How Does The Latest Book By Ann Cleeves Connect To Her Vera Series?

When Clara Davis accidentally switches suitcases at the airport, she expects an awkward exchange— not a gun, stacks of cash, and a stranger calling her Mrs. Vale. Lucien Vale, a cold, beautiful man with blood on his hands, insists she’s his wife—and that men are hunting her. Dragged into a world of covert missions and deadly secrets, Clara must live under an alias to survive. But the longer she stays by his side, the more she questions everything: Is Lucien her captor or her protector? Is this marriage fake—or fate? One suitcase, one lie, one love that could cost them both their lives.

Anne believed her toughest battles were juggling school, family, and her secret martial arts training. But when her family’s shadowy past begins to surface, she’s thrust into a perilous world where every step brings new dangers. Determined to uncover the truth about her identity, Anne embarks on a journey fraught with difficult choices. As the line between ally and enemy fades, she must decide who to trust—and how much she’s willing to sacrifice to safeguard the ones she loves.

Regina’s life begins to unravel after a single, unexpected revelation shatters everything she thought she knew about her past. What starts as a quiet connection with Michael—a calm, grounded young man carrying his own burdens—quickly deepens into something neither of them anticipated. But just as love begins to bloom, dark truths surface. A powerful and high-handed cartel led by the ruthless Raymond operates in the shadows, manipulating events, silencing truth, and leaving destruction in its wake. As Regina digs deeper, she uncovers a web of secrets tied to her family—secrets involving Barrister John Odion, the man she trusted as a father figure, and a hidden truth about her identity. Even more devastating is the discovery that her father’s death was no accident, but part of something far more sinister. With the past closing in and danger growing, Regina must find the strength to face betrayal, uncover the truth, and decide who she can trust. Alongside Michael, she steps into a world where love, power, and deception collide—and where the truth may cost everything.

A secret society of widows. A cold billionaire with a deadly past. One woman sent to seduce him... and destroy him. When Genevieve Holloway buries her husband, she thinks the worst is behind her. But the black-veiled woman at the funeral of her husband says otherwise. “You’ve been chosen.” Drawn into a shadowy society of grieving wives turned silent assassins, Genevieve is given one final task before she can walk free: infiltrate the life of Dominic Rourke—the enigmatic tech billionaire tied to her husband’s mysterious death—and expose the truth. Her mission is clear: seduce him. Infiltrate him. Ruin him. But Dominic Rourke is nothing like she expected. Cold. Calculating. Unreachable. And he’s never let any woman get close—until her. Worse still, his five-year-old daughter clings to Genevieve like a lost soul, whispering secrets she shouldn’t know. Secrets about her dead mother… and the club Genevieve now serves. The deeper Genevieve sinks into Dominic’s world, the more dangerous her own becomes. The women she trusted have blood on their hands. The man she was sent to destroy might be innocent. And the lies that bind them all go deeper than any grave. Genevieve begins to develop feelings for the man she’s sent to ruin, and he sees himself letting go of his cold nature to make her happy and find her husband’s killer. In a game of power, seduction, and betrayal, only one can survive. And Genevieve must decide: Is she the hunter or the hunted? Will she be Dominic’s ruin, or will she become his everything?

Two years after her sister vanished without a trace, Sera Duvall is barely surviving emotionally and financially. But when a chance encounter leads her into the arms of Lucien Calder, the tech billionaire who was the last known person to see her sister, she makes a dangerous choice: infiltrate his world and expose the truth from within. Lucien is controlled, powerful, and hiding something behind every careful word. He offers her a deal: stay with him for one week, and he’ll give her what she wants. But the closer Sera gets to uncovering what happened, the more tangled she becomes in a web of secrets, emotional manipulation, and a slow-burning desire she didn’t see coming. And in a world where love is leverage and lies are currency, the truth may destroy them both.

Six years ago, Elena Morrell walked away from Adrian Lancaster with nothing but heartbreak and a promise to never return. Now she is back. No longer the fragile woman trapped in a cold marriage, Elena has rebuilt her life into something powerful and independent. Returning to Althea to lead a prestigious medical institute is supposed to be a fresh start for herself and her twin sons. Until fate places Adrian Lancaster directly in her path again. Cold, ruthless, and more dangerous than ever, Adrian has never forgotten the woman who disappeared from his life without explanation. And the moment he hears Elena’s voice again, he becomes determined to uncover every secret she has been hiding. But when a frightened little girl unexpectedly enters Elena’s life, the past Elena fought desperately to escape begins unraveling piece by piece. As old feelings reignite and buried truths slowly come to light, Elena finds herself trapped between the life she built and the man she was never truly able to forget. Because some secrets were never meant to stay buried. And some loves refuse to die no matter how badly they destroy you.