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A Bird in the Hand

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What to expect

Ann Cleeves Classic Crime - engaging mysteries to savour, beloved characters to meet again

A Bird in the Hand is the first mystery novel featuring George and Molly Palmer-Jones by Ann Cleeves, author of the Shetland and Vera Stanhope crime series.

In England’s birdwatching paradise, a new breed has been sighted – a murderer . . .

Young Tom French was found dead, lying in a marsh on the Norfolk coast, with his head bashed in and his binoculars still around his neck. One of the best birders in England, Tom had put the village of Rushy on the birdwatching map. Everyone liked him. Or did they? George Palmer-Jones, an elderly birdwatcher who decided quietly to look into the brutal crime, discovered mixed feelings aplenty. Still, he remained baffled by a deed that could have been motivated by thwarted love, pure envy, or something else altogether.

But as he and his fellow ‘twitchers’ flocked from Norfolk to Scotland to the Scilly Isles, in response to rumours of rare sightings, George – with help from his lovely wife, Molly – gradually discerned the true markings of a killer. All he had to do was prove it . . . before the murderer strikes again.

Critics Review

A fine debut . . . watertight and exciting
Susan Hill
It's splendid . . . a classic whodunnit
Bill Oddie
Cleeves is carving out a reputation as the new Queen of Crime
Sunday Mirror
Nobody does unsettling undercurrents better than Ann Cleeves
Val McDermid
Ann Cleeves is a skilful technician, keeping our interest alive and building slowly up to the denouement. Her easy use of language and clever story construction make her one of the best natural writers of detective fiction
Daily Express
Ann Cleeves has enviable talent . . . I love these books
CrimeSqaud
A fine writer
Sunday Telegraph

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