Telling Tales by
Anne Cleeves
hbk out January 05
Published by Macmillan
at £16.99
News reaches the East Yorkshire village of Elvet that prisoner Jeanie Long, serving
time for the murder of local schoolgirl Abigail Mantel, has committed suicide;
hanging herself in her cell. But the police are already planning to re-open the murder
case as a new witness has come forward supporting Jeanie's original alibi. The re-
investigation stirs up painful memories for new mother Emma Bennett; Abigail's best
friend and the one who discovered her body. Emma's husband James works hard as a
pilot on the Humber, bringing ships in and out of the ports. Isolated at home with her
baby, Emma is increasingly drawn to Dan, the attractive man who runs the local
pottery. Blunt and forthright Inspector Vera Stanhope leads the fresh investigation
and finds tensions in the village where the opening of old wounds is not welcomed.
Cleeves portrayal of rural life is as far removed from chocolate box as you could hope
for. The natural world here is all-powerful, striking rather than pretty, and
relationships in the community as bitter as the winds that scour the coast. Whether
detailing the domestic world, life with a small baby or the work of the pilots on the
ships, Cleeves has an accomplished eye. An excellent psychological thriller.
(
Cath Staincliffe
author of the popular Sal Kilkenny mysteries and the series creator of TV Blue Murder)
Telling Tales by
Anne Cleeves
