Telling Tales (Vera Stanhope, 2)

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It was unfortunate, a terrible coincidence. Dan says a new witness has come forward. The case has been reopened. Jeanie might have been released.’ Val McDermid Millions will be familiar with Brenda Blethyn’s portrayal of Vera in the television series of the same name but Cleeves’ engaging prose provides a much deeper, subtler insight into an intriguing and likeable character As the story opens, we meet Emma, who is married and the mother of a young baby. We soon learn that ten years earlier, at the age of fifteen, Emma discovered the murdered body of her best friend, Abigail Mantel, lying in a field. Abigail’s father’s girlfriend Jeanie Long was convicted of the murder and recently committed suicide when she was denied parole. As if that wasn’t enough to stir up grim recollections for the residents of the tiny village of Elvet, it turns out that a witness has come forward and exonerated Jeanie just days after her death—which can only mean that Abigail’s killer is still at large. Jeanie Long committed suicide last week. You know, Jeanie Long. Her father used to be coxswain on the launch at the point. The woman who was convicted of strangling Abigail.’ Joanne Butcher (8 July 2014). "Vera writer Ann Cleeves gains honour from University of Sunderland - The Journal". journallive. Archived from the original on 23 September 2019 . Retrieved 24 May 2016.

Shetland' gets full six-part series on BBC One". Digital Spy. 3 April 2013 . Retrieved 24 May 2016. Then, Emma notices a large woman in the church, a stranger, and wonders who she is. By the description, we readers know immediately. That was what she told herself, but the words ran meaninglessly through her head. She was trying to fend off the panic which had been building since she had heard the men talking on the square, growing like a huge wave which rises from nothing out at sea.

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Demonstrating singular adeptness with mood and pacing, narrator Julia Franklin shines in this character-rich mystery set in northern England... Franklin's performance is direct and punchy, matching the speed and shrewdness of Vera's first-rate mind." There was a moment of silence. Emma wondered what Dan could know about all that. Had the two men discussed her on other occasions when she hadn’t been watching? She wanted to shout at him, Of course I know. I know more about this case than you ever could. But she just looked at him.

In July 2022, Cleeves was awarded an honorary D.Litt. from Newcastle University for services to reading and libraries. [11] Bibliography [ edit ] Palmer-Jones [ edit ] years ago Jeanie Long was charged with the murder of 15-year old Abigail Mantel. Now new evidence has proved Jeanie's innocence. The woman was in a shapeless Crimplene dress covered with small purple flowers and a fluffy purple cardigan. Despite the cold, on her feet she wore flat leather sandals. Exciting, right? That is not even the best news yet! The spectacular news is that Seagull, the eighth book in the series, will be on shelves this September, and it is the first of the series to be released in the USA and the UK simultaneously. So I get to read it at exactly the same time as my friends in Belfast! Was everything all right this evening?’ she asked to soften the rejection. ‘It’s been so windy. I imagine you out there in the dark, the waves so high.’From Ann Cleeves— New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of the Vera and Shetland series, both of which are hit TV shows—comes Telling Tales. Ann Cleeves and Matt Baker awarded Queen's honours". BBC News. 31 December 2021 . Retrieved 3 January 2022. I have to say that for a murder that happened ten years in the past, there were more zigs and zags than I could have imagined. Vera not only has to resolve the killing of Abigail Mantel but she also takes up the cause of discovering why the original investigation went so very wrong. a b c Lobb, Adrian (19 March 2013). "Ann Cleeves interview for Shetland". The Telegraph . Retrieved 24 May 2016.

I don’t suppose it’ll make much difference to Em. Not after all this time. I mean it’s not as if she knew Jeanie, not so much. She was very young when all that was going on.’ Ann Cleeves is a skillful technician, keeping our interest alive and building slowly up to the denouement. Her easy use of language and clever story construction make her one of the best natural writers of detective fiction." — Sunday Express (UK) Not me, pet. I’m on the side of the angels.” She held out a hand the size of a shovel. “Vera Stanhope. Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope. Northumbria Police. I’ve been brought in to clear up this particular pile of crap.” Now Inspector Vera Stanhope is making fresh enquiries amongst the residents of Elvet, the small East Yorkshire village where Emma and Abigail grew up. Everyone is feeling vulnerable and uneasy, even guilty. Telling Tales is the second book in Ann Cleeves' Vera Stanhope series - which is now a major ITV detective drama starring Brenda Blethyn as Vera .

Telling Tales

These novels, except for The Glass Room, have been dramatized in the television series Vera on ITV, which stars Brenda Blethyn in the title role. The programme premiered in May 2011.

On hearing the news, Emma Bennett is haunted once more by memories of her vibrant best friend, Abigail, and by the thought that her killer is still at large. Who are you?” Emma demanded. Then, before the woman could answer, remembering Dan’s earlier warning, “Are you a reporter?”

Chapter One

Come to bed,’ he said. ‘Get some sleep while you can.’ She thought he had already put Abigail Mantel and Jeanie Long out of his mind. She lives in Whitley Bay, [1] and is widowed with two daughters. [4] Honours, awards, and media appearances [ edit ] It has been ten years since Jeanie Long was charged with the murder of fifteen-year-old Abigail Mantel. Now residents of the East Yorkshire village of Elvet are disturbed to hear of new evidence proving Jeanie’s innocence. Abigail’s killer is still at large. But Jeanie commits suicide in her prison cell, unable to face the people who had believed her capable of killing a child. Ten years ago fifteen-year-old Abigail Mantel was murdered, her cold body discovered lying in a ditch. Her father's girlfriend was found guilty of the crime. Now, evidence has emerged that proves her innocence and means that Abigail's killer still roams free.