THE DARKEST EVENING Vera Stanhope, Book 9

Janine Birkett returns to narrate the ninth book in Ann Cleeves's Vera Stanhope series, made popular by the TV series. Birkett rises to the task of voicing men and women, seniors and teenagers, imperious aristocrats and farmworkers. The whodunit, set in winter in the atmospheric Northumberland countryside, forces Vera to confront the pain and pleasures of family. Listeners will ride along with Vera and her team as they solve the mystery of a young mother found dead at the ancestral home of the Stanhopes--who are distant relatives of Vera herself. The story reveals more of Vera's background and allows her subordinate, Holly, a bit of the limelight. Birkett nicely captures the feisty, rough-edged Vera. E.Q. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPTEMBER 2020]