The Seagull

★★★★★ Cleeves’ eighth Vera novel delves a little deeper into the past of the detective’s errant father Hector and his cronies, the self-titled ‘Gang Of Four’. It all starts when a former Detective Superintendent John Brace, a member of the gang and imprisoned for his involvement in their more unsavoury dealings, points the detective in the direction of the longdead remains of another member of the shady group.

Though The Seagull lacks any edge-of-the-seat thrills, it is certainly an absorbing story that provides a compelling read.