Ann cleeves author biography

PERSONAL:

Born October 24, , in Hereford, England; husbandly Tim Cleeves, ; children: match up daughters. Education: Liverpool University, certificate,

ADDRESSES:

Home—Holywell, Whitley Bay, Northumberland, England. Agent—Sara Menguc, 58 Thorkhill Rd., Thames Ditton, Surrey KT7 0UG, England.

[email&#;protected].

CAREER:

Writer. Camden Social Armed forces, London, England, child care bobby, ; bird observatory cook put the finishing touches to Fair Isle, Scotland, ; export auxiliary coastguard, ; probation public official inWirral and Cheshire, England,

AWARDS, HONORS:

Royal Television Society Award, tail film Catching Birds; Duncan Lawrie Dagger Award, , for Raven Black.

WRITINGS:

The Sleeping and the Dead, Macmillan (London, England),

Burial deal in Ghosts, Macmillan (London, England),

"PALMER-JONES" SERIES; CRIME NOVELS

A Bird hold up the Hand, Fawcett (New Dynasty, NY),

Come Death and Feeling of excitement Water, Fawcett (New York, NY),

Murder in Paradise, Century (London, England), , Fawcett (New Dynasty, NY),

A Prey to Murder, Fawcett (New York, NY),

Sea Fever, Fawcett (New York, NY),

Another Man's Poison, Macmillan (London, England), , Fawcett (New Dynasty, NY),

The Mill on interpretation Shore, Fawcett (New York, NY),

High Island Blues, Fawcett (New York, NY),

"RAMSAY" SERIES; Wrong NOVELS

A Lesson in Dying, Hundred (London, England),

Murder in Turn for the better ame Back Yard, Fawcett (New Royalty, NY),

A Day in position Death of Dorothea Cassidy, Fawcett (New York, NY),

Killjoy, Macmillan (London, England), , Fawcett (New York, NY),

The Healers, Fawcett (New York, NY),

The Neonate Snatcher, Macmillan (London, England),

"STANHOPE" SERIES; CRIME NOVELS

The Crow Trap, Macmillan (London, England),

Telling Tales, Macmillan (London, England),

Hidden Depths, Macmillan (London, England),

"SHETLAND ISLAND" QUARTET; CRIME NOVELS

Raven Black, Clocksmith Dunne Books/St.

Martin's Minotaur (New York, NY),

White Nights, Clocksmith Dunne Books (New York, NY),

Author of Catching Birds, spick short film for Border TV.

SIDELIGHTS:

English writer Ann Cleeves has method a reputation as a fundamental talent in the field promote to the traditional detective novel.

She is the creator of diverse series detectives. One of them, George Palmer-Jones, is a old Home Office official married differ a former social worker. Coronet natural authority is augmented gross his professional past and glory reputation persisting from it, so far he suffers from self-doubt famous is subject to depression.

Significant finds difficulty in adjusting call on retirement and misses the configuration and discipline of professional discernment. Eventually, he establishes an "advice agency" for the families conjure missing teenagers.

It is Palmer-Jones's junior reputation as a seasoned zoologist that involves him in baseness, however. In A Bird pile the Hand he joins well-ordered community of birdwatchers, some diagram whom are willing to interchange any distance at a moment's notice to encounter a scarce breed.

Such enthusiasm amounts ordain obsession, writes the author: a-okay force sufficiently strong to get back a man's mind, to "alter mood, sense, even personality, adoration a drug." When a manslaughter is discovered, he must rut whether it also has "the power to make a man mad enough to commit murder." The victim's influence was lean in the birding community, endure his complex personality takes lines as the action proceeds.

Enmities surface, and associations breed suspicion: one man was the victim's rival in love, another sought-after the same job, a ordinal lost status by his control. A revealing slant on righteousness victim determines a part be a devotee of the truth, and a unusual bird contributes to the massage of the novel.

Come Death suggest High Water opens in standard style as a number waning people prepare to gather power a nature reserve off prestige Devon coast.

No sooner entrap they assembled than the hotelier of the island announces reward intention to sell out: quite a distance surprisingly, he is dead stop the following morning. Suspicion spreads impartially through the company, tell a second murder contracts ethics closed circle even further. Murder in Paradise takes Palmer-Jones obviate the remote island of Kinness, part of the western seventh heaven of Scotland.

The closed people opens to admit a helpmate from the mainland, and she becomes a principal witness both of life on the resting place and of the course motionless a murder investigation. Her ant sister-in-law dies during the bride's wedding feast, and a in no time at all murder victim is found erelong after enjoying Palmer-Jones's hospitality.

Prestige bride and Palmer-Jones gather much clues as an inscription gesticulate a gravestone, the dispositions trip a will, and the entertaining maturity of a small boy.

A Prey to Murder is commencement in and around a Shropshire hotel where the owner, grand small-scale matriarch, dies by bloodthirstiness.

Her murder seems to suspect the terrible consequence of monumental illicit trade in birds disruption prey. Much of the question is conducted by an excited Welsh policeman, with Palmer-Jones in or by comparison uncomfortably in tow. Palmer-Jones's little woman, Molly, makes her own enquiries at the hotel, and outdo is she who provokes blue blood the gentry novel's violent climax.

Molly's relation with Palmer-Jones undergoes some focus during the story and wreckage sufficient to threaten their cooperation but not permanently injure it.

In Another Man's Poison Palmer-Jones point of view Molly investigate the murder declining Molly's Aunt Ursula, who attempt discovered dead when they become known at her Lake District sunny.

Other murders involve the departure of a birdwatcher from well-ordered Cornish boat chartered for screening seabirds in Sea Fever; righteousness supposed suicide of a eminent naturalist at a coastal "college of the countryside" in The Mill on the Shore; meticulous the murder of a birdwatcher involved in raising funds liberation a fake environmental group limit High Island Blues. Of that last book featuring Palmer-Jones most recent his wife, a Publishers Weekly contributor praised Cleeves's descriptions presumption the "rugged countryside as prominent bird-watching country," adding that space fully the "earnestness" of the birdwatchers is "interesting" and the husband-and-wife team is "convincing," the bearing characters seem "less original."

"Detail high opinion very important in detective fiction," Cleeves once commented.

"In abnormal history it's crucial. George Palmer-Jones is an amateur ornithologist colleague an eye for detail who works with his wife, Mollie, to solve crimes which own a background in natural account. The series started because Uproarious was fascinated by the passion of birdwatchers.

It moved set to consider serious conservation issues like the theft of likely of prey and river contamination. The main characters have latterly retired from careers in become public service. Throughout their marriage they have been too busy bring forth spend much time together. At present, in retirement, they have be obliged to adapt to being a brace again and I enjoy dignity tension that situation brings.

A Lesson in Dying begins unornamented new series set firmly jammy my home county of County. Like many southerners I was immediately attracted by the intense landscape and the tight, agreed communities."

Cleeves's A Lesson in Dying introduces Inspector Stephen Ramsay, let down impulsive, even reckless policeman who is disliked by his colleagues and prone to serious throw into turmoil.

He investigates the murder pay a blackmailer in a County village, disregarding those who abstruse reason to wish the fall guy dead and arresting instead class victim's innocent wife, with cataclysmic consequences. Ramsay's later career practical more reassuring: he stabilizes queen personal life, improves his communications with his colleagues, and avoids further headstrong error.

In Murder in My Back Yard flair investigates murder close to home; the title derives from probity "Not in My Back Yard" syndrome whereby politicians, supportive jump at destructive development elsewhere, protest during the time that their own neighborhoods are misstep threat. The victim is uncluttered woman who sold the boring on which new buildings attack due to be constructed.

A Fair in the Death of Dorothea Cassidy involves Ramsay in glory reconstruction of the last time in the life of practised vicar's wife, an assiduous humanitarian who was daunting in lead busy benevolence.

The suspects riposte her murder include Cassidy's stepson and his girlfriend, a dry widow, an alcoholic, and exceptional social worker. Killjoy is family circle in a Tyneside arts soul, where the female lead appoint a youth theater production run through found murdered. Teenage joyriding opinion ram-raiding contribute to the exemplar.

And The Healers brings Ramsay into contact with New Surcharge travelers and a center buy alternative healing. A motive ask murder arises from a beneficial session: the ambience serves blue blood the gentry action. The Baby Snatcher brings Ramsay to the remote maritime village of the Headland, at he is drawn into dinky mysterious web of child grabbing and murder.

The apparent suicide atlas Bella Furness brings Detective Scrutineer Vera Stanhope to Baikie's Lodge in the remote North Pennine hills in The Crow Trap. Bella's body has been intense by Rachel Lambert, leader work an environmental research team depart includes two other women, draw back of whom carry emotional gear.

Stanhope, Cleeves explained in play down interview for Shots, is young adult enjoyable character to write panic about. "She developed because I was so cross with even crusader writers writing female characters who were young, fit and prized. Vera isn't any of those things. She's over weight obtain middle-aged.

She regrets never obtaining married or having had children."

Indeed, Cleeves found Vera so carrying great weight that, despite having planned The Crow Trap as a in control novel, she eventually wrote cardinal sequels to that novel. Telling Tales finds Vera in Feel one\'s way Yorkshire to investigate a ten-year-old murder case.

Jeanie Long confidential been convicted of killing straight teenage girl and was purport to prison. Though new witness proves her innocence, it be accessibles too late for Jeanie, who commits suicide in her jail cell. Worried that the hostile killer is still at sloppy, the community grows even hound fearful when another body wind up—and it is up brand Vera to find the prisoner before more blood is shed.

In Hidden Depths, Vera tries elect find the connection between twosome apparently random murders.

Luke Cosmonaut is found strangled, laid rub carefully in a bathtub matching water with flowers around primacy body. When a second body—that of teacher Lily Marsh—is determined in a rock pool criticism flowers strewn on the bottled water, Vera knows that she ought to discover what links these flash victims before the killer strikes again.

Cleeves followed the "Stanhope" progression with the "Shetland Island" composition.

Raven Black, the series hype, explores the sinister secrets have a high regard for Shetland Island residents as they come to grips with goodness murder of local teenager Empress Ross. Magnus Tait, an unacceptable loner, is the villagers' deceive suspect, but police detective Crowbar Perez is not so polite to conclude that Tait practical the killer.

Emily Melton, penmanship in Booklist, called the new-fangled a "dark, brutal, suspenseful page-turner," while a writer for Publishers Weekly described it as first-class "taut, atmospheric thriller" with out truly shocking conclusion. Raven Black was the first winner clamour the Duncan Lawrie Dagger Award.

White Nights, the second title demonstrate the series, finds Perez examination the bizarre death of propose Englishman who crashes an disappearing gallery opening, claiming loudly ditch he doesn't know who crystalclear is or where he psychoanalysis from, only to be inaugurate hanged the next morning.

BIOGRAPHICAL Keep from CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

St.

James Guide extract Crime and Mystery Writers, Ordinal edition, St. James Press (Detroit, MI),

PERIODICALS

Booklist, May 1, , Emily Melton, review of Raven Black, p.

Publishers Weekly, Sep 13, , review of Sea Fever, p. 73; February 3, , review of A Acquaint with in the Death of Dorothea Cassidy, p.

75; May 20, , review of High Sanctum Blues, p. ; April 30, , review of Raven Black, p.

Times Literary Supplement, Feb 24, , Natasha Cooper, consider of Raven Black, p. 21; March 23, , Patricia Craig, review of Hidden Depths, holder.

ONLINE

Ann Cleeves Home Page, (June 3, ).

Euro Crime, (June 3, ), Sunnie Gill, review authentication Raven Black; Maxine Clarke, conversation of Raven Black.

Shots, (June 3, ), interview with Ann Cleeves.

Time Warner Web site, (November 3, ), profile of Cleeves.