The rising tide by Ann Cleeves

The rising tide, the 10th book featuring the wonderful D.I. Vera Stanhope, is a stunning thriller that left me breathless. It is set on Holy Island, Lindisfarne, the birthplace of British Christianity, where a group of friends meet every five years, celebrating the time when a young teacher took them on a school trip. Five years after the first trip, the beautiful Isobel, one of their members, was drowned in tidal water over the causeway and now Rick, a well-known TV personality, has been found hanged in his room. Vera is called in and begins to uncover secrets from the past.

The landscape of Holy Island makes this a stand-out novel. The island is isolated and windswept, and the tidal causeway can be very dangerous. Vera has no qualms driving through water in her jeep, and I found myself holding my breath in case she was swept away. Pilgrim House, where the school reunion is held, was once a home for nuns and visiting the nearby chapel is a requisite for staying in the house.

Vera is indomitable, mistaken for a cleaner at one time, but determined and clever. She is very persistent and follows her instincts believing that the death of Rick relates to the past and the death of the young woman on the causeway. All the members of the group are vividly described, making it difficult to work out who is the murderer. Is it one of the group or someone living on the mainland who knew them in the past?

Cleeves touches on the theme of sexual harassment and assault and the power men wield over young women in their employment as well as divorce and cot death, all adding depth and background to the story.

Readers familiar with the TV series will have no trouble reading this as a stand-alone, while those like me who have loved the books will be thrilled to have another mystery to devour. 

Themes: Mystery, Crime, Suspense,Thriller, Murder.

Pat Pledger