2nd in Matthew Venn series. Great mystery re the deaths of two men. It was interesting to follow the investigation. Complete surprise at end. In her follow-up to The Long Call (2019), Cleeves provides a complex mystery full of surprises.Detective Matthew Venn?s North Devon team is stretched to the limit by a series of homicides. An aborted conversation between police officer Jen Rafferty and Nigel Yeo, who wants to discuss a problem at a party thrown by a mutual friend, is the first hint of trouble. The next morning, Jen is called to a murder scene at an artist?s workshop on the grounds of wealthy Francis Ley's home. The dead man is Nigel, who was killed by a spear from one of his glass blower daughter Eve?s pieces. The investigation is complicated by several preexisting relationships. Jen had a one-night stand with Wes Curnow, the other artist in residence at Ley's, who also has studio space at an art center run by Venn?s artistic, upbeat husband, Jonathan. The murdered man worked for a watchdog organization that?s investigating the National Health Service after several families complained that their depressed youngsters got little help and committed suicide, including the son of a local family that could be seeking revenge. The homicide team, which in addition to Jen includes an ambitious detective named Ross, work in their own intuitive ways alongside Venn, a clever, soft-spoken, deeply conflicted man¥he's still working on his fraught relationship with his mother after having been brought up in a cultlike religious group that doesn?t welcome gay people. A second murder with another shard of Eve?s glass widens the possible range of suspects, making it more difficult for the sleuths to ignore their personal feelings.This character-driven exploration of people?s darkest flaws is a sterling example of Cleeves? formidable talents.

The team of Matt, Jen, and Ross try to uncover who and what led to the murder at an artist colony. What makes this enjoyable is the behind the scenes look at Matt's relationships with his husband and mother, Jen's social life, and Ross's work home balance. The second in a series, this stands alone effectively. ( )

I thoroughly enjoyed this English Police Procedural with its team of quirky, talented police investigators. There is Detective Inspector Matthew Venn who heads the team and was raised as part of a religious cult. Jen Rafferty, his colleague, is divorced, has two children, and often parties much too hard. Ross May, the third member of the team, is married and is the golden boy of their Detective Chief Inspector. They all manage to work and solve crimes together despite their disparate personalities. If you enjoy J.L. Ross’s books, you’ll probably enjoy this series.

The team is called to the scene of a murder where the victim’s daughter discovered him with a very large piece of art glass through him. The glass was handmade by his daughter. The victim, Mr. Nigel Yeo was a gentle, caring man. So, who would want to murder him? Could it have something to do with his employment in the healthcare system?

It seems the victim had tried to speak with Jen at a party the previous night, but since she had overindulged, he decided not to do so. Was he going to tell her something that led to his murder? It seems they’ll never know.

With more victims, the team becomes more and more perplexed. What are they missing? What has it to do with old suicides?

The case will perplex you and it will keep you guessing throughout. There are many false trails and red herrings to keep you wondering.

One thing I enjoyed was learning more and more about who each member of the team was – especially with straight-laced, uptight Matthew Venn who was raised within the confines of a religious cult before he left as a young man. Matthew firmly compartmentalizes his life between work and personal, but in this book, those lines crossed several times when a number of witnesses and victims were acquainted with his husband Jonathan. ( )

Matthew Venn's character is a little on the dull side, and prefers to do things himself instead of sharing with his team. On the other hand, his husband Jonathan is a delightful person, and was even able to please Matthew's strict mother. I read the first in the series last month and after finishing this one I don't expect Venn will ever have the appeal of Vera or Jimmy Perez. However, not a bad mystery and the characters were a bit better developed in this one. No need to read in order, this one can be read as a standalone. ( )

Interesting characters and great evocation of the setting in Devon. ( )