I’m quite a newbie to Ann Cleeves writing but I do love her Vera Stanhope novels and it’s a testament to how well the TV series and Brenda Blethan has made Vera real to us all by emulating Ann’s writing so well. Although with this book, The Dark Wives, Vera is still reeling from the trauma from the last book (no spoilers) and seems to be second guessing herself but it does show a more vulnerable side to Vera which was refreshing . I’m still undecided on the new officer Rosie, she shows promise but time will tell how well she will get on with the rest of the team.
The story had lots of threads that satisfactorily resolved itself and had me surprised in parts, I definitely recommend and as always I look forward to more.

#TheDarkWives #NetGalley. Another excellent installment of the Vera Stanhope series. Ann Cleeves is a very talented writer. The book is well written, plenty of action and lots of twists and turns. I can't help but hear Brenda Blethyn reading all Vera's words!! I look forward to the next in this series or indeed any other book by this author. A well deserved 5 Stars!!

I have read all Anne Cleeves novels and this one does not disappoint. I love her method of weaving a gripping plot into the landscape of Northumberland and the continued development of her returning characters really keeps the reader engaged.

Excellent story. Really strong police procedural with Vera Stanhope at the helm.
Well written, memorable characters and a plot you get caught up in. Recommended.

Although a fan of the TV series I haven’t read too many of these books. If you’re familiar with the TV series this would be easy to read as a standalone novel. The body of a worker in a children’s home is found in the grounds and there’s also a missing young girl from the home. Is she a suspect or another potential victim? The challenges and failings of fostering/residential care available to young people is sensitively, but I feel, accurately dealt with. The beautiful Northumberland setting is a joy. Recommended.

This is the latest from this prolific author in her Vera series. The Dark Wives are standing stones in the wilds of Northumbria where a body is found, but the first body is outside a children's home and one of the young residents us missing. Well plotted and a page turner as ever.

The Vera series just gets better and better. A great story with many twists and turns. I love Vera and her interactions with the team and also how she is trying hard in this book to be more open with her colleagues. Great ending.

Ann Cleeves will never disappoint!
The 11th book in the Vera series focuses on a young volunteer who has been found dead at a children’s home and Chloe, who has disappeared. This leaves us with lots of questions: Where is Chloe? Was she involved in the murder? Could she also be dead?
This was a great mystery read while also highlighting the all-too-real problems within children’s homes due to the lack of funding.

Many thanks to MacMillan & Net Galley for this ARC.

A particularly poignant new Vera case opens with the death of a handsome, passionate, caring young man, Josh, and the disappearance of a young girl, Chloe, from a care home. The two are obviously linked, but has the girl committed the murder? Vera and her team must dig deep to discover what is going on in the brooding north-east moors where the case is set, where the stones called the Dark Wives lour over the land, and people still indulge in pagan practices.
This story is well-plotted, atmospheric and convincing, with a good range of characters for Vera to investigate - family, friends and colleagues of the dead boy and the missing girl all come under suspicion.
But most moving of all is Vera's tenaciousness in tracking down Chloe, spurred on by her grief (spoiler alert for the last book) and guilt at the death of team member Holly.
Happily, a new character is introduced to Vera's team, to work alongside her, Joe and Charlie. Rosie is a city girl, young, feisty and able to take the initiative. But will Vera warm to her? It's another engrossing thread in an already nail-biting main plot.
Vera is my favourite of all Ann Cleeves characters, and she continues to grow as a character, always able to surprise the reader with her insights and reactions. Every case for her is personal, and it's her presence and personality that makes for a warm-hearted murder-mystery read.

Thanks to Pan MacMillan and NetGalley for ARC.

This is the eleventh in this series, by national treasure Cleeves, featuring fictional national treasure DI Vera Stanhope. It can be read as a stand alone but some familiarity with the backstory would be sensible.

A body is found in waste ground near a care home for teenagers. A young resident is missing - are they a suspect or in danger?
Stanhope and their team try to balance the investigation with a search for a young person who is undoubtedly vulnerable.
Cleeves uses this to explore the difficulties of young people's lives and the scandal of privately run nursing homes, at the same time as offering another solid police procedural. Well worth your time.

In Ann Cleeves’ ‘The Dark Wives’, Vera returns to investigate the death of a children’s home staff member, Josh. Murdered outside Rosebank, the place in which he worked, the only probable witness to his death has gone missing: 14yr old Chloe, placed in the home after her mum’s mental breakdown, can not be found. Vera hopes she is both alive, and not their suspect. Vera, her team, and new colleague Rosie attempt to investigate amongst a backdrop of the North East countryside and a ritual set amongst the monolithic dark wives rocks.

Cleeves’ has clearly spent a lot of time understanding the experiences of looked after children. She manages to brilliantly articulate the many obstacles to providing care to children who have experienced repeated trauma and rejection and the impact of policy decisions and financial pressures on the system. This is all in the context of a well plotted crime novel, with Vera’s voice being really clear and the dynamics amongst her team members feeling very realistic. Cleeves’ is a brilliant writer who can be relied on to tell a great story.

Vera just keeps on getting better with age.

Another clever crime this time set around a home for troubled teenagers entwined with the story of The Dark Wives, a set of standing stones steeped in history and folklore.

In the author’s note Ann says she got the idea from an investigative piece on the BBC about private children’s homes. Her dedication at the beginning is also very moving. “This book is dedicated to teens everywhere, and especially to the Dark Wives – uppity young women with minds of their own, struggling to find a place in a difficult world.”

Excellent as always.

Another fascinating story line from Ann Cleeves,featuring the most unlikely looking police woman in her character Detective inspector Vera Stanhope,Having to introduce a new member to her team,at first Rosiedid not look like she was going to fit in,but once she got used to the way Vera worked she became an asset to the team.A clever story line involving murder large scale fraud involving people from what seemed to be a well to do community,a very good story line well worth reading.

'The Dark Wives' by Ann Cleeves.

A body is found by an early morning dog walker on the common outside Rosebank, a care home for troubled teens. The victim is Josh, a staff member, who never showed up to work.
DI Vera Stanhope is called out to investigate. Her only clue is the disappearance of fourteen-year-old resident Chloe. Vera can’t bring herself to believe that a teenager is responsible for the murder, but even she can’t dismiss the possibility.
Vera, Joe and new team member Rosie are soon embroiled in the case, but when a second body is found near the Three Dark Wives standing stones in the wilds of the Northumbrian countryside, folklore and fact begin to collide.
Vera knows she has to find Chloe to get to the truth, but it seems that the dark secrets in their community may be far more dangerous than she could ever have believed.
I love this series so I might be a bit biased. I do think this is a really good mystery, it kept me guessing till the end. I love the new character Rosie, she works really well with Vera and they have a good dynamic. If you are a fan of the TV show please read these books because they compliment eachother so well. Or if you're a fan of gritty crime fiction then give this series a read.
Thanks to NetGallery UK, the publishers and the author for letting me read a copy in return for an honest review.

Vera embarks on another investigation, this time the mysterious death of a youth worker and the disappearance of a child from a children's home.
What is the connection.
Vera's team acquires another member to replace the previous person who had been killed on duty, for which Vera feels responsible. How will she fit in with the team and can the team locate the missing girl?
Set in the run down towns, coast and hills of Northumberland.

As always, Vera Stanhope is a dependable presence in this sometimes convoluted murder mystery. I occasionally found I had forgotten who the cast of characters were, and needed my wits about me as I neared the satisfying denoument, but all in all I found Ann Cleeves on good authorial form with this new novel. It was fast-paced, with a new police assistant taking the place of the late Holly, who is referenced several times as being on Vera's conscience and whose loss seems to have hit the team hard. This would be a good addition to anyone's holiday reading haul.

I liked this book a lot . Vera is a no nonense detective, the crimes well thought out and the investigation fairly logical. The team is well portrayed and the characters are realistic. I haven't read others in the series but this book was fine as a standalone. The descriptions of the area are great and you get a good impression of the people of Northumberland/ Durham and the North East of England.
There are a couple of twists in the plot and if I had a criticism, it would be that Vera had solved the case (with Charlie) whilst I didn't have the same information . That is a minor point for me though
Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. A good entertaining read

I was looking forward to this! Its opening disappointing scrawled letter from what we discover is a missing troubled teen and the focus of Vera Stanhope's new crime pursuit, is harbinger of themes and (if only you, reader, and Vera knew) contains hints about what happened. There are always social themes lurking in Cleeves' crime novels but I guess it's just more-up-front-and-center in this one .. about failings of foster care services, and homes, and derelict families dumping their kids etc etc .. maybe it's just too harrowing. Another downer on which novel depends, is how adults drag kids into their own delusions, with no way for some kids to escape .. in this case a murder, the teen's disappearance, and local Wikka .. but there is a promising new character, Rosie, in Vera's team .. (and I liked Tracey, one of the children's home's staff). But the teen herself and those issues being pushed at me just kinda' turned me off. However, I will be looking for any new Vera novel!!!

A brilliant series with really well drawn characters and intriguing plots that give Vera the opportunity to demonstrate her idiosyncrasies and powers of deduction. Perhaps it’s because I have got to know the main characters in Vera’s team, but I enjoy the later books even more than the earlier ones. The new character Rose brings a fresh perspective to Vera’s detectives and it’s interesting to see how her arrival affects the group dynamic.

Another clever story in the Vera Stanhope series involving a child missing from a privatised children’s home. No spoilers.

Once again we see things through Vera’s perspective, often sharp and sometimes caustic. There is a new detective, Rosie Bell, whose point of view we also see, occasionally and the reliable Joe Ashworth, Vera’s pet sergeant.

I honestly had no idea ‘who done it’ and it kept me guessing to the end. Quite convoluted but Cleeves cleverly keeps all the hints swirling. Very enjoyable.

I read a proof copy provided by NetGalley and the publishers but my views are my own. I have paid for and read the others in the series!