Shetland writer announces return of Jimmy Perez – get details

Crime writer Ann Cleeves, the author of the Shetland novel series and creator of the BBC's hit TV adaptation, has announced the return of Jimmy Perez in her upcoming book.

The popular detective character, who was portrayed by Douglas Henshall from seasons one to seven of the series, will feature in Ann's new novel, The Killing Stones, which picks up after a seven-year gap and sees Perez swap his hometown of Shetland for a new location, Orkney.

Taking to social media, Ann penned: "A bit of news! My next book, coming out in October features Jimmy Perez and is set in Orkney."

Fans rushed to the comments section to share their excitement, with one reader writing: "What? Jimmy Perez returns! This is exciting news and I will definitely be buying the new book," while another added: "Wow, this is amazing news, Jimmy always my favourite."

A third fan questioned the show's new setting, penning: "Wouldn't that be against the rules if his primary home is in another local authority area?" to which Ann responded: "He's moved to Orkney with Willow."

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On bringing back Perez in her new novel, Ann told the BBC's Orkney Arts programme: "I thought I had said everything I could say about Shetland," she said.

"I really thought that I'd finished with him because when he was on his own he was a bit miserable and he got me feeling a bit depressed with him and I didn't really want to write any more about him."

The new novel comes after 2018's Wild Fire, which concluded with Perez moving to Orkney with his partner and fellow police officer, Willow Reeves.

Ann said: "He's sent away to Orkney and I would never write about him again but then I wanted to know what happened to them."

The author's announcement had fans wondering whether a new TV series might follow and are hoping to see Douglas reprise his role as the much-loved detective on-screen. One fan wrote: "Does this mean there will be a new series with Perez?"

While there's no news on that front, fans can look forward to another series of Shetland, which will air later this year.

Ashley Jensen and Alison O'Donnell lead the cast as Detectives Ruth Calder and Alison 'Tosh' McIntosh respectively.

Ashley joined the show in season eight, taking over from Douglas as the lead detective following his departure after almost ten years.

Explaining his decision to leave the show back in 2022, Douglas told the BBC: "I decided to leave a few years ago because I felt that Perez's story was coming to a natural end - it was time to find a resolution to Perez's private life," said the 57-year-old. "I never wanted to ruin the things that were unique to him and our series so it felt like the right time to wrap up his story in a way that would be satisfactory to everybody."