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The Moth Catcher by Ann Cleeves
Vera Stanhope series Book #7
4★'s
From The Book:
Life seems perfect in the quiet community of Valley Farm. Then a shocking discovery shatters the silence. The owners of a big country house have employed a house-sitter, a young ecologist, to look after the place while they’re away. But his dead body is found by the side of the lane―a lonely place to die.
When DI Vera Stanhope arrives on the scene, she finds the body of a second man. What the two victims seem to have in common is a fascination with studying moths―and with catching these beautiful, intriguing creatures.
The others who live in Valley Farm have secrets too: Lorraine’s calm demeanor belies a more complex personality; Annie and Sam’s daughter, Lizzie, is due to be released from prison; and Nigel watches, silently, every day, from his window. As Vera is drawn into the claustrophobic world of this increasingly strange community, she realizes that there may be many deadly secrets trapped there .
My Thoughts:
You can't be in a hurry when indulging yourself in an Ann Cleeves book. This is a writer that keeps many "secrets" close and only throws them out occasionally. Separating the facts from the red herrings does require the expertise of one such as DI Vera Stanhope. Lucky for the reader that she always shows up.
The title of this book,
The Moth Catcher can be interpenetrated to indicate the trap itself or the one catching in the trap. Throughout this book the reader will feel "caught". In her usual manner Vera Stanhope cleverly works her way through the many entanglements and like the Mounties..."gets her man".
It was an enjoyable read and the only problem I had with the book was the complete lack of enough information to let the reader figure out who the killer was. This is evident in most of Ann Cleeve's books. One thing that she is excellent at is "layering" each of her characters so that the reader has a multitude of suspects to choose from. I had to give this one 4 stars because I just happened to pick the correct suspect. This was accomplished through no talent of my own...just blind good luck.
