THE LONG CALL
by Ann Cleeves
A clever police officer in Devon, England, confronts anger and sorrow from his early life.
DI Matthew Venn was brought up by parents who were members of the Barum Brethren, a small religious sect. When he renounced his religion, he was shunned by his parents and the sect members, became a police officer, and married the love of his life, Jonathan Church, a sunny optimist who manages the Woodyard Centre, a restored factory that’s home to a covey of counseling services, artists, and charitable organizations. Venn is called from his father’s funeral by PC Ross May to investigate a corpse on the beach near Venn’s home. It’s been stripped of all ID but an envelope bearing an address in a nearby town. DS Jen Rafferty and May find a house owned by Caroline, daughter of Woodyard trustee Christopher Preece, who shares it with Gaby Henry and a short-time lodger whom Gaby identifies as Simon Walden, the body on the beach. Caroline, who works for her father’s mental health charity, felt sorry for Walden, who was living with crushing guilt from a drunken driving accident that killed a young girl, and offered him a place to stay. To Venn’s dismay, many of the suspects are involved with the Woodyard Centre. Caroline, Gaby, and Walden all worked there, Caroline’s father’s charity is housed there, and her boyfriend, Edward, is a curate who sometimes helps out. Whenever Walden rode on a bus, he always sat next to Lucy Braddick, a woman with Down syndrome who attended classes at the Centre. Walden had plenty of money, even if they can’t find it, so why was he scrimping on lodgings and transportation? A call from Venn’s mother returns him to the orbit of the Brethren after another member’s daughter with Down syndrome vanishes from the home of sect leader Dennis Salter. The search continues even as Venn ponders recusing himself from a case that hits so close to home.
Fans missing detective Jimmy Perez (Wild Fire, 2018, etc.) will find a worthy successor in the equally complex Venn, who presides over an excellent mystery in this series kickoff.