The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves
What's it about? (No Spoilers)
The Raging Storm is the third book from Ann Cleeves featuring her North Devon based detective Matthew Venn.
The book centres around the death of ageing sailor and adventurer Jeremy Roscoe who returns to the region of his childhood to wait for a rendezvous with a mysterious stranger.
The book has a strong nautical theme and the local lifeboat and its crew feature heavily.
What did I think of it?
I thoroughly enjoyed this and think it is the best in the series so far. The setting, always a key part of any of Ann Cleeves' work, is particularly to the fore in the story with the eponymous storm providing a dramatic backdrop to the first murder. (There is never just one murder in any modern crime novel of course). The character of Matthew Venn has grown on me over the course of the three books and in this one I really started to feel a connection with him.
One of the things I like about Ann Cleeves' stories is that the other members of the protagonist's team are fully rounded characters. In this book we have a number of chapters from the view point of sergeant Jen Rafferty and detective constable Ross Matthews without Venn being present and we learn more about their psychology and their aspirations.
The final quarter of the book is particularly dramatic and there was a genuine sense of peril. The last page also sets up some interesting possibilities for how the character of Matthew Venn may develop in future books.
Who would I recommend this book to?
Obviously anyone who has read the first two books in the series will not be disappointed by this one. However even if you haven't read the first two I think this is an excellent introduction into the world of Matthew Venn and all the main points of his story so far are neatly summarised or explained at various points in the book without any clunky exposition.
If you have never read any of Ann Cleeves' works then this would be a great starting point as it showcases the best features of her style.