The Heron's Cry (Two Rivers #2) by Ann Cleeves

We are back with DI Matthew Venn, still dressing like an undertaker, DS Jen Rafferty, still drinking too much, and DC Ross May, still acting like he's better than everyone else, when deep down he's not feeling so secure about his life. There's been a murder and Jen spent time with the victim the night before, because the victim needed to talk to her about something, but she was too drunk for decent conversation. Everything is too close for comfort, with all kinds of connections between the various characters, confusing the picture and sending the team in too many directions.

The victim, Dr. Nigel Yeo, seemed to be a good man, who was trying to right wrongs. Before too long there is another body and maybe some past deaths might be connected to the present deaths. This is a very slow burn and the team does their foot work, while the list of suspicious people grows by the minute. Guilt is a theme that is a big part of this story. Guilt about the past, guilt about what was done and not done, and trying to find the guilty party/parties for past and present wrongs. No one wants to suspect friends or relatives of friends, everyone feels defensive, and there are just not enough hours in the day and night to solve these crimes while giving the home front the attention it needs.

The story belongs to the characters and I've enjoyed how this little world is built. I look forward to more from this series, in the future. Will Matthew ever wear a wrinkled shirt, will Jen ever rise above takeout for her kids, and can Ross stop trying to climb the ladder and instead be happy to do the job he has now?

Thank you to St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

Jen is at a party of her friend, Cynthia, when a man she doesn't know, Nigel Yeo, comes to talk with her. He works in the health sector, but appears to be asking questions more like a PI. He wants to discuss something with her the next day. However, the next day, Jen is called to a murder site by Venn, her boss, and finds that the dead man is Nigel. He has been killed by a shard of glass in his daugher's glass blowing studio at Westacombe. Westacombe has a large house which is owned by Frank Ley, a wealthly financier. Frank doesn't live there all the time, but uses the front of the house, and there are two apartments in the back where Eve Yeo and Wes Curnow live. Their studios are in the former farm buildings. John and Sarah and their twins live in another cottage on the farm and do the farming and cleaning in exchange for their housing. Wes was also at the party the previous night with a friend whose brother recently committed suicide which Nigel was helping to investigate if the health community treated him fairly.

Then, there is another similar murder. Before the end of the book, there is a third dead body. The police keep working, and as the end is close, Jen suddenly gets an inspiration and there is a rush to prevent yet another murder!

One of the things I like about this book is the fact that most of the characters have flaws, including the three police. In spite of this, most of them try to do the right thing, but they are human. The relationships between the characters are interestingly depicted, and life will never be the same for some of the characters.

I remember the disappointment I felt after finishing (and loving) The Long Call, the first book in Two River series and realizing that I'll have to wait months until the next one. And then through magic that is NetGalley I had my hands on the advanced reader's copy of The Heron's Cry. Grateful to NetGalley, publishers Pan Macmillan & St. Martin's Press for giving me the gift of being able to read about the new adventure of Detective Matthew Venn & his team sooner rather than later.

I must admit DI Matthew Venn has quickly become one of my favorite investigators (though my #1 fictional crush in that category forever remains Inspector Gamache). Observant, well put together & introverted, still settling into his cozy life with his sociable, charming husband Jonathan, Matthew finds himself working on a murder of Dr. Nigel Yeo whose body is found in his daughter's art studio. Once again the search for the killer finds Matthew navigating the lines between professional and personal. On top of intriguing murder investigation The Heron's Cry also paints a more intimate portraits of the rest of Matthew's team, DS Jen Rafferty & DC Ross May.

Though some series allow for reading books out of order, this is one where I would definitely recommend reading The Last Call first, as this book refers to it quite a bit. The story is very much character driven, unraveling slowly (but not too slowly), really allowing the reader to immerse themselves in the simultaneously rough & gentle beauty of North Devon. Characters come alive & regardless of their likeability factor they start to matter. This book hasn't even been published yet
and I find myself excited at the possibility of reading the next one.

I highly recommend this book (and the series) to fans of police procedurals and British murder mysteries and especially those not yet familiar with the work of Ann Cleeves - you're definitely in for a treat.

The really picky writer, one who loves a suspenseful story but wants it to be treated with the respect accorded to "litra-chure," cannot go wrong with Ann Cleeves. I'm a fan of several best-selling British crime novelists, but none are as meticulous in continuity, research and authenticity as Cleeves.

This is true of the Shetland series, the Vera Stanhope books and now the new, Two Rivers series featuring DI Matthew Venn and set in Devon. Venn is a complicated man, whose troubled history has given him more compassion than the average cop often displays.

In this book, Venn finds that his husband, Jonathan, is perhaps too closely connected to the current murder case. We have an artists' collective, tourism, gentrification and loss of the farming culture all at play in these North Devon villages. We have many plausible suspects, but Venn's team shines as they ferret out the motive and the murderer.

Thanks to NetGalley and St.Martin's Press for an advance readers copy.

Having just read The Long Call, I have become familiar with DI Matthew Venn, and this includes his difficult and painful past, his marriage to Jonathan, and his dedication to his job. In this entry in the riveting Two Rivers series, Matthew is investigating the aopparant murder of Dr. Nigel Yeo. Dr. Yeo was a man who seemingly led a good and quiet life, making Matthew wonder why Dr. Yeo was murdered and who he crossed paths with.

Just as in the previous story where the case Matthew had came rather close to home, things are much the same in this book. The victim's daughter is a rather close friend to Matthew's husband Jonathan. When a second body is found, with an exact MO, Matthew turns over every stone before there is a third victim.

I found both of the books in this series to be very well-written, character driven stories.

Many thanks to Minotaur Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

The Heron's Cry is the second Matthew Venn procedural murder mystery by Ann Cleeves. Due out 7th Sept 2021 from Macmillan on their Minotaur imprint, it's 384 pages and will be available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats.

This is another beautifully written mystery set in North Devon and featuring Detective Matthew Venn, a cerebral and solemnly intelligent investigator tasked with unraveling a bizarre and showy murder; a doctor administrator who turns up dead in his daughter's glassblowing studio stabbed with a piece of glass. The pacing of the investigation is unhurried and the characters built up so well and in such detail that they live and breathe. Even the secondary characters, Ross, the Mackenzie family, Lauren Miller and the others are carefully and completely delineated and distinct. I loved that one of my favourite characters from book 1 (Lucy Braddick) is included in this book as well. It really was a delight to read.

Although it's the second book in the series, it works very well as a standalone. This book is also quite intricately plotted, but there aren't any major spoilers if they're read out of order. The denouement and resolution were exciting and (for me at least) mostly unexpected. I'm usually pretty good at figuring out "whodunnit" and this time I missed almost completely. Well played, Ms. Cleeves.

The author does a good job of showing the frustrations and difficulties of dealing with acute mental illness and some of the constraints, both internal and external, of the NHS. Potentially triggering content includes suicide, suicide ideation, and failure of care. The language is rough in places (R-rated), and there are some blood/gore descriptions on page.

The audiobook is unabridged, has a run time of slightly over 10 hours, and is most expertly narrated by Jack Holden. He has a pleasantly nuanced voice and manages numerous characters with widely divergent accents (and ages, and both sexes) impressively well. One of the main characters is from Liverpool, the secondary characters are varied and have accents from Scotland to the Southwest and points in between, and he manages all of them with expertise and precision. Sound quality and production values are high.

Five stars for the book itself, five for the audiobook. Looking forward to what comes next.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Second in the series but it stands alone overall. I like the characters of Venn and Jen but I felt the mystery just did not pull me in. It took me a rather look time to read it. And parts seemed rather out there as far as what happens in a little village. I did enjoy the character development from the first book.

The Heron's Cry is a book so full of strong characters and intriguing plot that the pages just fly by.

Matthew and his team are faced with the perplexing murder of Dr. Nigel Yeo. Followed by yet another murder in the same home of a group of artists.

The book starts with a slow pace as you are introduced to all the characters but slowly but surely picks up pace and at the end I was holding my breath.

I cant wait for Book 3 in the series as we learn more about Matthew and his team along with their personal relationships.

Treat yourself to Two Rivers Series. You wont be disappointed .

Ann Cleeves never lets you down.

Thanks to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan MacMillan

The Heron’s Cry is the second book in the gripping Two Rivers mystery series.

I fell in love with Ann Cleeves’ writing from the Vera Stanhope books and television series, Vera. I also recently watched Shetland and am hooked on that series now too. I am so glad she is writing another series so we can solve mysteries alongside her captivating characters.

The setting is perfect for a moody murder mystery. It takes place in the southwest of England in a coastal area of North Devon. There is a murder in an artists community and Detective Matthew Venn is the detective on the case.

Ann Cleeves is a master at writing her characters. I feel like I know Matthew, Jonathan, and the other characters in the book. I appreciated that other detective’s points of view are presented, so we feel like we are part of the team. We also get to see a bit of their private lives, which adds to the richness of the story. Also, I was glad that a favorite character of mine from The Long Call, Lucy, makes an appearance in this book.

The mystery was complex and full of red herrings. I thought I knew the killer and changed my mind about three times during the story. I was wrong all three times!

I highly recommend this book for mystery lovers.

I usually enjoy Ann Cleeves’ mysteries but must admit that several days out I often have trouble remembering the plot. Having said that I enjoyed the latest addition to the Two Rivers Series. Detective Matthew Venn is an odd but efficient character, always thinking, weighing the possibilities and probabilities. His husband Jonathan is given a larger, more pronounced and vocal part in this story. I loved that Cleeves gave us a police presence in the character of Ross May, to dislike while making him a perfect foil for DS Jen Rafferty who is doing much of the investigative work, heavy lifting and deep thinking.

The murder and subsequent mystery of who did what to whom and when is a slow unwind that is worth pursuing. Cleeves captures the reader’s attention with her character definitions even though the cast is large. Her attention to the same sex marriage of her primary character as well as the careful treatment of a character who is challenged is brilliant and adds to the story.

Masterful attention to detail, thoughtful, compassionate - Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s / Minotaur for a copy.

The Heron’s Cry is the second novel in the series featuring Matthew Venn. It follows on The Long Call. In that first novel, readers learn Matthew’s history. He was raised in a strict religious group where his sexual orientation and desire to work in the police force were in conflict with the values of those around him. Doing what was right for him has taken something out of Matthew. Luckily, his husband Jonathan offers support and love along with a different way of looking at the world.

Matthew’s current case takes place in a small community. There are several deaths. How are they connected? How will those around the victims cope and live their lives from this point on? Those characters are farmers, artists, pub owners and others with intersecting lives.

The first victim is Nigel Yeo. Was his death a personal vendetta or was it related to work that he was doing for an organization called Patients Together? How is the death of an artist related to this? And what about the cause of death of a third victim?

What Ann Cleeves does well:

-She creates a strong sense of place with her descriptions of the book’s settings.

-She forms a world filled with characters whose lives collide. All of these characters come alive. There are those who are present in this novel and also the recurring police characters and Matthew’s mother and husband. I enjoyed spending time with them.

-She raises an important social issue but it may require a trigger warning for some readers as the subject relates to suicide.

More than halfway into the novel, Matthew and Jonathan (his husband) see a heron. Watch for this and how Jonathan connects that bird to Matthew and his way of looking at the world. It seemed quite apt.

I was delighted to receive this ARC from NetGalley. I have read all of the Vera Stanhope and Jimmy Perez novels by this author and recommend them highly. When Ms. Cleeves announced that there would be no more Perez novels, I knew that I would miss them. The Matthew Venn novels are just a scintilla less engaging to me but I do recommend them. I hope that before long there will be a third Matthew Venn story.

Nature lovers turn to the Heron as a symbol of tranquility and peace. With its long majestic neck and legs, it holds court in the seclusion of marshes and wetlands. It strides soundlessly in the water........but if it's been disturbed or threatened.......you'll hear a loud grating scream.

Ann Cleeves presents her second book in the Two Rivers Series. The Heron's Cry can definitely be read as a standalone. But get in on the ground floor with her first book in this series, The Long Call. Get cozy with these characters now as I see a nice future as this series begins to unfold.

It's June in North Devon and residents and vacationers are hitting the shore. Many are visiting the shops and the artisans' local village where they display their wares and crafts. Frank Ley, a successful economist, owns much of the property there and has invested in the majority of its real estate and artists. He invites these artists into his home even though he is more of a recluse.

Cleeves spins her storyline to spotlight DS Jen Rafferty who is off-duty and attending a party at the home of her best friend, Cynthia. She's introduced to Dr. Nigel Yeo who wishes to have a later conversation with Jen the next day. He seems preoccupied by something. But that meeting never takes place. The body of Dr. Yeo is found murdered the following day. And the circumstances of his death are unsettling. Particularly where and how he died........

DI Matthew Venn will be on the scene. Extremely professional and regimental, Venn is the complete opposite of his husband, Jonathan, director of the community arts center. Jonathan is outgoing and almost everyone's best friend. That's why this becomes more personal as more bodies are found. Jonathan has connections to them. The deaths are brutal and not at all in line with a community that treasures art.

The Heron's Cry gives nothing away. Cleeves makes us work hard sliding puzzle pieces together and then tossing them out. She is known for layering her storylines with many avenues that cross one another and then may veer towards a deadend. The Heron's Cry is a smart read that challenges the readers. Never spoonfeed me or hit me over the head with obvious clues. That's why you know you're getting "the good stuff" when you crack open any book by the talented Ann Cleeves.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Minotaur Books (St. Martin's Press) and to the talented Ann Cleeves for the opportunity.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an e ARC of this book.
Book 2 :in this series. Much more interesting than the first where lots of new characters are introduced. Character development was continued with a cast of likable, interesting people. Plot with twists and turns. Loved the book.

Like The Long Call, the first book in Cleeves' new series, The Heron's Cry is a good but not great mystery novel. Ultimately, the identity of the culprit becomes obvious; they eventually spew out their story in great detail after being caught. What saves The Heron's Cry from slipping into mediocrity is the quality of Cleeves' writing, especially her ability to make the setting a real character as well as her ability to bring her characters to life. These are real people who struggle to solve crimes, to deal with their demons, and to confront life. I found Cleeves' repeated descriptions about who various people are (e.g., "his husband," "the mentally challenged young woman,") both annoying and condescending. Her readers do not have such short memory spans that they cannot remember the identity of major characters. I hope her editor does not allow this tendency to continue in future novels. I look forward to the next entry in this series.

Ever since The Long Call, the first in the Two Rivers series, I have been looking forward to the second book featuring DCI Matthew Venn and his team. Venn grew up in a fundamentalist Christian group in Devon. He was a rising "star" in the Barum Brethren until a sudden loss of faith resulted in his expulsion from the group and his family, not to mention his homosexuality. Now, he and his husband, Jonathan, are back in Devon. These are treacherous waters for Matthew and Jonathan, as the Brethren are involved to one degree or another. Thankfully, Matthew has a good team in DS Jenn Rafferty and DC Ross May. Jenn is a single mom with two teenagers, and May is dedicated, at least as far as building his career goes. The Heron's Cry begins with Jenn at a party at her friend Cynthia's home. Jenn is a bit tipsy, not an unusual occurrence in social situations when she meets Nigel Yeo. It's a pleasant meeting, but Jenn senses he has something on his mind. Imagine her surprise when Nigel is found dead at his artist daughter's studio. This event sets off even more murders. All the deaths occur among the people living at an artist's colony on the property of millionaire financier Frances Ley.

Very few authors have the characterization skills that Ann Cleeves possesses. She is juggling multiple characters, who all have a part to play in the plot. All are so finely drawn they are indelible, and their varying situations intersect to bring it to its end. I'm particularly fond of Jonathan, who has an endless well of support and sympathy for Matthew, even though their marriage does have its stresses. I am getting fonder of his mother, who seems to be trying in her own way to, if not mend fences, make a halting new beginning. A plus for me is that I didn't have a clue who the perpetrator was and why.

I highly recommend The Heron's Call. Thanks to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

The Matthew Venn series is a beautiful new series, featuring a thoughtful, fully realized detective who is a complicated man, though not in the typically written manner. Cleeves has eschewed creating Venn with the familiar alcohol or drug addiction background, relationship troubles, disciplinary problems, etc. Instead, Venn is a conservative, introspective, married, gay man with a background of a cultish, evangelical upbringing. Venn's husband Jonathan is very different from him - he runs an artists' cooperative and has an open, warm nature. Both men are well developed and intriguing. The setting is the area of Devon, off the coast of England. Cleeves excels at creating evocative landscapes, and here the environment is as much a part of the story as the characters.
Venn is a natural detective but he is still finding his way in his marriage, his background, as well as his work. The Heron's Cry is the second in this successful series. The story centers around a community of artists, again touching into Jonathan's sphere. A well-known man is found murdered in his artist daughter's studio, with a piece of her glass-blown vase used in the killing. The artistic community is under suspicion, and things start to escalate. Cleeves works out an intricate plot with fine pacing and suspense. Venn's internal dialogue is always deeply interesting and instructive. This series is not to be missed. Highly recommended.

The Heron's Cry is the second and installment in the Matthew Venn/Two Rivers series by Ann Cleeves. Thank you Ms. Cleeves,, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this advanced copy of the book in exchange for my honest review. The North Devon setting is its own character, maybe my favorite. .The Heron's Cry can be read as a standalone, but characters and other backgroundi information from the first book is very helpful. The character development is rich and beautifully done. In the Heron's Cry, Jonathan is more present and the reader begins to see his goodness, and the reasons he is so loved and important to Matthew. The plot is a murder mystery, suspenseful and intelligent. It looks like this will be picked-up for a TV series. I will be watching. Once again, Ms. Cleeves hit it out of the park with this highly recommended series. Keep them coming. Five easy stars.

This is the second book in the Matthew Venn series. In this book, Matthew is called in to investigate the initial death of a man. The man turns out to his husband's friend's father. The story spirals off as its clear the murder it tied to old cases of young people who died by suicide. What's the common thread?

I did enjoy visiting with Matthew Venn again, particularly the view into his marriage and complicated family relationships. Trigger warnings for suicide.

After reading the first book in this series, "The Long Call," a couple of years ago, I've been eager for more about the star of the show, North Devon Detective Matthew Venn. He has an intriguing background, leaving the cult-like religious life of his parents and getting married to the love of his life, Jonathan (no doubt distancing himself even farther from his already disapproving parents). Out on his own, he's become an exceptionally competent investigator, and he's back with a new adventure that has his entire department scratching their heads and puts his relationship with Jonathan to the test.

One of his most trusted underlings, Jenn Rafferty, gets a call from Venn way too early the morning after she drank way too much at a local party - one at which a local physician and patient advocate, Dr. Nigel Yeo, had indicated he had something to discuss with her. Apparently, he gave up trying and left; so when Venn tells her the good doctor has been murdered - by a shard of glass from one of his daughter's works of art - she's both disturbed and mortified that her inebriation got in the way. The body was found within a community of artists at which his daughter has a studio that's owned and run by a very wealthy man - and where Jonathan manages a group that caters to people with disabilities (in fact, Jonathan is a good friend of Eve, the dead man's daughter).

Needless to say, several in the artistic commune are suspects, including the rich guy - and the story weaves its way through the possible connections that hopefully will lead to identifying the killer. But then, another body turns up - a man who was murdered in a similar fashion with a similar weapon. With this one, the possible motive is even more elusive than the first. But slowly and methodically, Venn and his team unearth clues that lead in an unexpected direction - leading up to an exciting end (and a couple of causes for optimism in Venn's personal life). All told, it's another entertaining adventure, for which I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy. Bring on the next!

Much thanks to NetGalley, Minotaur Books, and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of the new Two Rivers mystery.

It was wonderful to go back to this cast of characters with a new mystery involving a number of violent murders and suicides (past & present). The mystery was secondary to the character driven plots. Matthew, his husband Jonathan, and his fellow officers are wonderful and it's terrific to see their characters grow and develop. I was also happy to see Lucy (from the first book) back at the community center and helping solve this mystery.

Overall, it was not as compelling as the first book, The Long Call, (which was AMAZING) but still kept my interest and I loved the twists and turns and clues. Highly recommend this series to any mystery fan!