The Killing Stones is the 9th virtuosic outing for DI Jimmy Perez constructed by Ann Cleeves. Released 10th Sep 2025 by Macmillan on their Minotaur imprint, it's 384 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.
This
is a strong entry in a very strong and well written series. The
characters are so well rendered and filled out that at this point they
live and breathe. This installment sees DI Perez in the Orkneys to investigate the disappearance and untimely death of one of his oldest friends. There are some...iffy developments uncovered in the course of the investigation which didn't sit entirely well, including some light(ish) sexual harassment which Perez treated as a minor blip, which could've been handled better, but overall, engaging and well constructed. This is *not* a particularly fair-play mystery and DI Perez is privy to some info which isn't shared with the reader along the way, so it's likely an exercise in frustration to try to figure out whodunnit before the actual ending reveal.
The unabridged audiobook format has a run time of 10 hours, 56 minutes and is expertly narrated by Kenny Blyth. He has a well modulated and warm voice and does a perfect job with the
disparate and difficult dialects and intonations from a fairly large cast of
characters. His voice wasn't intrusive at all, which allows readers to
concentrate on the intricate plot and various characters.
Four stars. The earlier series is superlatively well written, and this installment
fits pretty well with the others; in an allied series way and not as a direct continuation. There are 9 books in the series as it stands
now including this one, making it a good candidate for a long binge read. The author is a towering talent in the procedural field.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
No comments:
Post a Comment