The Rising Tide (D I Vera Stanhope) by Ann Cleeves
| The Rising Tide (D I Vera Stanhope) by Ann Cleeves | |
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| Category: Crime | |
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Reviewer: Sue Magee
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| Summary: It's the tenth book in the Vera Stanhope series, which is getting better with every book. Highly recommended. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 384 | Date: September 2022 |
| Publisher: Macmillan | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1509889617 | |
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It's fifty years since a group of teenagers went on a weekend retreat to Holy Island. Some of them found the Only Connect course transformative and they've been coming back for a reunion every five years since then. There was a tragedy at the first reunion when Isobel Hall drove off the island too close to high tide and her car was swept away, but her younger sister, Louisa, has returned with the group each year as her husband, Ken, was one of the original teenagers. Ken now has Alzheimer's and he's a shadow of the man he used to be. Philip Robson now a priest, always gets there early as he likes to have some quiet time alone in the chapel. Annie Laidler lives locally and she provides much of the food: her deli is famous in the area.
She used to be married to Daniel Rede but their marriage didn't last after the death of their baby daughter. Daniel is now a wealthy businessman with a vast property portfolio in the area and he's living with the woman who has political influence over Vera Stanhope's team - she's Katherine Willmore, the Police and Crime Commissioner. Dan's not been to the reunions since the first one - it was never really his thing and he only went the first time to support Annie. There's just one more in the group: Rick Kelsall is a London-based television personality, or he was until an allegation of inappropriate behaviour to young women forced him out of his job.
When Annie found Rick hanging from the rafters in his bedroom on the first morning it was generally thought in the group that he couldn't live with the shame of what happened. DI Vera Stanhope has other ideas: too much about the scene doesn't add up and the presence of yellow fibres from a cushion in his nostril shows that he was murdered and the body then displayed to give the impression of suicide.
We have the usual lean CID team working for Vera - who could never be called lean, but she is an exceptional detective. DS Joe Ashworth is steady as a rock and completely loyal to Vera. Joe's her conscience and the son she never had. He might just be beginning to worry that DC Holly Clarke could be nipping at his heels. She's certainly gaining confidence but feeling lonely.
It's a cracker of a story: the plotting is superb. All the clues were there but I didn't work it out until it was explained by Vera. It revolves around the sort of secrets which don't stay buried forever and when you've got someone as indiscreet as Rick Kelsall, nothing stays private for very long. Does the death of Isabel, forty-five years ago, have anything to do with Rick's death? Or is that too long for his death to be a revenge killing?
I read the book in just two sittings, desperate to know what happened and it's one I'll read again just for the pleasure of seeing how Ann Cleeves wove it all together. I'd like to thank the publishers for letting Bookbag have a review copy.
For another story which stems from an event fifty years ago, we can recommend The Skeleton Key by Erin Kelly.
Ann Cleeves' D I Vera Stanhope Novels in Chronological Order
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