mother Jen, who is trying to be a policewoman and a party girl, and overconfident Ross. Together, they solve a complicated case, not without some fumbles, but they become more of a team by the time the case is solved. Honestly, the case is very complex, and I had no idea who the guilty party was until close to the end of the book.

Cleeves also does a masterful job of tackling important social issues.

The “Two Rivers” series is off to a grand start, and I’m now ready to tackle the books of the “Vera” and “Shetland” series.
Sandy Mahaffey is former Books editor with The Free Lance–Star.

This is a brand new series and if this is how it starts I'm sure to pick up the next one. Matthew Venn is a police detective in a small community. He is estranged from his Brethren parents and is married to Jonathan who runs the local community center Woodyard. When a man is found murdered on the beach near his home it is up to Matthew to solve the crime, however the deeper they investigate the more ties lead back to Woodyard. When mentally challenged women start to go missing the case gets even stranger with stronger ties to the community center and Matthew struggles whether he should recuse himself or not.

There is a lot going on in this book, and a lot of characters. All of them mingle together to create a well written, well developed crime story. Matthews past, with his parents and the Brethren along with Matthews struggles to fit in with his team take center stage but his colleagues, Ross, the cop who is too eager to please and rarely gets to the point fast enough, and Jen the single mom who is struggling to juggle her job, her kids and her life also take a prominent role in the story. There are many threads to this story and the answers are not obvious which I loved. I figured out small pieces but felt that I didn't quite put it all together until the characters did which is a refreshing change.

I also really enjoyed that Matthew's lgbt status didn't take center stage. It was mentioned since it went against his parents faith but it wasn't a main focus. Incorporating lgbt characters into mainstream books is crucial to being seen as "normal".

I love Cleeve's descriptive writing style. The detail of the area was very enjoyable. The main character was intelligent and complex.. I would love to see this book turn into a movie. It was highly engaging and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

Tidy British police procedural that makes good use of interesting characters and the novel communities they hail from and reside in. Our protagonist is a married gay man who grew up in a cloistered religious community that he left in order to better live his full life. Ostracized from his family of origin, a murder occurs nearby that causes him to revisit his childhood as well as some of the neighbors. The mystery is reasonably good but the characters are better. This is a juicy tale that grows better as it progresses. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

This novel immediately reminded me of Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series. The bucolic setting is similar as well as the structure and characters. I found this story a bit slow and drawn out. Although it is a good book and up to par with Penny’s novels, it is not for me.

I tried, I really did. But I'm marking this DNF at 50%. This book is so slow and plodding. I kept waiting for something, anything to happen. Sorry, but the pacing of this one was not for me.

I'm sorry to say it, but I just didn't enjoy this as much as I had hoped. It had all the ingredients I usually love - British mystery, a variety of characters, tortured police officers - but it still fell flat for me. The story was interesting, and came together for a satisfying ending, but the writing felt stilted and incomplete. I think what bothered me was the relative absence of humor or wit. I enjoy the series Vera, so maybe I'll give Ann Cleeves another try.

I received an advance kindle copy of the book via Net Galley from St. Martin's Press and this is an unbiased review.

This is the first in a new series by Ann Cleeves. It is setting the stage for more books as many, many characters are introduced. They are not completely fleshed out, leaving room for further development. There is a mystery that is solved but it moves very slowly. But fast enough to keep one reading.
I look forward to the next book.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC of this book

The Long Call is a take on the quintessential British murder mystery. It reminds me of Midsomer Murders where the police station is based in the larger town but they handle all of the smaller towns near by. So instead of everything taking place in one town there are several you have to remember like Barnstaple and Lovacott. The story also blends the personal with the case.

A man is found face down on the beach. There is no wallet or keys, just an address on a slip of paper. While they might discover his identity fairly quickly, is he really who he seems to be? Also what should Detective Matthew Venn do when events and connections start to hit too close to home. Will the cops figure out what is so off about their victim before another person dies.

I definitely enjoyed this book and found the worked well. I would recommend for anyone that likes the British murder series' like Inspector Lynley.

The Long Call by Ann Cleeves is the first in the new Two Rivers Series. Having never read a book by this author I am not totally impressed. The author has very vivid descriptions you almost feel like you are there with the characters. . This story had many twists and turns. I am not sure about Matthew he is a bit to wimpy and wishy-washy for me. I don’t really feel any connection for the characters. This book I feel was just not for me. I probably will not continue this series.

Jen is a single mother of two. Matthew is married to Jonathan, who runs a special center for mentally handicapped adults, and homeless people.
Jen and Matthew are called out to a murder scene. The victim turnouts out to be one of the homeless. Two of the mentally handicapped young women from the center disappear. What's is going on at the center?
Will Matthew be able to investigate these crimes, when his husband operates the center, and is considered a suspect? Thank you netgalley.

This was an interesting book and I enjoyed the mystery presented. The main character, Matthew Venn, who is a police detective, is insecure in his abilities to solve a crime. However, his tenacity and determination to determine who is responsible for the murder are encouraging.

While the story is rather slow moving, it does keep giving you peaks into the lives of the various characters and has you guessing how their lives are enmeshed and what you don't know about them. The way the author deals with the characters who have been diagnosed with Down's Syndrome was handled delicately. You were cheering on these ladies and ached for the trials they experienced.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

**There are spoilers in this review. Do not read further if you plan to read this book and don't want it spoiled for you.**

This book started out so very, very slow for me. It didn't draw me in quickly and it wasn't one that I felt compelled to pick up to read, so this book took me a while to get through. It wasn't until over halfway through the book that I actually felt drawn into the story at all and the action finally picked up and I wanted to keep reading. Before then, I had zero connection with any of the characters, I was confused about where the story was going, and I was just simply a a little lost. Once things started to (finally!) have some connections and the things that previously had felt disjointed to me (action, characters, timelines, whatever) were starting to match up, I then felt compelled to keep reading and wanting to know where everything was going and what the solution to the mystery was. By the time it wrapped up, I was still a little uncertain of the main culprit's motivations and his confession didn't completely explain it enough for me as to the motivation behind his actions, because he was so peripheral throughout the rest of the story and there was zero (personal reader's) connection to him anywhere in the book. The others involved in the aftermath of the motivating crime for the murder made much more sense to me than the actual motivation for the rape itself. There weren't a lot of hints throughout the book and I was kept guessing throughout so that it was a surprise solution for me. Still, I felt like I was missing things along the way because there were jumps in the timeline and jumping around between suspects and settings (lots of little coastal towns and all of a sudden the setting was in a different one and then a different one again), plus the community centre, the day centre, the church, the Down's syndrome girls and their families, Simon's (the murder victim's) past, his roommates and their stories, etc., as well as that lack of connection to the perpetrator of the rape. The story felt a bit erratic at times. The detectives on the case didn't ever explain things to each other when they would meet up again. It was just assumed that they each knew what the other was talking about, so sometimes any segues between scenes were abrupt. As a result, I felt a little lost in the narration and through most of the first half of the book.

The overall feel of this book is less British to me than other books I've read set in Britain or by British authors, even with the coastal towns and other British references. Even the language felt less British to me, with very few of the unusual words that aren't exactly the same between American English and "the Queen's English," like I usually come across in British books.

There is a little bit of the side story of the main character/main detective Matthew and his struggle with his family, with the book opening at his father's funeral and how he left his childhood faith and lost acceptance from his religion and family because of his homosexual marriage. Through most of the book, I didn't see the real relevance to the story of this, even with Jonathan's work at the Woodyard centre. The Woodyard did eventually tie in later, but, again, it took so long to get there. As this book appears to be the first in a series, I'm sure Matthew and Jonathan's relationship will be a recurring theme throughout subsequent books and that the author is laying the groundwork for that in this book. Everything just took so long to connect in this one that I was wondering the relevance of so many things for so much of the book. I actually would've liked more from the other apparent main/recurring character/detective in the series, Jen Rafferty, and not because she was female. I read a lot of books with strong, relatable male characters. Matthew just seemed very robotic and not personable at all, until he has to interact with the Down's syndrome lady that he grew up with as a child and has to help her, then he finally becomes something more than just this standoffish, work-driven, unlikeable police detective. Rafferty's background is touched on a little but not to the extent that Matthew's is, but she seems to be more real, more relateable, more human.

There is a lot of narration/description in this book, describing conversations and thought processes at times instead of actual dialogue, again mostly towards the beginning -- another reason the first half of this book may have dragged too much for me. However, it was well done so that I could see the action, the settings, etc. Surprisingly, given it's a British murder mystery, there was very little foul language and even with the murder, rape, and Down's syndrome subject matter, those instances weren't ever descriptive, mainly the reader is just told that it happened. The violence isn't dwelt on and described to the minutest graphic detail as in some books I've read. The victim's albatross tattoo and metaphor is tied in at the end in an interesting way, and other little details throughout the book are all tied together as well so that I appreciated, by the end, the author's story and attention to detail. Overall, however, this book just dragged so slow for so long that it wasn't enough for me. I debated on 3.5 stars, but without the ability to give partial stars, I ended up going with a 3.

Ann Cleeves is such a tremendous author ! The Long Call does not disappoint. Truly unique story line. And I had no idea who the killer was until the very end! I love when that happens !!! This is a terrific new novel by a tried and true author. #buythebook

Loved this book! The Long Call had everything that a great mystery should have!
The characters were well developed - everyone from the victim, to the police detectives, the townspeople, housemates, board members - were fleshed out and real people with issues and joys like most normal people. I liked the issues that they had which served to make them relatable. The detectives operated like a well oiled machine - with a few blips - that balanced home life with work life.
The murder plot and solution were well thought out with clues that were gradually and subtly revealed. I liked the way that the detectives followed a premise and played it out. Good old fashioned detective work with very little technical intervention - they used footwork and brains.
And I did not see the perpetrator coming, I really thought that I had it figured out!
I can't wait to read another book by this author and hope that this really is the first book in a series.

The Long Call is the first in the new Two Rivers series by Ann Cleeves. This is the first I’ve read by this author but it won’t be the last. This is a wonderful mystery that will keep you on your toes and give you new characters to adore.

Detective Matthew Venn lives in North Devon, close to the evangelical community he left years earlier. Receiving a call about the discovery of a body, Matthew is thrown in close contact with those he left a long time ago.

With colorful characters and some very unlikeable characters, Ann weaves a tale worthy of Agatha Christie. This is a great start to a new series and I can’t wait to read more.

I voluntarily read an advanced copy of this book given to me by Netgalley.

I have heard very good things about Ann Cleeves' other two detective series -- Vera Stanhope & Shetland Island -- both of which are also hit television shows. I haven't read the books...or watched the shows....but both are on my tbr list/to watch list. When I saw that Cleeves had a new series, I jumped right on book 1 with gusto just to see what readers are raving about.

Wow! I just moved Cleeves' other books up to the top of my TBR stack! This book is really, really (really x 10) excellent! I read a lot of detective fiction, and this story is by far the best I've read in quite awhile. Well-written. Complex. Suspenseful. Excellent reading!

In North Devon, Detective Matthew Venn is reeling from the death of his father and the fact that a family schism precludes him from even attending his funeral. He stands outside the church where he can hear the words and music, but feels his exclusion sharply. Just then, a phone call comes in....a body has been discovered on the nearby beach. A man has been murdered. The case gets quite complex. Venn and his partners Ross May and Jen Rafferty discover a pit of hidden secrets, cover ups and lies. But they are determined to find the truth....and a killer.

I love how complex the main characters are. Each has their own personality and reasons for being in law enforcement. Their particular strengths add up to quite the investigation team. Each have weaknesses as well...problems in personal lives, past demons, personality hangups. They are human, after all. The mix of personalities and the facts of the case really make this such an interesting read. I found it realistic and incredibly suspenseful. My favorite character? Lucy. A 30-year old woman with downs syndrome who ends up in the middle of a dangerous situation but shows bravery and strength beyond other people's expectations of her. Lovely character!

I'm so sorry I took so long to read one of Ann Cleeves' books! While eagerly awaiting the next book in this new series, I'm going to backtrack and read her other two series!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**