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Before Shetland and Vera, Ann Cleeves wrote the George and Molly Palmer-Jones series following remarkable mysteries in a birdwatching community—now in print for the first time in the US.
Landlord and politician Marcus Grenville wants to convert Ursula Ottway’s beautiful cottage into a holiday residence. So when Ursula discovers that the illegal use of poisoned bait on Grenville’s land has killed not only a rare bird of prey but her two beloved cats, she storms to his house and threatens revenge.
The next morning, Molly Palmer-Jones arrives at her Aunt Ursula’s house only to find her body slumped lifeless on the sofa. Shocked and saddened, Molly and her husband George decide to piece together a picture of Ursula’s last days. And it soon becomes clear that, for many people on the estate, hers was a very convenient death.
The Palmer-Joneses embark on a murder investigation but even their professional expertise doesn’t prepare them for what is to follow. A lifetime’s worth of secrets must surface before a killer can finally be brought to justice . . .
Ann Cleeves
Ann Cleeves is the author of forty critically acclaimed novels, and in 2017 was awarded the highest accolade in crime writing, the CWA Diamond Dagger. She is the creator of popular detectives Vera Stanhope, Jimmy Perez and Matthew Venn, who can be found on television in ITV’s Vera, BBC One’s Shetland and ITV’s The Long Call respectively. The TV series and the books they are based on have become international sensations, capturing the minds of millions worldwide.
Ann worked as a probation officer, bird observatory cook and auxiliary coastguard before she started writing. She also spends her time advocating for reading to improve health and wellbeing and supporting access to books. In 2021, her Reading for Wellbeing project launched with local authorities across the North East. In 2022, she was awarded an OBE for her services to reading and libraries. She lives in Northumberland.
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