The Rising Tide: A dark, atmospheric mystery from bestseller Ann Cleeves, featuring Vera Stanhope, star of ITV's Vera

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Zu allen Figuren und speziell dem Polizeiteam fließen viele private Informationen ein, die für Spannung in allen Nebensträngen sorgen. This adds to the pressure passed down by Superintendent Watkins that is faced by Vera, and her well established team of family man DS Joe Ashworth and DC Holly Clarke. I hated it, it sort of spoilt the book for me, but I just reminded myself of how much I’d enjoyed it up to this point, and accepted it for what seemed like a cheap trick….

The story takes place on Holy Island, connected to the mainland by a causeway, The rising tide covers the causeway twice a day, making it inaccessible by car when the tide is high, and isolating the site. With Vera, Joe, and Holly on Holy Island they realize that a group of friends who have been coming to the island for 50 years may know more than they are saying after their friend is found dead by hanging. For those who both read the books and watch the television series, it must be said that it’s a pleasure to still have Joe Ashworth as Vera’s second in the books—“her surrogate son, and her conscience. There's a highly dramatic all-action finale before the killer is revealed in a credible and satisfactory way.Ann is also a passionate champion for libraries and was a National Libraries Day Ambassador in 2016. Ann Cleeves is well known for her popular Shetland Island mystery series, featuring Detective Jimmy Perez and her Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope mystery series, set in northern England. I enjoy mysteries-with-more (the more being strong, well-developed characters) – and this series definitely fills that bill, although this one (until the twist at the end) really just tread familiar ground. Raven Black was shortlisted for the Martin Beck award for best translated crime novel in Sweden in 200.

Vera soon learns that Rick had recently been fired after allegations of sexual misconduct, although he had been very upbeat with his plans for the future on the weekend. We all know how difficult it is for women to be believed in the first place, and false allegations are rare. Cleeves, who captures the world and its people in shades of gray tone, evokes compelling images of nostalgia, sadness, yearning, envy…and murder.The almost rivalry between Joe and Holly works well and I like that this team isn’t the seamless group that other series have.

Once it does start unravelling, the pace moves quickly and soon the tangled mess of people and motive becomes clearer.Learning that the dead man had recently been fired after misconduct allegations, Vera knows she must discover what the friends are hiding, and whether the events of many years before could have led to murder then, and now. They were the only residents, there was no mains electricity or water and access to the mainland was at low tide across the shore. Cleeves presents a myriad of suspects, trying to glean the motive, which is not at all obvious, and fully engages the reader. I was excited for this to be released and was really enjoying it until I got to the part where an important plot point is a young woman's false accusation of sexual harassment. The story starts with a reunion of friends who meet every five years and, of course, there are hidden secrets and past sins that are threatening to resurface to the point that someone desperate enough is led to murder to keep his secrets hidden!

Cleeves turns the location of Holy Island, that simply drips with atmosphere, into a wonderful central background character, popular with tourists, with its menacing mists and fogs, and the dangers of the rising tide. Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published. In addition to questioning the four who last saw Rick and were also witnesses to events prior to Isobel's death, other vital connections may play a role in the murder and its solution.Learning that the dead man had recently been fired after misconduct allegations, Vera knows she must discover what the friends are hiding, and whether the events of many years before could have led to murder then, and now .