In THE KILLING STONES, written by Ann Cleeves, Jimmy Perez finds the dead body of his oldest and closest friend, Archie Stout, at an archaeological dig. The murder weapon is found next to Archie’s body. Why is Archie Stout dead? My curiosity is piqued. I want an answer.

I immediately care about the characters. I am interested in learning more about Jimmy Perez’s relationship with Willow, his significant other. They seem like an unlikely match, her being his boss and all. It helps to have seen episodes of the Shetland television show when imagining life of a small community on an island off Scotland. Ann Cleeve’s writing has a way of inviting you in. You have to keep reading. I look forward to reading more of her books. Thank you, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley, for the chance to read and review an advance reader copy of THE KILLING STONES.

Detective Jimmy Perez, formerly employed in Shetland, now resides and works in Orkney, a remote area off the coast of Scotland. He lives with his partner, Willow, and their young son. Willow had been his boss, but is now on maternity leave, preparing to give birth to their second child.

On a cold and blustery night, Jimmy’s good friend, Archie, is found bludgeoned to death, the weapon being one of two a historic stones missing from the Heritage Center. Willow steps in to assist, concerned that Jimmy is too close to the victim and possible suspects.

I have read and enjoyed several selections from Ann Cleeves’ Two Rivers and Vera Stanhope series, but somehow have missed the Shetland/Jimmy Perez series. This is my first one and it does work as a stand alone.

This cleverly plotted police procedural is well-written and features unique, colorful characters. It is not a fast read, but the heightened tension as the story progressed drew me in; I couldn’t put it down until I reached the denouement.

Cleeves’ evocative descriptions of the claustrophobic isolated island life and fickle Scottish weather, along with a bit of the history of the area create a strong sense of place. The relationship between Jimmy and Willow is intriguing as they navigate around unsaid thoughts, and I eagerly anticipate the next installment to see how they progress.

4 stars for book 9 in an excellent mystery series, which has been adapted for tv, set in Scotland. I have read books 1-3 and this one in the series. This one worked for me as a stand alone. DI Jimmy Perez now lives on one of the Orkney Islands, having relocated from the Shetland Islands. He is living with Willow Reeve, his supervisor in the Scotland Police. She is pregnant with their first child. Perez connected with her after the death of his lover Fran.
Jimmy is called to the scene of a murdered man, Archie Stout. Archie was a good friend of Jimmy's, since childhood. The murder weapon was a Neolithic stone, taken from the Westray Heritage Center. It was called a story stone, because of the Viking runes carved on it.
Jimmy, Willow and their team do solve the murder, but there are some false leads, and I did not suspect the killer until near the end of the book. They have to solve it w/o help from the mainland, due to a fog grounding flights and the unwillingness of their colleagues to take the ferry at Christmas holidays.
The violence is all postmortem, and not graphic. Also, there is no sex of bad language.
Thank You St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for sending me this eARC through NetGalley.

Readers who have enjoyed Ann Cleeves earlier mysteries will not be disappointed by this book which, building on earlier stories set in Shetland, follows detective Jimmy Perez to his new home and professional assignment in the Orkney Islands.

​As always, Cleeves succeeds in bringing the setting into reality for the reader through descriptions of the landscape and climate, along with the people and their culture.

​“The Killing Stones,” focuses on the ancient culture of the area and the use of historic artifacts, reaching back into early Nordic history, as weapons. But the story focuses not only on the ancient relics used as weapons, but on issues of archeological research and academic integrity as more deaths occur and the overlapping cases become more complex.

​The final resolution of the several crimes reveals a surprise linkage of past wrongs to present day social concerns.

​A remarkable story that gives the reader a lot to think about.

Perez is back! The rumors are true. DI Jimmy Perez, Ann Cleeves’ iconic detective in the Shetland series, is now faced with unraveling the murder of his longtime friend Archie Stout. Perez is no longer in Shetland but has moved to the Orkney Islands with partner Willow Reeve. Archie goes missing on the island of Westray and Perez travels there to find him. He does when he stumbles on Archie’s bludgeoned body. When the murder weapon is discovered to be an ancient artifact pilfered from a local museum, the story takes off. As with every novel in this series, and indeed every work by Ann Cleeves, the characters are richly drawn, the plot clever and complex, the setting spectacular, and the writing beautiful. An excellent addition to this remarkable series.

DP Lyle, award-winning author (Jake Longly and Cain/Harper thriller series), Lecturer, and Story Consultant and Co-creator of The Outliers Writing University
https://www.dplylemd.com/

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of Ann Cleeves' 'The Killing Stones'.

I am so incredibly pleased Ann Cleeves decided to continue with her Shetland series. - although our detective Jimmy Perez has now relocated to Orkney. This newest novel does not disappoint fans of the show or the book series.
Ann Cleeves writing style is very emotive and I could picture the beautiful scenery -full of dark, brooding landscapes and stormy nights on the windswept isles. The murder mystery itself is gripping and will keep you second guessing right up to the very end.
A great read that kept my captivated and eager to go back for more.

I want to make sure readers know, though this is the continuation of Ann Cleeves Jimmy Perez character, it's not a "Shetland" mystery, the action takes place on Orkney, several miles off the coast of Scotland. I honestly really enjoyed this book--hence the 5 stars--because I think that Cleeves did a great slow burn of bringing us back into Jimmy's life and how it's changed, head nods to prior books, but the ability to make you become invested in who killed Archie Stout.  

We find Jimmy at a different place in his life (he is with Willow, they have a 4 year-old son and are expecting another child in a few weeks) and just feels content. When someone he considered a brother is found murdered though, Jimmy is thrown and finds himself trying to get to the bottom of who could have killed his friend and why. The book shifts between Jimmy and Willow's third person points of view as they keep interviewing and narrowing down their suspects. 

I thought that Cleeves did a great job of showing us different sides of Jimmy and Willow in this book. They felt the same, but more grown-up. We also get some old characters referenced here and there so the book felt familiar. But moving things out of Shetland where Jimmy knew everyone to them having to deal with parenting their young child and investigating murder was great. Willow is still Jimmy's superior, but he doesn't really answer to her, but he does anyway. I liked how these two work and how Willow knows when to push and step back from him now. Their prior dynamic caused a lot of tension in the last few books. 

The plot about killing Archie loops in the history of two stones and the island of Orkney to boot. I loved how Cleeves weaved everything together. 

The flow of the book really worked and towards the end you get a last minute scare that had me on the edge of my seat. Cleeves is known for killing her darlings so I was really tightly wound until the very end.

Firstly, thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the chance to read an advance copy of this book. This was one of my most anticipated books of 2025 and I was VERY excited to have the chance to read it before it was published. Not only am I a big fan of Shetland, I was also excited because I was going to be on Orkney on the summer solstice. I loved returning to much beloved characters and loved the change in location. The mystery had me guessing until the end. I loved that I could picture many of the locations in this book having just been there last week, it made it all the more immersive of a read for me. This is going to be a great book for Fall and Winter reading. It's so atmospheric with everything taking place around the Winter Solstice in December. I hope that this is the start of a new series set in Orkney.

While I have been a huge fan of Ann Cleeves’ previous books, I had to work to get through The Killing Stones. I thought the story was flat, the pace was too slow, and the people were not their normal ‘human’ characters. It took way too long to get to a credible motive. Even when exposed, the motive was weak. I knew this would not be a five-star read when I started to skip paragraphs and then pages to get to the end.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review The Killing Stones. It was not my favorite Cleeves work, but that won’t stop me from reading her books in the future.

The Killing Stones
A Detective Jimmy Perez Novel
by Ann Cleeves

This may well be the winner in my “I didn’t see that coming” category, worthy of admiration. I enjoyed the descriptions of the lovely, isolated Orkney islands, the close-knit families, the historical background, and the Story Stones at the heart of the tragedies. The description of police work, the routines and tedious sifting and waiting, the need for compassion, all gave me added respect for those who do the work. The corrosive and explosive damage from secrets, pride, and tempers is a lesson for us all. Best of all is the mutual respect and support from friends and family in the search for truth.
Coming Oct. 14, so there’s time to catch up in the Shetland Series before then.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC of The Killing Stones. After 9 seasons of Shetland, Jimmy Perez moving on, and Tosh taking over his position, Ms. Cleeves retturns to Jimmy Perez who has moved to the Orkney Islands to be with the woman he loves, Willow Reeve also a detective.
When his best friend goes missing, Perez goes to the island, Westray, and finds him murdered, in a sacrificial setting. Perez is determined to find the killer. This is another very satisfying read from the mind of Ann Cleeves. I, for one, am so glad to know Jimmy Perez is alive and well and --well maybe we'll see Douglas Henshaw back on our screens again.
I also hope we have more of Jimmy Perez in the Orneys.
Thank you Ann Cleeves

Yay, Jimmy Perez is back! I really loved the Shetland book series and also the show. When I saw this available on netgalley I jumped at the chance. He's not on Shetland anymore but he's still working as a detective. The murder took place on Orkney and I got to learn a lot of interesting things about Orkney, including some of the ancient history of the place. The vibe is definitely similar to the Shetland books since everyone in the rural area knows each other and many people are holding in secrets about the murder victim.
There were plenty of very good red herrings which I always enjoy, and I did not actually guess the murderer which is rare and made me like the book even more. Especially since there were hints about the murderer, so it wasn't just a surprise out of nowhere. That heralds a good mystery to me. Thank you for the opportunity to read this!

Shetland is back and we have a time leap! I do find her books to be overly dense at times but the mysteries are solid and you don’t beat her for capturing the differences between these remote locations. I continue to find Jimmy a puzzle and not super appealing but it did feel like checking in with old friends, This one felt like a throwback to some of the earliest in the series thanks to the archeological dig setting/plot points.

I love Ann Cleeves' work, I have read the whole Shetland series half of the Vera series (and counting). I was so excited when I saw a new Jimmy Perez novel was coming that I literally screamed! But let me warn you: This is not a continuation of the Shetland series, because The Killing Stones takes place in the Orkney islands, which is where Jimmy now lives.

While this novel continues with such a great character, Jimmy, who is so sensitive yet has such a gruesome job, this book missed the mark for me. It felt really slow, and consisted almost entirely of either Jimmy or Willow interviewing someone. There was almost no action, until the very end.

I have always loved how Cleeves incorporates her setting into her stories as well as historical elements from these old places as well. The Killing Stones centered around a particular set of artifacts, but I don't feel as if she went into as great of detail with the historical parts or the Orkney setting as she did with the Shetland series.

With all of that said, I can still say I liked this book, I just didn't love it like I have the others in the Shetland series. Will I continue reading Jimmy Perez books if she puts them out? Absolutely! I think there is something that happens in the mind of a reader who has worked their way through the catalog of any specific author, different books stand out in their mind as being a favorite or not quiet. But I think those differences are also what build the feelings of endearment we have towards the author.

I received a free digital copy of The Killing Stones from NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Great continuation of the Jimmy Perez story. He’s a great detective and this was a very hard case to solve, looking forward to more of Jimmy, Willow and James.

I was so happy to see another Shetland novel. DI Jimmy Perez is back as was his boss, Winnie. Their son is four years old and Winnie is pregnant. Christmas is fast approaching when Jimmy's best friend, Archie, is reported as missing. Jimmy and Winnie are living in Orkney, but Jimmy catches a a boat to the island of Westray to help look for him.

Archie is found murdered at an archeological dig site and he was murdered with an ancient stone. The investigation takes off and it all seems to revolve around the stones, there are two. One is missing. That stone is discovered, with another dead body.

The story is filled with some great new characters and a few not so great. It was a delight to read about the customs, the local life and the island settings make you wish you could go there and see them for yourself. As usual, I have no idea who did what until it is all wrapped up at the very end. Never did this ending ever occur to me. I love being surprised!

I would like to thank Minotaur Books and NetGalley for this early read.

So glad to see Detective Jimmy Perez happy and solving murder. What a great book. It kept me guessing right up to the end. Of course, the island setting is glorious and the history is enthralling. I would start reading this one again immediately.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this DRC.
#TheKillingStones #NetGalley

If you are searching for a gripping story that is intelligently written and evenly paced in such a beautiful setting then The Killing Stones by Ann Cleeves is the right choice.

Ann Cleeves is a masterful writer which is why I would recommend that college students read her books. The Killing Stones, the 9th in the Jimmy Perez series incorporates all the sterling aspects of excellent mystery writing, including a moving plot full of red herrings, complex characters who draw us in, and a splendid setting, When a good friend of Jimmy Perez is killed, the obvious strong connection between the two men sets up a conundrum for Perez who cannot imagine who would kill his friend Archie. Perez' partner, Willow Reeve, who is also actually his boss, is also drawn into the search for the murderer, and as two more people are killed, the plot becomes more complicated, and the possibilities for finding the perpetrator become more fraught with difficulty. In the end, the identification of the murderer is shocking indeed.

Cleeves establishes her characters and their relationships with incisive clarity, and at the same time, there are questions about personalities and motives that are anything but obvious. Suspicions about who is guilty and why are carefully and skillfully developed. Any reader who appreciates recondite characters rife with mystery will find it difficult to put down any book which Cleeves has written. All of her books are compelling and moving and almost impossible to put down. The Killing Stones is yet another astonishing book by this author.

Thanks to St. Martins/Minotaur Press and Net Galley for the opportunity to read another incredible work by Ann Cleeves.

Ann Cleeves keeps getting better. I loved the latest Jimmy Perez. Getting to know a small island, the families, the history, the old grudges and the old and new gossip keep you guessing as to who done it and why.