My favorite Vera mystery yet. Inclement weather, a cozy house, and a cast of characters you don’t quite trust. When Vera takes a wrong turn on a snowy road she ends up stumbling upon a mystery keeps you guessing to the exact last page. I would highly recommend this read at our top 10 books of September.

A detective stumbles on an abandoned car with a baby inside in the middle of a snowstorm and gets a new mystery to solve.

Trying to get to her destination in a blizzard, Vera Stanhope finds an abandoned car with a small child inside. She tries to get to help for the child, and finds herself of a distant relative who is having a party. While trying to sort what to do with the infant, the father of the young waitresses at the party arrives to say he has found a body - that of the young child's mother. Why was she out during a snowstorm, and why did she get out of the car? Vera must look into all the guests at the house and figure out if they have a link to the young woman and who would want to murder her?

A solid British mystery this will satisfy readers who want a classic read of the genre.

Always a treat to read a new book by Ann Cleeves, but I am particularly a great fan of the Vera series. A great plot with twists and turns. and a case that hits close to Vera's distant family. A great read for a cold winter's evening!

https://www.goodreads.com Vera #9, The Darkest Evening, is expected in September 2020, but NetGalley and Minotaur to the rescue! Read the book straight through with only a break to sleep. 5 Stars!! Everything you've always loved about Vera, Joe, and Holly, Vera's team and her 'social skills' is all here to entertain you again. Ann Cleeves is magic! It's so hot in LA right now one can scarcely breathe, but Vera is in the middle of a dreadful almost blizzard and I was in my chair feeling chilly.

Grabbing the latest book in this series is a no-brainer for a couple of reasons. First, I know I’m in for a well written, twisty murder mystery. Second, I get to spend time with the wonderful Brenda Blethyn. Ever since I saw her portrayal of Vera Stanhope, she’s become the voice in my head as I read these books. And that’s no bad thing.

The story begins when Vera ends up with a baby. But not the usual way. In the middle of a blizzard, she comes across an abandoned car with a tiny person inside. Their only hope is to make it to the nearest house which just happens to be the ancestral home of her father’s estranged family. Awkward.

And so Vera is reunited with snooty matriarch Harriet, her daughter Juliet & son-in-law Mark. She hasn’t seen this side of the family since childhood & it sets up an interesting dynamic. But any chit-chat will have to wait as Vera calls in reinforcements to deal with the baby, the car…..wait, where is the mom? By the time help arrives, there’s another more pressing question: who is the dead woman in the back yard?

And we’re off. Joe, Holly & all the regulars are back as the team tries to identify a killer who is hiding in plain sight. Motive is key to solving the case & as Vera digs with her typical persistence, family secrets & hidden ties are revealed. Appearances can deceive & even the happiest families have fault lines, soft spots that must be protected to maintain a facade.

The plotting is excellent & there are several credible “killers” to choose from. But what elevates the story is the addition of Vera’s personal history & present day interaction with long lost relatives. As local connections are uncovered, she has to wonder if her family knows more than they’re telling. They remember her as the awkward, frumpy daughter of the family’s black sheep. She may still be all those things but now she’s also an intuitive cop with the power to sort through & air their dirty laundry.

Picking up one of these books is like bumping into old friends. I love Vera & enjoy watching as criminals underestimate her at their own expense. Joe continues to be her long suffering righthand man while Holly’s character & relationship with the boss is further developed.

The pages fly by driven by a steady pace, clever dialogue & well rounded characters. By the end, the woman’s death is not the only mystery solved as Vera gains new insight into her father that may help put some of her personal demons to rest.

When Vera Stanhope comes across an abandoned car on the side of the road , she is surprised to find the drivers door open and a baby inside. Heading to a home of relatives she hasn't seen since she was a child, Vera lands on their doorstep with the baby. While at her relations a woman's body is found and Vera starts looking into the murder of this young woman.
This was like visiting an old friend, if you haven't read one of Ann Cleeves, Vera novels this is a good one to start with. I love the characters, each with their own faults and hidden secrets. The story captivated me from the first page and I was hooked until the end. Great read.

I have watched every episode of Vera, but until now, have not read any of the books. My mistake! This is a well done police procedural. No fast paced craziness here. Just good solid investigating by a solid team. The book is very character driven, not just the team but every person in the village and how they interconnect.
The premise is that on a snowy night, Vera comes upon an abandoned car on the side of the road. Driver door open, with a baby still in the back seat. She takes the baby to the nearest house, the manor house of the village, which is actually owned by her estranged relatives. Within hours, the driver of the car turns up dead on their driveway.
Because of the connection with her family, we learn about Vera’s past, her black sheep father and her lonely childhood. I enjoyed Cleeves’ writing, which made it very easy to see the scenes play out in my head.
Maybe because I’ve seen the tv show, this worked fine as a stand alone. But now that I’ve read this one, I intend to go back and read the others.
I recommend this for those who like team oriented police procedurals by the likes of Archer Mayor, Louise Penny or Joy Ellis.
My thanks to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book.

I found Darkest Evening a book whose prose captivated and uncomplicated plotting kept my interest. The mystery itself, a classic WHO DONE IT?, kept me guessing until the murderer was revealed. However, the police characters and all the suspects were presented in a thorough manner, just not very interesting to me. It definitely could have been wrapped up in 50 less pages. Vera Stanhope as the protagonist is understandable just not very sympathetic. However, her detective skills were impressive, even if the motivation for the crimes was hard to accept.

I received an advance reader copy of this book which has no effect at all on this review. This is the first book I have read by this author although it appears to be the 9th in a series. I enjoyed this book as I enjoy books involving investigations and the solving of crimes which happens in this book. I would recommend this book.

This is the 9th book of the Vera Stanhope mystery series. I have read all of the Shetland and Vera Stanhope books. Ann Cleeves is one of my favorite authors. Her books are all very hard-to-solve mysteries. This one works great as a standalone but it’s best to start with book 1 and get to know the characters.

Vera is on her way home and finds a toddler in a car which has slipped off the road. Brockburn is nearby so she makes her way there. It is the home where her father, Hector, grew up. She finds a party in full swing but a woman’s body is also found on the grounds. Vera soon finds that Brockburn holds many secrets from the past.

The plot was fast-paced and the characters were believable. Holly is my favorite and I love the way Vera relies on Joe so much meanwhile Sal, Joe’s wife, is always waiting for Joe to come home. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series and highly recommend this book to those who love page-turning police procedurals.

This novel is #9 in the Vera Stanhope series. I was a bit concern I was going to be playing catch up.
Not only is this my first Vera Stanhope but only my second Ann Cleeves’ novel.

I am reading this on a hot July afternoon; not sure if it was my AC or the blizzard but it sure cooled down. Vera finds a car in the snow drift, driver’s door open and a baby in a car seat in the back. She takes the baby to the nearest neighbor that just happens to be a relative having a festive a holiday party.

When the neighbor comes to retrieve his daughters who have been helping with the party, he finds a woman dead in the snow. Yes, of course, it is the baby’s mother.
As the detectives are searching for clues etc., we seem to be thrown in a genealogy trace; Vera’s back ground Lorne’s background brothers & sisters. I wasn’t sure about this! However, since this was my first read in the series, I figured this was important.
On another note: This poem by Robert Frost caught my attention. Is it relevant?
“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”
“….To stop without a farmhouse near/ Between the woods and frozen lake/The darkest evening of the year.
‘And it ends like this: The woods are lovely, dark and deep,/ But I have promises to keep/ And miles to go before I sleep/ And miles to go before I sleep.’

The end had me turning pages as fast as eating potato chips (and I just love those Kettle Krinkle cut chips!)

Want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this early release granted in exchange for an honest professional review. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for September 8, 2020

This was my first book in the Vera Stanhope series but it was easily a stand alone story with background information throughout. I thoroughly enjoyed thIs book. It had a good amount of mystery and characters. It had me guessing til the end. Thanks to NetGalley for the privilege to read and review this book.

I love British mysteries and this doesn’t disappoint! Although this is my first Vera book, it was a good stand alone. I recommend this to mystery lovers. From the beginning, I was engaged in Vera’s attempt to discover why there was an abandoned baby in a snowstorm in a car with the doors left open. I was given a copy of this book for my unbiased review.

This one had me guessing until the end. A whodunnit reminiscent of Agatha Christie. Vera Stanhope, I want to read about your exploits again! Thank you St Martens Press & NetGalley for affording me the pleasure of a free good read.
#TheDarkestEvening
#NetGalley
#StMartensPress

The Darkest Evening is my first Vera Stanhope mystery, and when I finished it I immediately bought The Crow Trap (first in the series).

The story here is that DI Vera Stanhope is on her way home one snowy night when she makes a wrong turn and finds a baby in an abandoned car on the side of the road. As it turns out she is near Brockburn, her estranged family's estate, so she makes her way there with the baby to get help finding the baby's parent. The night takes a turn for the worse when the mother is found murdered on the grounds of Brockburn. So of course Vera and her team investigate. My all time favorite mystery setting is the country in winter - there's just something so hygge about spending a snowy night curled up with a good mystery and I suppose I like to see that reflected in the book's setting. I adored Vera - she's kind of rough around the edges, but I enjoyed reading about a female detective who is effective at her job and doesn't feel the need to behave how others expect her to.

My First Vera Novel — An Enjoyable Read

The novel opens with a young mother getting herself and toddler ready for a trip in terrible Northumberland weather in late December. Vera at the same time decides to drive home in the same weather. The snow turns into a blizzard. She takes a country road known to her but becomes disoriented. The only solace is that a set of tire tracks on the road indicates a car in front of her. Soon she comes close to driving into a white car almost camouflaged in the snow. The driver door is open. Vera looks but could not find anyone nearby. As she was going to leave, she hears a cry from the car. Vera discovers a toddler. She takes the toddler and drives on. Soon Vera discovers where she is. The home of her landed-gentry relatives appears. There seems a party is being held. She is met at the door by her cousin, Juliet. After explaining herself and the toddler, Vera uses the phone to call in the abandoned car. A very busy cook and housekeeper found a few minutes to change the toddler. Then, tenant father of two teenage daughters, who were helping out for the party, arrives to pick up his daughters. He comes in when Vera is on the phone. He tells Vera that it is important that he use the phone right now. He needs to call the police as there is a dead woman outside. The story proceeds from this start.

The main storyline consists of threads told from the point of view of many characters from Vera and her team members to some of the major characters. I did not find all of these threads confusing at all. The author weaves these threads into a very cogent storyline. There were many twists, turns, misdirection and some grenades going off. My attention was captured early and maintained throughout the entire novel. The read was not a quick read for me, but it was a steady read.

This is the first novel in the Vera series that I have read. I’ve only read one other novel written by Ann Cleeves. What I really enjoyed in reading this novel was the B-storyline threads. This is the ninth novel in the Vera series, but the B-storylines on Vera and her team was deeper than I would expect in a first novel of a series. This enriched my reading enjoyment. After reading this novel I really felt that I knew Vera and her team quite well.

As for language, there was less vulgar terms than I can count on one hand. There were just about the same number of light vulgar British terms. Violence was described after the fact so it was less edgy. There is some violence described as it occurs, but it is not graphic. Lastly, the only sexual content was some discussions on extramarital affairs. I believe that even readers sensitive to these topics can read this novel without a problem. Another issue is can a reader read this novel first in the Vera series. This is exactly what I did, and I did not feel that I was missing anything from not reading the previous novels. Lastly, on areas that readers should know is that I recommend reading this novel on an e-reader. There were much usage of British and Northumberland informal words. While I could figure out the meaning of most from the context of its use, I did find myself using the dictionary on the e-reader and using the Internet quite often to determine the meaning of many words in this novel.

I really like reading this novel. I’m looking forward to reading more novels by Ann Cleeves in the future. I plan to go back and watch more of the Vera TV series. Overall, I rate this novel with four stars. If the topic sounds interesting, I believe that you will find this novel an enjoyable read.

I have received a free e-book version of this novel through NetGalley from St. Martin's Press with an expectation for an honest, unbiased review. I wish to thank St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this novel early.

Very gripping well written detective novel. Loved the characters and plot. If you haven't read any previous stories you will learn the personalities and situations very easily. Will read more stories from this author.
Thanks!

In a blinding snowstorm, Vera misses the turn on her way home. Unable to turn around, she continues on until she comes upon a car pulled over to the side of the road, driver's door hanging open. Upon investigation, she finds the driver missing, but discovers an infant strapped into a carrier in the back seat.

I have been reading Ann Cleeves since her Staphen Ramsay series, and she never disappoints. The Darkest Evening may even by my favorite of the Vera Stanhope series, with Vera finding herself enmeshed with her black sheep father's wealthy relatives, and the tiny community just a stone's throw from her own home.

During a blizzard, Vera Stanhope becomes disoriented and misses her turn for home. This is just the start of Vera’s adventure into the lives of paternal relatives with whom she is not on the best of terms and their neighbors. And, of course, she must solve a murder – or two – along the way.

What I like about Vera is that she is so very human. She’s frumpy, overweight, middle-aged and makes no bones about admitting that to herself. She is, however, a great detective and, according to her mates, is also a well respected boss.

The author does a great job with the other characters as well. Some I liked (Lorna, Juliet, Dorothy) and some (Harriet, Mark, and the deceased Hector) not so much. More and more is revealed along the way about each of the personalities until I felt I knew them.

The descriptions are spot on. Expertly described is the feeling of winter in Northumberland. I read this book in 90+ degree weather. Had it not been, I would have definitely had a blazing fire going and my dogs curled up beside me to keep the cold away.

This is one of those endings that I enjoy. It’s not too rushed, it’s not too slow; it’s plausible, and it fills in any blanks that might have been left unanswered.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review The Darkest Evening. I enjoyed it very much.

Darkest Evening by Ann Cleeves
The latest Vera Stanhope mystery begins with the obstinate Vera driving through a blizzard to get home when she finds a car stalled by the road with the driver’s door open. She is about the get back into her Range Rover when she notices the toddler in the car seat strapped in the back seat. She writes a note and leaves her card to let the driver know she’s taken the baby and drives toward Kimmerton but misses the turn and ends up at Brockburn, the family estate of the posher side of the Stanhope family where a party is well underway. She is taken to the kitchen where Dorothy, the cook, changes the baby and gives Vera a hot meal. A couple of teenage sisters served dinner and waited for the father to pick them up on the tractor. He comes in upset; he found a dead body on his way. Vera calls her team to get there and begins her investigation of the murder. The discover who the murdered woman was but not the father. Secrecy and its consequences is a theme of this novel.

This is another brilliant Vera Stanhope mystery, with twists and great characterization. Highly recommended.