I read about 30% of this before losing interest. The story just didn't hold my attention, although it had a strong start.

Cleeve’s leaves her popular Vera series, at least temporarily, to introduce detective Matthew Venn. Venn returns home to North Devon to attend his father’s funeral, never intending to stay in the place he couldn’t wait to leave. But he’s called into action when a man’s body is washed up on a local beach, and it’s obvious this was no accident or suicide. Venn, at least for the time being, isn’t going anywhere. Cleeves is well known for her highly detailed, character driven stories. Less violence and more story for those of us who appreciate a literate mystery

This was a decent mystery and it did keep me guessing. I wish the character development and relationships had been a bit stronger, but hopefully those will develop in later books.