DCI Vera Stanhope returns in The Darkest Evening, the ninth novel in Sunday Times bestseller Ann Cleeves' enduringly popular series. Driving home during a swirling blizzard, Vera Stanhope's only thought is to get there quickly. But the snow is so heavy, she becomes disoriented and loses her way.Ploughing on, she sees a car slewed off the road ahead of her.With the driver's door open, Vera assumes the driver has sought shelter but when she inspects the car she is shocked to find a young toddler strapped in the back seat. Afraid they will freeze, Vera takes the child and drives on, arriving at Brockburn, a run-down stately home she immediately recognizes as the house her father Hector grew up in. Inside Brockburn a party is in full swing, with music and laughter to herald the coming Christmas.But outside in the snow, a young woman lies dead and Vera knows immediately she has a new case.Could this woman be the child's mother, and if so, what happened to her?A classic country house mystery with a contemporary twist, Ann Cleeves returns with a brilliant Vera novel to savour.