Dark Wives by Ann Cleeves

291 Pages
Publisher: St Martin’s Press, Minotaur Press
Release Date: August 27, 2024

Fiction, British, Police Procedural

Chloe Spence is 14 years old and living in a care home. Her mother is hospitalized with mental health issues and her father moved to Dubai. Other than two school friends, she only has Josh, a care home worker, to confide in. When Josh is murdered and Chloe is missing, no one knows if she is a victim or the perpetrator. Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope and her team are investigating the death and Chloe’s disappearance. They begin interviewing people associated with the care home along with Josh and Chloe’s friends and relatives. The Dark Wives are the stone features in the rugged landscape of North Umberland. They stand like silent sentinels as the actions unfold.

The story is fast paced. The author has a descriptive writing style so the reader can feel the weather and the stark surroundings. The characters are developed, and it is written in the third person point of view. As always, the author does not disappoint with the characters or the storyline. This is the eleventh book in the DCI Vera Stanhope series. If you enjoy watching the series on the television, the books are even better.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this book ahead of time in exchange for a review. It didn't disappoint! Must read!!

One of Ann Cleeves best entries into the Vera Stanhope series, I think. The usual complex mystery with a new character on the team and fabulous character development. Ms. Cleeves continues to amaze me that she can come up with such original plot lines for this series while creating characters that you can love and hate while keeping all of them quite human. Highly recommend this book for any mystery fan, Ann Cleeves fan, and anyone who just loves a well written plot. Many thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC of this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Although I have seen the Vera television series this was my first novel by Ann Cleeves and it did not disappoint. I enjoyed the character development as well as the visuals evoked by description of the setting. The plot picked up pace and the ending was both satisfying and surprising.

Vera and her crew solves it again, along with Rosie, her newest teammate. There is much happening here, all under the guise of “high moral ground”, however the compass is skewed in so many directions. Grab this newest whodunnit in the Vera Stanhope series, an excellent read.

The latest in the Vera Stanhope series is a good one, involving a girl missing from a group home for troubled kids. The team is joined by a new detective, brash and eager to prove herself, a very different kind of cop than the detective whose shoes she's filling after the tragic events of the previous book in the series. Their investigation takes them to a village where an eerie tradition involves a witch chasing children among the "Dark Wives", large standing stones, but clues also lead to the private company that has taken over management of group homes, a development that Vera strongly opposes.

I did have a bit of trouble with the motivation of one of the characters but overall the plotting and pacing are excellent, along with the character development. An enjoyable entry in a solid series.

This series is so entertaining with a likable main character. In this one, Vera and her crew are investigating the murder of a young man who works at a home for children and the disappearance of one of the residents. It's fast-paced and exciting. I enjoy following the procedure and methods of Vera and Co. and see how their methods come to a conclusion.

Next one please!

Vera Stanhope is back in action after losing a beloved member of her team in the last novel, The Rising Tide. Vera and her team of detectives are still grieving their loss and welcoming a new member, Rosie, is very difficult. Rosie is brash and confident a bit like Vera but a looker, as Vera would say.

When a young college student is found dead outside a care home for teenagers and one of the teenagers has gone missing it is hard not to jump to conclusions. Vera keeps an open mind. She doesn't believe the young 14 year old girl is capable of beating a man to death. Vera believes the girl witnessed something and is on the run from the killer. Can the team find Chloe before the killer does?

Cleeves fills her books with the flavor of the area. Full of local vernacular, stories and traditions, like the Witch Hunt and the Dark Wives. If you have never read a Vera Stanhop mystery you don't know what you are missing. She is one of the greats like Hercule Poirot!

Another good story in the series with DI Vera and her group. Have to admit the corruption and actual killer was unexpected, but a good run of clues and leads for the reader to follow. Would highly recommend

I am a big fan of Ann Cleeves' novels, especially her Vera Stanhope books. The Dark Wives lives up to her other books, immersing the reader in a twisted story of betrayal, power, and greed. I did not see the ending coming, and I enjoyed getting to know the new detective, Rosie Bell. I can't wait for Ann Cleeves's next book!

Thank you to NetGalley and to Minotaur Books for an ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review.

I am a huge fan of Ann Cleeves and especially her Vera Stanhope series. Josh, an agency worker at a care home has been murdered and Chloe, a teenage resident of the home is missing? Did she murder Josh or did she flee because she saw something? Is she in danger or is she dead? Vera sets out to find the answers. She is still unnerved by Holly’s death. She has been replaced by Rosie and Vera is determined to be a better more open boss. A statue of Three Wives seems like another character in the story. The ending was a surprise. I absolutely recommend this book and this author. I can’t wait until the release of her next book!

Always great to read a new Vera book. You want to know who did it, but you don't want the book to end. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

It is always nice to find another Vera book, especially since the tv show is ending soon. Ann Cleeves continues the saga of Vera and her detective crew in The Dark Wives. Adding a new character, Rosie, makes for some interesting interactions with the old crew of Charlie and Joe. As always, a good mystery ensues and more of Vera's background is shown as they end up in her neighborhood. These books are always a good read and I hope to read many more.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read "The Dark Wives" in exchange for my honest review.

This is book 11 in the Vera Stanhope series and the stories just keep getting more and more interesting.

We meet out narrator 14 year old Chloe Spence who has not had an easy life. Her dad ran off 2 years ago and her mam stopped eating a year ago and started talking to the television. She writes in her diary that she's crushing on someone named Josh.

Chloe lives at Rosebank Home where teenaged kids that no one seems to want live. She attends Salvation Academy where they only car about kids that can make the school look good. Chloe's greatest belief is that NOBODY LISTENS.

DI Vera Stanhope and her team are called to Rosebank when the body of Josh Woodburn is found on the common with a head wound. They also learn that Chloe is missing. Sergeant Joe Ashworth and newcomer Rosie Bell assist Vera. Rose has replaced the recently deceased Holly who is still a very large part of the team's memories.

Ann Cleeves has a wonderful descriptive writing style and you feel that you are standing there with Vera and seeing exactly what she sees. It's so easy to feel you are with the characters. This really adds to the enjoyment of this series.

There are many family secrets throughout the story. Many people are telling lies to protect someone else. People are keeping quiet about something that needs to be exposed. People are profiting out of troubled young people because it's hard to find a place for adolescents in care.

After another body is found at a bothy, the links become stronger and the team feels that while there are several lines of enquiry, they are narrowing down their suspect. Chloe's mates Esther and Alice also carry a lot of secrets with very good intentions. Everything comes together the night of the Witch Hunt.

The reader will be shocked to learn who started this crime wave. And the story will have the reader turning the pages to see if Vera and her team solve this one in time. I always look forward to the next Vera Stanhope book and this is an absolutely brilliant story to add to the series! Looking forward to many more stories from Ms. Cleeves.

I come to this book review a bit biased. Ann Cleeves is one of my favorite authors, and deserves to be yours too. She is as outstanding as she is prolific, with large bodies of work in the “Vera,” “Shetland,” and “Venn” series of books. Her characters are rich, varied, and complex, even those playing minor roles. Each one vivid, easy to mentally picture, and sympathetic. You’ll come away from her books with a deep sadness knowing, that for the moment, you are leaving these characters behind: friends, mentors, and those who, somewhere along the way in their complicated lives, went astray.

The Dark Wives is Cleeves’ eleventh in the Vera Stanhope series, scheduled for release late August. While it helps somewhat to have read previous books in this series, it is not necessary, as each can be read as a satisfying standalone. Wives is centered around the murder of Josh, a staff member at Rosebank home for troubled teens, and disappearance of fourteen-year-old Chloe, a resident at the home, who may or may not be responsible for Josh’s demise. Both of these characters have quite complicated backstories, leading the reader in circles while at the same time trying to discern just who the killer might be and what became of the missing girl. Joe Ashworth, Vera’s dutiful sergeant is convinced that Chloe is responsible for Josh’s death;. Vera just can’t bring herself to believe that a teenager could commit such a horrible crime.

New to the scene is team member Rosie Bell, an ambitious woman out to impress Vera, whom she hopes will help her in a rapid rise to the top. The title of this book refers to a trio of stones in the wilds of Northumberland. The stones, it is said, were once wives who talked too much and, as punishment, were turned to stone. There are a few Superstitious elements throughout the story that only adds to the intrigue.

When all is said and done, I found this book to be difficult to put down, eventually giving up and turning what started out to be a busy day, completely over to reading. Keep this in mind as soon as you crack the cover. Be sure to have a pot of coffee on, and sandwiches at the ready, because you will no doubt become as enrapt as I was. This book is a total winner. Highly, very highly recommended.

Gracious thanks to NetGalley, Minotaur Books, and Ann Cleeves for providing me with an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

A disappeared teenager is the key. to the next Vera investigation . Secrets and lies keep you guessing until the very end. A great new novel in the Vera Series. Always a great read!

Ann Cleeves is always good bet for a quality mystery. The latest Vera novel is well-written and kept my interest throughout. The Dark Wives is a bit more twisty than some of the prior mysteries. They investigate a murder of a young man that had just started working at a shelter for troubled teenagers.

There are plenty of possible motives and an overwhelming number of suspects and incidental characters. In fact, by the time I reached the reveal, I had to stop to think about the characters involved so I could remember who was who. In addition to those involved with the victim, we get a bit more insight into Vera and her team as they deal with the death of their colleague and welcome a new member to the team dynamic.

Overall, not my favorite in the series, but a solid read. I recommend!

This is my second novel with Vera Stanhope and I am really starting to love her. I love Anne Cleeves' mysteries, I love Shetland and the Two rivers series and I really enjoyed this new book, I am planning to go back and read the previous novels of this series.

I want to thank NetGalley, Minotaur Books and the Author for the ARC.

A twisted story of power and greed. The book was a roller coaster ride of lies. There’s a sense of entitlement to the storyline. I liked the new Detective. She’s caring and tenacious. Vera seemed darker in this book. It’s a very well written book that kept me engaged. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced free copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Ann Cleeves is a must-read author for me, and I especially love her Vera Stanhope novels. As always there is always a murder, this time with two missing vulnerable children to boot. A new DC is added to the team. The sad state of childcare homes and the burnout of social workers is part of the plot. And a pagan festival is also included. There are so many leads to pick through to finally solve the mystery. Keep the Vera Stanhope novels coming!