Red Bones

Once again we return to the Shetland Islands in North Scotland, this time to Whalsay. When Sandy Wilson visits his family, including his grandmother, Mima, who has authorised an archaeological dig on her property, he and Inspector Jimmy Perez find themselves investigating two suspicious deaths. 

This is the second year of the dig where post graduate student, Hattie, hopes to discover a merchant's house dating back to the fifteenth century - a time when when there was trade between the islands and Nordic countries across the sea. Members of some of the local families are supportive of the project as the discovery should attract additional tourists to the islands. Others woud like the project stopped. When bones are discovered in one of the trenches the stories of more recent mysteries in the area are also revealed.

Feeling an outsider on Whalsay, Jimmy Perez encourages Sandy to become involved in the investigation to a greater extent than in previous books. It soon becomes obvious that family feuds going back many generations still affect current relationships on the island. As in the previous titles in the series the islands where the stories are set feature prominently in the books. We also learn more about the main characters and their relationships as the detectives investigate events on the island.

Red Bones by Ann Cleeves is the third book in the Shetland series with the story featuring in the first series of the TV series of the same name.