White Nights (Shetland Quartet 2) [Hardcover]

Unanimous Acclaim for the Shetland Island Thrillers
"A riveting read."
- Val McDermid, author of "The Grave Tattoo
""Chilling . . . enough to freeze the blood."
- Marilyn Stasio, "The New York Times Book Review
""A pleasure to read. Interesting characters, great setting, intriguing plot. . . . And the bonus when we ?nish it is that we know we've got two more to look forward to."
- Reginald Hill, author of "Death Comes for the Fat Man"
"Taut, atmospheric . . .will keep readers guessing until the last page."
- "Publishers Weekly" (starred review)
"A most satisfying mystery. Jimmy Perez is a fine creation."
- Peter Robinson, author of "Friend of the Devil"
"In true Christie fashion, Cleeves once more pulls the wool over our eyes with cunning and conviction."
- Colin Dexter, author of "The Remorseful Day"
"Deserves the top crime writer's prize in the United States this year. Don't miss this standout."
- "Rocky Mountain News"" """

'A most satisfying mystery set in an isolated and intriguing location'

'White Nights is a pleasure to read.Interesting characters, great setting, intriguing plot, and nothing to turn the sensitive stomach'

'Ann Cleeves intriguing mystery is tangentially energised by the "simmer dim", a midsummer craziness attributed to the midnight sun'

'Temote and enclosed, Shetland is an excellent background for crime fiction...A carefully constructed, atmospheric and interesting mystery'

'It's a good, character-led mystery, which displays the art of storytelling without recourse to slash and grab.'

'This is wonderful...Part of the wonder of this book is the domestic detail that becomes iconic within the novel.'

'...one of the best things about the novel is Cleeves's affectionate portrait of this small rural community.'

'North novelist Ann Cleeves has unveiled the sequel to the book that landed her the world's top crime-writing prize.'

'The book is wonderful to read: powerful at conveying a way of life that has almost vanished.'

The thrilling new Shetland novel following RAVEN BLACK.

It’s midsummer in Shetland, the time of the white nights, when birds sing at midnight and the sun never sets. Artist Bella Sinclair throws a party to launch an exhibition of her work and to introduce the paintings of Fran Hunter. The Herring House, the gallery where the exhibition is held, is on the beach at Biddista, in the remote north west of the island. When a mysterious Englishman bursts into tears and claims not to know who he is or where he’s come from, the evening ends in farce. The following day the Englishman is found hanging from a rafter in a boathouse on the jetty, a clown’s mask on his face. Detective Jimmy Perez is convinced that this is a local murder. He is reinforced in this belief when Roddy, Bella’s musician nephew is murdered too. But the detective’s relationship with Fran Hunter clouds his judgement. And this is a crazy time of the year when night blurs into day and nothing is quite as it seems.

Ann Cleeves worked as a probation officer, bird observatory cook and auxiliary coastguard before she started writing. She now promotes reading for Kirklees Libraries and as Harrogate Crime-Writing Festival's reader in residence, and is also a member of 'Murder Squad', working with other northern writers to promote crime fiction. In 2006 Ann was awarded the Duncan Lawrie Dagger for Best Crime Novel, for Raven Black . Ann lives in North Tyneside.