I received a free copy from NetGalley. A murder, a kidnapping, are they related? Interesting characters that should have enough depth to make a good series. Enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. Watch out for the British words here and there that might throw you off.

Thus begins a new series by an established author. As with Peter Robinson's Yorkshire, Ann Cleeves brings Devon to life, incorporating the landscape as an important element, with the convergence of two rivers, the estuary, and the southwestern coast of England playing a vital role in the proceedings. Since this is the first book in promised series, members of the local constabulary are introduced, some with more backstory than others, featuring most prominently DI Matthew Venn, unusual in that he was raised in Devon as part of a radical Biblical sect known as the Brethren, from whom he has become alienated after having his awareness raised as a college student. Now he is living coastside, with his husband Jonathan, his most telling characteristics being his dedication to his job and his regret over the split with his family. Cleeves has woven a truly original situation here, with an involved tangled mystery and she unravels at her own speed, which never feels either rushed or unduly extenuated, and was wrapped up in satisfactory fashion. Can't wait to go back to these holiday resorts for more.

The short and sweet of it is that you can’t really ever go wrong with Cleeves. She consistently delivers solid, entertaining crime fiction and The Long Call is no exception. Her ability to transport us to these quiet seaside towns of the UK makes me want to book a flight, despite the inevitable body showing up.

Cleeves’ prose is always pretty polished. The main characters of the story felt fleshed out without devoting too much time away from the tension and the ending felt like a surprise that also made sense. I look forward to the subsequent novels in this series

My only complaint was that there were a lot of supporting characters that you needed to keep track of, and that there was a little bit of the “wow” factor missing. However, arguments could be made that there isn’t supposed to be one and that these are stories made to be cozied up with and enjoyed for what they are.

The Long Call is an interesting mystery taking place in a small coastal town in Devon, England.
The main characters are
Matthew, a detective and Jonathan,his husband. The book opens with a dead body on the beach and it takes the entire book to determine who the murderer is.
It definitely held my interest, mainly because of really good characterization.
This was a new author for me. I would be interested in reading another book she wrote.

*The Long Call* is defined this way: "The cry of a herring gull, the sound naturalists named the long call, the cry which always sounded to him like an inarticulate howl of pain."

A body is found in the sand bordering the river. Stabbed, so no natural death.

And so begins to emerge a most unique cast of characters. Matthew Venn, local Detective Inspector, married to Jonathan who manages a community center, Woodyard. We are soon introduced to Lucy, Rosa and Christine, mentally challenged adults, who attend Woodyard during the day.

After the body is identified, things really start to heat up. Turns out, he's been renting a room in the home of Caz Preece, who works for a mental health charity and whose boyfriend is Edward, a curate at The Bretheran. Also living at Caz's home is Gaby Henry, artist-in-residence at the Woodyard. Caz's father is on the Board of the Woodyard, along with several other influential men. Do you begin to see the circular relationships among all these people in this small village? So do Matthew and his team, but they just can't seem to find the one thread that binds them all together. Until. Until Matthew has an 'aha moment' and the unraveling begins.

A well-written top notch detective mystery, with well-drawn characters, that is well worth your time.

I read this EARC courtesy of NetGalley and MacMillan. pub date 09/13/19

DI Matthew Vern had left his family's religious organization to the extent that he watched his father's funeral from afar. However, in this story, he finds himself engulfed with that same religious Brethren during both a murder and a missing persons investigation. During these investigations, Matthew meets ( and reacquaints himself ) with many of the people that live in his community. At first, I thought perhaps maybe TOO many people. However, since this is first in a series of stories I believe that Ms. Cleeves was writing forward.

Jonathan, Matthew's partner, is in charge of Woodyard - a community center that also houses an arts department and a special needs area. The real managers of the place are the Board that consists of some interesting and powerful persons. In effect, they have total control of Woodyard.

A man is stabbed to death at Crow Point, special needs women are in danger of becoming involved in a kidnapping. A lot of deceit, betrayal and threatening situations cause Matthew and his co-workers to step up their game to new heights.

A good read and a positive start to a new series by Ann Cleeves.

Don't miss this read !

Many Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for a good read and a start on a new series.

Ann Cleeves made up for ending the Shetland series by introducing us to a new series starring Detective Matthew Venn. I immediately fell in love with the area in North Devon and with Matthew, his husband Jonathan and his fellow police officers. The Long Call is a terrific police procedural that deals with lots of sensitive issues in a straight forward matter of fact manner. I can’t wait to learn more about Matthew and his earlier life as well as getting to know Jonathan and the other people of the village.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and fair review.

I've been a fan of Ann Cleeves Shetland Island series for quite some time and was sad when it ended. So I was excited to hear she had a new series coming out and I was lucky enough to get my hands on an ARC. And I was not disappointed.

The Long Call centers around Matthew Venn, an inspector in North Devon. When a dead body is found on the beach, Matthew finds himself investigating something that hits close to home - from the evangelical religion of his past to the community center run by his husband.

Like Inspector Jimmy Perez from the Shetland series, Cleeves has created another great detective-kind, flawed, complicated, human. The secondary characters and setting/community are also well developed and create a dynamic story that keeps you wanting more. Can't wait for the next in the series.

I had a hard time getting through this book. It just seemed a bit stuffy to me. It wasn’t quite what I expected. Thanks to Netgalley for the early copy

I wanted to read this one because of Louise Penny’s endorsement. I was a little disappointed...it read like a tv show (which this author is famous for) but that took away from the story for me.

Thank you netgalley for the ARC.

In The Long Call, Ann Cleeves introduces another detective hero and begins the Two Rivers Series.

Set in a remote, beach and tourism town in North Devon, we follow Detective Matthew Venn and his loyal team of detectives. DI Venn is an unusual hero - gay, married and formerly part of a strict religious group. A hardworker and a dedicated detective, Venn is not one to seek attention and prefers not to deal with the media. Instead, Venn must balance the demands and laziness of his superior officer and the ego and flash of his younger detectives. The politicking is one aspect of the detective's job, but Ann Cleeves makes the interpersonal and the backstory a strong part of The Long Call.

Matthew's home life with his husband Jonathan gives another layer of emotion. Indeed, Ann Cleeves makes each of the detectives come alive with their home life, their strengths and weaknesses.



I'm looking forward to reading the next in the Two Rivers series.

Excellent!!! I didn’t know the culprit til the end. Thank you St Martin’s Press & Ms Cleeves for the opportunity to read this ARC free of charge.

Reading Ann Cleeves’ latest novel, The Long Call, the first in the series Two Rivers, brought me back to Shetland Islands. I watched the series on Netflix and absolutely loved it though it did take me a bit to get used to the dialect and language.

It is the same with The Long Call. Set in mostly North Devon District (England) The Long Call revolves around Detective Inspector Matthew Venn and his team’s investigation into the stabbing murder of Simon Walden who is found on the beach by passerbys. The story like those set in the Shetland Islands weaves through the populace of North Devon and other nearby parts, as pieces of Simon Walden’s life and his reason for moving to North Devon, a village of sorts in the outskirts of Barnstaple, a larger town, is uncovered by Venn and his team.

Along the way, Venn’s life from childhood as a son to parents who belong to a religious sect (The Brethren) to the present in a world removed from that as the spouse of Jonathan Church becomes entangled in this murder. Jonathan is the founder/manager of the Woodyard Centre, a haven for those with learning disabilities and for those who take master’s level classes in art. Simon Walden had been employed in the kitchen, as a chef of sorts, and apparently a great one. While there Simon learns that all is not as it appears at the Woodyard Centre, that some in its early history are guilty of covering up a heinous sexual assault on one its former Downs Syndrome attendees. Because of his own sins in the past, Simon seeks to unmask the perpetrator, who none would believe had done it as well as those on the board of the Woodyard who paid off the attendee’s mother. Their rationale? Keep the story out of the media for fear of negative public reaction that would endanger Woodyard’s viability back in the early days. However, their real purpose is revealed – to protect themselves and their own reputations at the cost of others. As the investigation progresses, these same people seek to cover their trail back to Simon Walden, committing other crimes including kidnapping other attendees, one of which Simon had befriended in the attempt to uncover what had happened. It is a story of cat and mouse though sometimes it is hard to tell who’s the mouse and who’s the cat.

Besides the intersection of religious fundamentalism, day-to-day life of a family and the raising of children, the care and development of those with learning disabilities (from mild to severe), and gay marriage, Cleeves also adroitly explores single motherhood through DS Jenn Rafferty and the day-to-day politics in a police force where one member (DS Ross) is viewed by others as having a leg up or advantages that are the not the result of merit, but favoritism and how this favoritism affects and acts on Venn’s leadership.

First time trying out a book by Ann Cleeves. I must say I really enjoyed it. Easy to read and fast paced. I recommend this book.

Wow. that was the first word that came to mind when I finished The Long Call. Wow. This was my very first Ann Cleeves book. I'm a fan of British mysteries, so I'm not sure how I overlooked Ms. Cleeves. This was a well-written book with a great attention to detail. I was drawn in immediately and wanted to know more of the story of the murder and abductions. I wanted to sit and talk with Matthew and Jonathan - they are both such interesting characters with so much life and backstory. I will be looking into Ms. Cleeves backlist ASAP! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read the ARC of The Long Call in exchange for an honest review.

Always love a good mystery! Ann Cleeve did a wonderful job laying the groundwork for this story - characters and setting. As the story unfolds, I was drawn in and kept trying to guess the “who done it!” Great story! A true page turner!

What starts out as seemingly just a murder turns into an investigation that unearths more questions than answers. The characters didn't draw me into the story as much as I wished they would have, however, the strength and complexity of the plot is fascinating. The reveal in the end was impressive and exceeded my expectations.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the egalley of The Long Call in exchange for an honest review.

This first in a new mystery series by Cleeves opens dramatically with the discovery of a man's body on the beach in Two Rivers in North Devon. Matthew Venn is in charge of the investigation, and he soon discovers a connection with the community center managed by his husband where the dead man volunteered. At first, the murder victim appeared to be homeless, but Venn and his team uncover secrets about his past. Are the dead man's two female roommates connected with the crime? Is the disappearance of two young women with Downs syndrome who spent their days at the community center connected to the murder? Worst of all, Matthew's husband may be implicated in the crime.

As Venn and his team progress with their investigation, more is revealed about Matthew and his connection to Two Rivers. His family belongs to an evangelical religious sect, The Brethren, from which Matthew fled after quitting university to join the police. His parents disowned him for leaving their church, leaving him cut off from his roots. Now his knowledge of the community where he grew up may help his investigation.

Cleeves has fashioned an engrossing police procedural that introduces characters readers will want to get to know better in future books in the series with a satisfying solution to a mystery involving murder, sexual assault, abuse of privelege, and the power of the past. The setting in Devon proves an integral part of the appeal of this novel not only for Cleeves' fans but for lovers of British mysteries. #TheLongCall #NetGalley

This is a new series that has a great beginning story. It started a bit slowly and took awhile to get into it, but once you did, you couldn't put it down until the end! I really enjoyed the story and the characters.

Ann Cleeves has done it again! Her new series has a dynamic main character and a wonderfully wicked twisty mystery with a whodunit that keeps you guessing unit the end.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this novel.