The Heron’s Cry by Ann Cleeves is the second in the Two River series and is an interesting read. It is an involved story of suicide and murder, and who did commit suicide and which character committed murder. The team is the same as in The Long Call and they all work well together.
I enjoyed reading this book.
Highly recommended

Back with DI Matthew Venn, investigating a murder. It's a slow burner and a character driven tale which readers might take some time to warm up to. I love the Devon location and the developing characterisation, especially Lucy. The mystery just dragged on a bit and the ending was lazy, but I would still recommend the read to fans of the author. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/customer-reviews/R1K50XS3N4RZUD?ref=pf_ov_at_pdctrvw_srp
Many thanks to Ann and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of The Heron’s Cry.
This is the second book in the Two Rivers series and so different from The Shetland and Vera series. .

Eve Yeo is a glassblower who rents a flat and workshop on the Westacombe estate in North Devon. When Eve goes into the workshop early, she finds her father, Dr Nigel Yeo, dead in a pool of blood, having been stabbed with a shard of glass from a vase which she had made for a client.
DI Matthew Venn and his team are called to investigate. There is no obvious reason why anyone would want to murder Dr Yeo who worked for an organisation which monitors the health authority. However he had been looking into a complaint by the family of a young man who had died after being discharged without follow up care from a mental health unit.
A second person, who is also connected to Eve, turns up in similar circumstances.
With the lazy, bullying DCI Joe Oldham in overall charge, the team resources are stretched to meet his demands whilst actually investigating the deaths.
Matthew continues to struggle with his upbringing in the brethren as he battles to keep his private and work life separate. Meanwhile his husband, Jonathon, is starting to show an other side of his character, one which does not always align with Matthew’s work.

The story continues with lots of twists and turns and secrets to be revealed.
I was so glad to see that Lucy is still in the series and becoming more independent.

Ann has managed to produce a page turning thriller whilst setting it in a gentle background and growing the characters, both privately and professionally.

So excited to get the chance to read the new Matthew Venn book. Another crime has been committed in Devon and Matthew Venn and his team are on the case.

Ann Cleeves is so very clever writing her characters from unassuming, quiet Matthew to relaxed easygoing Jonathan his partner. I totally didn’t guess who the murderer was as she keeps us guessing until the end. Fantastic read which I will be recommending to anyone who wants an interesting crime and case that will keep you guessing

Synopsis
North Devon is enjoying a rare hot summer with tourists flocking to its coastline. Detective Matthew Venn is called out to a rural crime scene at the home of a group of artists. What he finds is an elaborately staged murder – Dr Nigel Yeo has been fatally stabbed. His daughter Eve is a glassblower, and the murder weapon is a shard of one of her broken vases.
Dr Yeo seems an unlikely murder victim. He’s a good man, a public servant, beloved by his daughter. Matthew is unnerved though to find that she is a close friend of Jonathan, his husband. Then another body is found – killed in a similar way.
It’s not long since Matthew’s returned to North Devon with Jonathan, after 20 years estranged from his deeply religious family, now he finds himself treading carefully through the lies that fester at the heart of his community and a case that is dangerously close to home . . .

My Review
This is the second book in Ann's Two Rivers series which began with The Long Call.
North Devon, so lovingly, and beautifully described by the author provides a stunning backdrop to some truly awful acts of violence. While reading The Long Call will undoubtedly offer a better sense of perspective and familiarity with the already established characters and relationships, you don't feel like you've lost anything by reading this first.
I found the characters to be both likeable and relatable. Ann Cleeves is thorough in her examination of everyone's backstory and that comes through perfectly on the pages.
The murders are well written and entirely credible, which makes the descriptions of the crimes all the more disturbing. Ann's talent for placing you in the room to experience the investigation first had makes this such an enjoyable, compelling story that you will want to consume in one sitting.
Overall, Ann Cleeves has gained a new fan, and I will be reading more of her books soon. Would I recommend The Heron's Cry? Absolutely, although I recommend reading read book one The Long Call first, if for no other reason than for context. I gave The Heron's Cry five stars.

I do love getting into a new series. That lovely feeling as you begin a slightly deeper dive into your cast of characters and get to know them a little bit better than on the first outing which was The Long Call. The Heron’s Cry does that beautifully. Not only is it a murder mystery, but it lays the groundwork for the police team that is D.I. Matthew Venn, DS Jen Rafferty and DC Ross May. Matthew is a lapsed Evangelical Christian, estranged from the Barum Brethern sect and for that reason also has a distant relationship with his mother. He is married to Jonathan, the manager of an arts facility in Barnstaple. On the face of it, they are polar opposites. Matthew is buttoned up the back; his shoes are always polished and he’s never seen without a tie even in the hottest weather. Jonathan is casual, a relaxed and empathetic man, but yet it all works beautifully between them.

D.S. Jen Rafferty is a Scouser and her flame red hair is an indicator of the way she tackles life. Slightly chaotic, but intuitive, a mother of two teenagers and now we learn, has come out of a difficult and controlling relationship.

D.C. Ross May is a young man in a hurry. He is a bit resentful of Jen and wants his promotion to come fast so that he can ditch what he considers to be the dross of police work – that painstaking trawling through the evidence that so often achieves results, and he is not a huge fan of Matthew, whose approach differs markedly from that of his predecessor, who was Ross’s hero.

It is Jen who is the starting point for this murder mystery. She is quietly getting merry at a party thrown by one of her few friends in the area, Cynthia Prior who is a magistrate. Doctor Nigel Yeo is Director of North Devon Patients Together, an advocacy group which aims to hold North Devon NHS services to account. He wants to have a serious discussion with Jen, but she puts him off to the following day as she’s in no state for that this evening.

But by the following morning, Nigel Yeo is dead, found in his daughter Eve’s glassblowing studio, stabbed with a shard of glass from one of her own creations.

Eve’s studio is part of a small collective, the Westacombe Farm community, supported by local wealthy landowner, economist Francis Ley who lives in a grand house in the grounds of which the studios sit. Also resident are Wes Curnow, an artist who works with reclaimed wood and a bit of a chancer – and coincidentally someone with whom Jen had a one night stand. Wes lived in the grounds but also had studio space in Jonathan’s arts centre, where he was often to be found graciously allowing women to buy him tea and cake.

The other residents are John and Sarah Grieve and their children; distant relatives of Francis Ley who managing Ley’s farm using traditional methods and also have a small dairy.

Venn’s starting point is with the cases that Nigel Yeo had been looking into. One notable case was the suicide of a young man, Alexander McKenzie, who had taken his own life after the NHS mental Health team had allowed him to leave their facility and return home, following pressure of space and resources and given that he had family to look after him. It’s not clear, however, why that case would have caused the kind of urgency on Yeo that made him approach Jen at a party.

As the team find out more about Yeo and his life and work, another murder takes place, this time on Jonathan’s doorstep. There are similarities, but the team has to delve deep to find a connection beyond the obvious method.

An Ann Cleeves mystery is that fascinating blend of character driven narrative and community based problems and she delivers that well in The Heron’s Cry. Her characters are really well drawn and she is great at making people instinctively likeable. I really liked the inclusion of Lucy Braddick, a young woman working in the arts centre and making a life for herself in an independent living facility and whose role is an important one in this story.

Verdict: The Heron’s Cry is a layered and skillfully plotted story with many angles; most notably the very real difficulties faced by a multiplicity of Health and Social Care Services in a rural community. It’s an absorbing and intelligent read with many false leads that makes the reader work through the clues much as Matthew Venn has to do. The beauty and atmosphere of the North Devon coast are well realised and that terrific sense of place adds to the enjoyment. It’s a slow and enjoyable burn and Ann Cleeves leaves you with an appetite for learning more about this small and stretched Barnstaple team.

The Heron’s Cry by acclaimed author Anne Cleeves is the second in the Two Rivers series of books featuring Detective Matthew Venn. Set in North Devon, it’s very much a slow burning and character driven police procedural novel that increases the tension gradually as the story progresses. Building on the foundations set by The Long Call, we continue to get to know DI Matthew Venn and his team, with The Heron’s Cry delving even deeper beneath the surface than its predecessor.

Touching on themes of mental health and suicide, The Heron’s Cry is a richly plotted and complex murder mystery that keeps you guessing throughout. And just like Vera Stanhope and Jimmy Perez before him, Matthew Venn is another fascinating character from the pen of Ann Cleeves, who really is an author at the top of her game. It’s no surprise to hear that he too will soon be gracing our TV screens, and I look forward to seeing him brought to life on the small screen in the very near future.

This time the story begins with DS Jen Rafferty as she enjoys a few drinks at a party. Approached by Doctor Nigel Yeo who wants to have a serious discussion with her, Jen puts him off to the following day as she’s feeling a bit too worse for wear. But the following morning she’s called to the scene of a murder and to her horror discovers the victim is none other than Nigel Yeo, the man who had spoken to her the night before. Stabbed with a shard of glass from one of his daughter’s own creations, the hunt is on to find the identity of his killer.

DI Matthew Venn and his team are in charge of the investigation, working hard to get to the bottom of what happened to the well liked Nigel. Having only recently settled back in North Devon with his husband, Jonathan, after a twenty year estrangement from his childhood home, Matthew knows he needs to tread carefully, especially where his deeply religious and disapproving mother is concerned. But then another body is found in very similar circumstances to Nigel and Matthew, much to his dismay, finds himself investigating a case that has suddenly become dangerously close to home…

The Heron’s Cry is an excellent police procedural thriller that is not only a murder mystery with all the intrigue and suspense you would expect, but is also very much a character driven story, with the personal lives of DI Matthew Venn, DS Jen Rafferty and DC Ross May playing an important role in the narrative. I love sinking my teeth into a new series and this one appears to be going from strength to strength! Ann Cleeves is a writer who certainly understands her audience and the Two Rivers series is every bit as good as I hoped it would be. I can’t wait to see where she takes this brilliant cast of characters next.

Highly recommended.

A second in series by this author, and I feel although it can be read as a stand-alone,the reader would benefit from reading the first book. Good criminal story although I prefer the Vera series if I’m honest.

EXCERPT: She could see the man now, and moved slowly towards him, frightened already of what she might find. He'd have responded to her shout, jumped to his feet, called out a greeting in return. Put his arms around her. And she was scared because she still had an image of her father, lying on her studio floor in a pool of blood.

There was blood here too, and a shard of glass, her glass, not green this time, but blue, was sticking in his neck. A blue vase had been shattered here - she remembered making it and giving it to Frank Ley as a present - and there were pieces of glass scattered across the bench, reflecting the single beam of the sun. Blood had spattered across the bench and as far as the nearest wall. She pulled her gaze back to the pieces of glass, which looked almost decorative in the shaft of sunlight, and wondered how they had got here - anything rather than look at (X), who was still and white, stark against the red pool of blood, already dried and dark in the heat - and was deciding she should phone 999 when there was a sound outside. The screaming of sirens and the thumping of boots, loud and rhythmic as soldiers' drums, on the uneven concrete, and half a dozen police officers ran in through the doors, yelling for her to get on her knees and put her hands on her head.

ABOUT 'THE HERON'S CRY': North Devon is enjoying a rare hot summer with tourists flocking to its coastline. Detective Matthew Venn is called out to a rural crime scene at the home of a group of artists. What he finds is an elaborately staged murder--Dr Nigel Yeo has been fatally stabbed with a shard of one of his glassblower daughter's broken vases.

Dr Yeo seems an unlikely murder victim. He's a good man, a public servant, beloved by his daughter. Matthew is unnerved, though, to find that she is a close friend of Jonathan, his husband.

Then another body is found--killed in a similar way. Matthew soon finds himself treading carefully through the lies that fester at the heart of his community and a case that is dangerously close to home.

MY THOUGHTS: It has been said that Ann Cleeves is a master of her craft, and I am not going to disagree. She paints fluent pictures of her characters and their environs, drawing the reader into their dramas.

Matthew, despite his rank and his success in his role still suffers, at times, from a lack of confidence. He is logical and orderly, and can come across as cold and unfeeling, in direct contrast to his more spontaneous and warm-hearted husband Jonathan. This difference in their natures creates a few problems in their relationship in The Heron's Cry. Matthew is also ambivalent in his feelings about Ross May,a young man with great potential, but who is Chief Superintendent Oldham's prodigy and, often, his ear to the ground.

I like that we learn significantly more about Ross May and his wife Mel in The Heron's Cry. He came across as quite an unlikable character in the first book of the series, but in this, we see a lot of growth and he begins to shine, although Matthew continues to be wary of him and gives Jen Rafferty a lot of the responsibility that Ross thinks is his due.

The plot is superb, encompassing murders that appear to have no obvious motive, but are linked by method and weapon. This is not a fast paced crime novel, but one that is very much character driven. Several of the characters from The Long Call appear again - I was so pleased to see Lucy and her dad back - along several new characters.

If you are looking for a thriller, you're in the wrong place. But if you enjoy a well crafted murder mystery, I can wholeheartedly recommend The Heron's Cry. And, while it is possible to read this as a stand-alone, you will miss out on vital information about relationships and character development.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5

#TheHeronsCry #NetGalley

I: #anncleeves @panmacmillan

T: @AnnCleeves @PanMacmillan

#contemporaryfiction #crime #detectivefiction #murdermystery

THE AUTHOR: THE AUTHOR: Ann grew up in the country, first in Herefordshire, then in North Devon. Her father was a village school teacher. After dropping out of university she took a number of temporary jobs - child care officer, women's refuge leader, bird observatory cook, auxiliary coastguard - before going back to college and training to be a probation officer.

While she was cooking in the Bird Observatory on Fair Isle, she met her husband Tim, a visiting ornithologist. She was attracted less by the ornithology than the bottle of malt whisky she saw in his rucksack when she showed him his room. Soon after they married, Tim was appointed as warden of Hilbre, a tiny tidal island nature reserve in the Dee Estuary. They were the only residents, there was no mains electricity or water and access to the mainland was at low tide across the shore. If a person's not heavily into birds - and Ann isn't - there's not much to do on Hilbre and that was when she started writing. Her first series of crime novels features the elderly naturalist, George Palmer-Jones. A couple of these books are seriously dreadful.

In 1987 Tim, Ann and their two daughters moved to Northumberland and the north east provides the inspiration for many of her subsequent titles. The girls have both taken up with Geordie lads. In the autumn of 2006, Ann and Tim finally achieved their ambition of moving back to the North East.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Pan Macmillan via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The Heron's Cry by Ann Cleeves for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

The Heron's Cry is the second instalment in the Two Rivers series set on the beautiful North Devon coast. Detective Inspector Matthew Venn, based out of Barnstable police station in Devon, is back with his thinly stretched team after a series of homicides in the area. Retired physician Doctor Nigel Yeo had recently approached Detective Sergeant Jennifer Rafferty, one of Venn’s team, at a party to ask if he could discuss with her the apparent suicide of one of his patients. As the director of a local patient advocacy group known as the North Devon Patients Together organisation, he was investigating exactly what happened when paranoia sufferer Alexander Mackenzie ended up dead after being neglectfully released from a psychiatric facility. However, Jen had been too drunk for this conversation to occur, and the following morning Venn and his team had been called out to an artists’ compound on the grounds of wealthy landowner Francis Ley’s home in Devon, England, where the murdered body of Nigel lies. Coincidentally, his body had been found in his daughter’s glassblowing studio where he had been stabbed to death and left with a shard of glass from one of Eve Yeo’s handmade vases protruding from his neck. The investigation is complex and convoluted from the offset as one of Jen’s exes, Wes Curnow, is the second artist in residence at the house and Wes also owns studio space at an art centre managed by Venn’s artsy husband, Jonathan.

It grows ever more complicated when a second artist is killed, stabbed again with a similarly distinctive murder weapon and the police must look into the background of Ms Yeo and the artists at the commune a little more carefully. They also follow a line of enquiry based on Nigel’s investigation into a series of complaints made by several families against the NHS' mental health services in which the families of depressed and suicidal individuals deemed the lack of NHS support as responsible for their loved ones’ deaths. Who is responsible for these brutal slayings? This is a compelling, slow-burning crime novel filled with rich and complex characterisation and a vivid and atmospheric sense of time and place. It's an intricately plotted, well-woven, multilayered mystery filled with twists, reveals and surprises all along the way, and the horrific crimes ripple through the tight-knit community like gunfire. The investigation is further complicated by several preexisting relationships. Matthew, although a great investigator, is quite an inflexible person driven by logic and a rationalist as well as soft-spoken and intelligent which often helps progress cases but doesn't bode well for his personal relationships. In fact, the entirety of his team struggle with drawing a line in the sand and not allowing their personal and professional lives to spill over onto one another. This is a riveting and compulsively readable character-driven thriller that has elements to delight both old and new fans alike. Highly recommended.

At a friend's party Dr Nigel Yeo wants to speak to DS Jen Rafferty, as she has been partying a bit more than is likely to result in clear thought & as both realise this isn't the ideal time she gives him her card. The next day when she is called out to a murder scene she is horrified to find he is the victim. He has been stabbed in the neck by a piece of glass in his daughter's studio. She lives in a sort of art commune set up by rich philanthropist Francis Ley. When another member of the group is found dead at Matthew's husband's community centre-also stabbed by a shard of glass DI Matthew Venn, Jen & DS Ross May have a mystery on their hands.

Like all of Anne Cleeves books, this is a well plotted character led story. This is the second in the series. Although I enjoyed the first one a lot of the story revolved around giving us the setting & the characters. This one leaps right in & I loved it. The characters are varied & interesting & as always the plot keeps you guessing. It will be interesting to find out how it transfers to the screen. If Vera & Shetland are anything to go by I can't wait! Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book. I'm already looking forward to No 3!

In the second book of this series we see DI Matthew Venn dealing with the murder of Nigel Yeo, a retired doctor, who had approached DS Jen Rafferty at a party, wanting to speak to her. Jen had been drinking, so was going to speak to him in the morning. Unfortunately, by then he was dead. Murdered with a shard of glass from a vase made by his daughter Eve.

When you read a book by Ann Cleeves, you know you are going to read something that has been well plotted, beautifully written and a book that takes you right to the end without guessing who the real murderer is. This is no exception. Although I was glad i’d read the first book in the series, it is a stand alone read. The characters are well rounded and believable, from Jen, who’s had to be tough, first as a police officer but also as the single mum of two teenage children. To DC Ross May, a young detective who doesnt seem to believe in the traditional investigation methods, preferring to cut corners, to the DI, Matthew, who is a bit more complex and uptight, with the guilt of his unorthodox past upbringing over him. But with the help of his husband Jonathan he’s trying to let go of these feelings., and his calm manner makes him a very good officer. A really good, satisfying read.

I was eager to read this novel by the creator of 'Vera' however, I didn't feel it had the same level of suspense as the Vera novels. I enjoyed it but feel that Anne Cleeves is still establishing these newer characters who don't emerge fully formed from the page. I guessed the killer fairly early on by a combination of elimination and crime reader's instinct. I would read more in this series as the characters are likely to become less one-dimensional as the writer has more opportunities to develop them.

Another perfect read from Ann Cleeves.
I haven’t read the first book in the Matthew Venn series , but this does not impair this story , the characters have enough back story to make the book an enjoyable mystery. The book is set in Devon and there are a series of murders that take place around an artist ‘s work space. The book also discusses suicide and online discussion forums on the subject so that is something to be aware of.
There are plenty of characters in the book but not too many to confuse the reader.
The writing Is of the calibre that I have come to expect from the author and she doesn’t disappoint with the red herrings and the twist at the end that completed the book perfectly . A very satisfying read , and I look forward to the next book from the author.
Highly recommended!

Review

I thoroughly enjoyed the Vera book series and the Shetland book series - both by Ann Cleeves - and I am pleased to see she is developing another series with Detective Matthew Venn. This was book 2 in that series, which I was delighted to read via Netgalley. It was a great mystery, although I feel compelled to point out a possible trigger warning as this book regularly mentions suicide and forums where people appear to be being goaded into committing suicide and some readers may find this distressing. I enjoyed this book though. I would recommend it to fans of the Vera and Shetland series’ and I hope to see a book 3 soon.

A detective story set in Devon, in which Inspector Venn and his team investigate a series of murders and suicides in and around an arts centre. The story unfolded nicely and was well told but I think, given the status of the author, I was expecting more. There are plenty of characters to get to know and I sometimes forgot who was who. The pace was a tad leisurely for me, and I found the final reveal of the killer a little sad.
Overall though, a solid read.

“North Devon is enjoying a rare hot summer with tourists flocking to its coastline. Detective Matthew Venn is called out to a rural crime scene at the home of a group of artists. What he finds is an elaborately staged murder - Dr Nigel Yeo has been fatally stabbed. His daughter Eve is a glassblower, and the murder weapon is a shard of one of her broken vases.

Dr Yeo seems an unlikely murder victim. He's a good man, a public servant, beloved by his daughter. Matthew is unnerved though to find that she is a close friend of Jonathan, his husband.

Then another body is found - killed in a similar way. Matthew finds himself treading carefully through the lies that fester at the heart of his community and a case that is dangerously close to home . . .” (https://www.anncleeves.com/tworivers/heron.html)

This summary sets the scene for a thoroughly satisfying read. DI Matthew Venn is in his North Devon locale in this, the second of the Two Rivers Series, The Heron’s Cry. The cast from the first in the series, The Long Call is here but things are changing, and characters evolve further. However, if you haven’t read the first book in the series, don’t worry, you will not feel left out.

The murders come early in the story, detailed, not graphic. It is not just all murder and detective work - contemporary themes of unregulated online forums, online gambling, and domestic violence and coercive control are explored. Also running through are the issues between locals and newcomers, and the impact of tourists in local spaces. The Heron’s Cry presents a complete fictional world.

Ann Cleeves always gives a real sense of place, with lyrical descriptions of Devon’s beauty and observations on nature. Scenes are described so well that you can see, smell, hear, taste and touch, as if you were there. All the characters, even the minor ones, are beautifully realised, three-dimensional, warts and all. You feel as if you really know them. Rich with detail, the pace is still maintained, the story always moving forward, twisting and turning, until all is uncovered.

Warning: apart from the murders, there is also a focus on suicides.

The Heron’s Cry by Ann Cleeves is a classic murder/mystery set on the South West coast of North Devon. Although it’s the second book in her ‘Two Rivers’ series I happily read it as a standalone.
In short, we follow Detective Matthew Venn investigations into the alarming murders occurring in the heart of his community that is dangerously close to home.
It’s the first Ann Cleeves book I’ve read and I thoroughly enjoyed it, totally believable characters, a gripping plot and all played out along the glorious North Devon coastline, what a treat. Loved Jonathan’s, Detective Matthew Venn’s husband, similitude to the heron and Matthew, it summed him up perfectly…he said the heron reminded him of Matthew because he is patient, willing to wait and is entirely focused on his prey.
The Heron’s Cry is a perfect read for the lovers of the classic whodunnit.
Big thanks to Ann Cleeves, Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for this eARC which I chose to read in return for my honest review.

Having read and enjoyed Anne Cleeves “Shetland” books, this is the first book of hers that I’ve read from outwith that series. It provided an intriguing and entertaining mystery, although I think it might take me a little longer to warm to Matthew Venn in quite the same way as Jimmy Perez.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and Ann Cleeves for the chance to read the ARC of this book.

I had read book 1 in the series but think it would be possible to read The Heron's Cry as a stanadlone title though there would be more context and understanding of certain plot lines if book 1 had been read.

I have tried to read the 'Vera' series by Ann Cleeves but found it hard to like any of the characters - and couldnt get the image of Brenda Blethyn out of my head - and she doesn't fit the descriptions of Vera in the books. So I think that I got into Matthew Venn and the other characters from book 1 as I had no preconceptions other than the descriptors in the books and this helped my enjoyment of the novel.

It would provide too many spoilers in my opinion to describe the actual storyline other than obviously there are murders and detectives and police procedures. I did feel that the back story about mental health, suicide and the inadequacies of treatment and support were well written and researched. There was also more about the home lives of Matthew Venn and his husband Jonathan and 2 of the other detectives which gave an insight into why they behaved as they did at times and how they had to deal with suspects who may be acquaintances.

I enjoyed the book and hope there will be another in the series. If you like books about modern detectives and police procedures then give this series a try

Thank you again to all concerned with this ARC - this review is my opinion and mine alone