Storm child by Michael Robotham

The 4th in the Cyrus Haven series following Good girl, bad girl, When she was good and Lying beside you sees the return of Cyrus Haven and Evie Cormac. The first three books unfolded some of the secrets of Evie’s past and in Storm child the reader will finally learn more about what happened to her as a child. They are best read in order.

Evie and Cyrus have visited a Lincolnshire beach, when they see the horrific scene of bodies of immigrants washing up on the beach. A teenage boy is the only survivor and Cyrus becomes involved in the investigation when the boy reports that the boat was deliberately rammed and the immigrants left to drown. Evie is traumatised by the drownings and spends some time in hospital with Cyrus realising that somehow there is a link to this tragedy and Evie’s past. With Cyrus working hard to solve the case and Evie getting flashes of her past, the reader is kept rivetted to the book. Everyone they interview is afraid of The Ferryman, but is he real? Does he really kill the refugees who don’t pay to be transported? What happened to Evie’s mother and sister? And what happened to her if she was an illegal immigrant?

I was fascinated to see the growth of Evie while reading Storm child. She works at a shelter for abandoned dogs, has a bank account and even goes on a date with her neighbour Liam. Witnessing the death of so many people is a blow for her, and it is during a trip to Scotland searching for the origins of the trawlers that might be transporting illegal immigrants that her memories of what has happened to her return. The pair face some breathtaking danger while they search for the truth.

As usual, Robotham writes a mystery that is hard to put down. Themes of human trafficking, rape and child abuse are difficult to read about; however, I was satisfied to see how the threads of Evie’s childhood were drawn together, and the emotional growth of both Cyrus and Evie was positive.

Themes: Mystery, Thriller, Murder, Child abuse, Forensic psychologists, Truth, Illegal immigrants.

Pat Pledger