The Dying Light – Ann Cleeves – 384 pages | 08/10/2026 | Crime & mystery

The deadliest truths are those in the shadows . . . Detective Matthew Venn is called to investigate when the body of a young woman is found in the swimming pool of Tide House, a luxurious holiday home in North Devon. The girl’s best friend has disappeared and the property belongs to rising political star Paul Armstrong, leading to intense media scrutiny. As a scorching heatwave rages and further tragedy strikes, Venn and his team question a community brimming with secrets. The dead girl and her friend had been spotted at a music festival the previous day, an event which brought locals and outsiders together – some of whom may have been more connected with the Armstrongs than first thought. Caught between a powerful family’s secrets and a powder keg of local tensions, Venn must navigate a treacherous path – knowing that the real answers lie not in what people say, but in the silence that they keep . . . Praise for Ann Cleeves:’Everything Ann Cleeves writes is incredible’ Richard Osman, author of The Thursday Murder Club’Ann Cleeves is a stone cold genius’ Marian Keyes, author of My Favourite Mistake’The queen of the detective novel, thrilling millions of readers’ Daily Express