Raging storm, raging disquiet

Matthew Venn is called out to a strange find in a fishing village, Greystone an hour from Barnstaple.
A naked body has been found tethered in a small dinghy with rough seas running, in a dangerous cove, off Scully Point. The fishermen don’t like this area. The body is that of Jem Rosco, adventurer, sailor, national treasure who’d just reappeared in the village. A woman had been seen walking towards his house late at night.
What begins as a troubling investigation becomes even more so as the undercurrents of the village match or surpass the dangerous sea. I must admit to feeling the darkness of the storm brewing outside and inside. I felt the lash of wind and rain. Turbulence of the elements seems to reflect the turmoil Jem’s return has engendered within the village.
Matthew is taken back to his childhood, his parents stance on things given their religious background. The group is active in this village and it’s not comforting to Matthew.
The story has some almost outlandish twists until it all finally comes together, although not peacefully.
I feel Matthew is somewhat adrift despite his positive relations with his husband Jonathan. Something’s brewing here, an feeling of quiet distance. I hope not.
Another superb episode of the in the Mathew Venn, Two Rivers series.

A St. Martin’s Press ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Ann Cleeves never misses. The Raging Storm, the third in the detective Matthew Venn series is yet another brilliant mystery which takes place in the location of Greystone and has a riveting plot that arrests our interest from the first page. Venn is essentially a local, and he was raised in a strict, religious sect of which his mother is still a member. Venn lives contentedly with his husband, Jonathan in their comfortable house by the estuary, and we learn that Dorothy, Matthew's mother, is slowly accepting Matthew and Jonathan's relationship.

Jeremy Roscoe, a flamboyant visitor who also grew up in Greystone, has returned just a few weeks before he is murdered and is found naked in a small boat by the sea. As Venn attempts to piece together the murder and who may have committed it, there is yet another murder of a not terribly likeable local man.

Venn, with the help of his fellow constables and crew, eventually identifies the murderer, and as always, it's a complete surprise when the reader realizes who that person is. Cleeve's astute plot making and character development are rather gentle, and on the other hand, are juxtaposed with brutal murder and intolerance of relationships. Like all of Cleeve's books, this one is compelling, fascinating, and hard to put down. It proves that Ann Cleeves is an author to carefully follow from book to book.

Thanks to Net Galley and MacMillan publishers for the opportunity to read this book.

Jem Rosco, famed sailor and adventurer, appears one night during a storm in the seaside village of Greystone. Rosco spends his evenings mingling with the locals in the village pub. But other than saying that he is there waiting for someone, his reasons for being in Greystone remain a mystery. Then, just as abruptly as he appeared, he disappears—until his lifeless body is discovered in a dinghy, anchored off Scully Cove.

The Two Rivers series has become a favorite of mine, and on the whole, this third installment was an entertaining read—with just a couple of quibbles.

The plot, which builds on the first two books in the series, is well constructed and filled with complexity. But while this is a solid mystery, it didn’t feel as tightly plotted as the first two books. In particular, there was often much too much detail, leading the story to drag somewhat.

One can’t deny that Cleeves is a master with creating atmosphere and this is no exception. Moody, claustrophobic and unsettling are a few of the words that come to mind. Cleeves also provides a cast of characters that adds to the pervading tone. But here’s another but. A brooding lead detective with a complex backstory is interesting. But when his entire team comes along with their own personal baggage to fill the story, it becomes tedious.

So, while in the end, I did enjoy The Raging Storm—and do recommend it, it is my least favorite in this series. My hope is that with the next book, Cleeves will return to the dark, tightly woven tale she’s known for.

Without a doubt, “The Raging Storm” is a cleverly crafted, intricately woven mystery that will leave readers guessing right up until the very end. However, the novel begins with a sluggish start and continues to unfold slowly, so I wasn’t immediately drawn into the story, causing me issues with remaining engaged. While having not read the first two installments in this Matthew Venn series might have put me at a slight disadvantage, not so much so that I couldn’t follow along as it pertains to the police procedural portions of this story. It was the unfamiliar backdrop and numerous characters that tended to muddle things up for me. That said, fans of this Ann Cleeves series will likely enjoy this latest installment very much—certainly a bit more than I did.

Detective Matthew Venn is dispatched to small town Greystone, where he spent time as a child, after the body of a famous explorer is discovered in a dinghy, anchored off Scully Cove, a place riddled with legends and superstitions. With secrets and rumors flying around, his sergeant and his constable constantly competing against each other, and Brethren church members disapproving of him, Detective Venn has his hands full. To add to the mix, a second body ends up at the bottom of a cliff at Scully Cove, and a third person goes missing! Will he be able to find the killer in time?

Based on my experience with the show, I was not expecting a fast-paced, super suspenseful book, so I wasn’t disappointed with the pace of it.

The first half of the book was pretty slow, but the story still moved forward and kept me interested. I had an inkling of who was involved, however, the reveal was amazing and gave me some of that “oomph” factor that I love. The author also has a way of immersing the reader into the setting; I swear I could feel the cold wind and rain on my face as I was reading the first few chapters!

This is a perfect book to read snuggled up in a blanket, with a fire burning and a raging storm outside.

Jem Roscoe, adventurer and celebrity, blows into Greystone Devon, and the townspeople are thrilled to have him in their midst. When Jem is found dead, Inspector Matthew Venn must return to a place he knew in childhood but has since parted ways with and contend with the community's secrets and superstitions.

I'm a big fan of Ann Cleeves' fantastic writing and her atmospheric, intelligent, and intricately plotted crime novels. I take my time reading her books, as they require a certain amount of attention to pick up on all the clues and subtleties and are a bit of a slow burn. But it's always a slow burn that pays off because Cleeves' writing and character development are excellent. She pulls you in with crime fiction that is almost as character-driven as it is plot-driven. Told in Multiple POV format, we get a deeper look into all three primary detectives' lives, thoughts, and the investigation's different facets. All three are compelling as each is grappling with more than solving the case. Matthew, in particular, is becoming more interesting and complex across the series.

Cleeves writes her settings so vividly that they feel real and become characters in themselves. This storm-battered coastal town's weather, looming cliffs, and rugged landscape sometimes work to impede the investigation. Adding to the danger are the locals' beliefs in superstitions, their suspicions (particularly toward Matthew), their secrets, and thorny relationships. There is no shortage of suspects, though very few leads, which kept me guessing. Another excellent read from Cleeves in a series I hope will be a long one, but this works fine as a stand-alone too!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Minotaur Books for the opportunity to review this ARC. I enjoyed it!

So many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC of this!

This was such a treat! This pulls you right and will keep you hooked. This is the third of the Matthew Venn Series. I don't want to give away here and ruin for any readers. If you read Ann Cleeves, and have enjoyed her work before, you will love this! Buy without hesitation. So grateful for writers like Ms. Cleeves. Books like this make reading a real pleasure. Highly recommended.

Lots of twists & tense resentment & rivalry🌊🚣

The Raging Storm was not a quick read but it was good. So many underlying conflicts within the small-town seaside community and even a competitive resentment between the police officers investigating a bizarre murder of a famous mariner with sly secrets. It's got good unpredictability with enough suspicious behavior to lead the police team, headed by usually unflappable Detective Matthew Venn, on a complex and hardly merry chase, and the excitement does not stop with just one murder.

I found it I interesting that Venn concentrates so much of his team's effort on building a detailed picture of the dead man's past and his relations with the townfolk from his childhood to his death. I was mostly but not totally surprised when Venn finally puts all of the pieces together.

I read many murder mysteries. My first time reading a book in this series left me content but not bowled over. I felt the brief glimpses into the detectives' private lives were a tad too brief to add much to the plot (though Venn's partner Jonathan and his connections do provide a key piece of information near the end).

Thanks to Minotaur Press and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

Another excellent entry in the Two Rivers series. As always, the location and atmosphere are the true predominant characters in the book. Cleeves does an outstanding job of putting the reader in the small, claustrophobic seaside town of Greystone as the case unravels during an autumn storm. The third book in the series is less about the personal lives and dynamics of Venn and his team, and more about the mystery itself, at least compared to the first two. Matthew Venn is still dealing with his childhood traumas and the Brethren, but it's more of a sinister undercurrent running through the story. The murder itself centers around a charismatic celebrity adventurer, Jem Rosco, whose true motives in life have always been questionable. With his personal life an enigma, Venn and his team must piece together the truth about the man in order to discover the motive behind his reappearance in Greystone, and his death.

Cleeves' books are always easy to get wrapped up in, and are a favorite of mine to recommend to library patrons looking for something with more bite than a cozy mystery, and who are looking for something driven by plot and setting. Her twists and endings don't disappoint, and this book is no exception. For those who like to feel like they have 'traveled' through their reading, this book also fits the bill, taking you to the coast of Devon and giving a glimpse of life in a small sailing community. Like the previous two entries in this series, it will have wide appeal for both mystery readers and those who were looking for lgbtq+ main characters.

(I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I review all books through the lens of my role as Librarian, considering not just my own personal taste but how my patrons would enjoy this book, and how I would recommend this book during a Readers' Advisory.)

As a completist, I have a difficult time abandoning series once I’ve gotten invested. Because of this, I have a difficult time committing myself to murder mystery series. Though I almost always enjoy the core characters and getting to see larger arcs and character development for them, the mysteries at the heart of each novel tend to be less consistent. While I thoroughly enjoyed The Long Call, the first novel in Ann Cleeves’ Two Rivers series, I found the central murders of the second installment, The Heron’s Cry underwhelming. With the upcoming third installment, The Raging Storm, I enjoyed more of the story than The Heron’s Cry and find the central characters compelling, but the resolution of the murder at the heart of the novel let me down again. It felt contrived in a way that was incredibly disappointing and doubting whether I want to bother with future novels in this series.

A series of autumn storms batter the coast and a call goes out for the local lifeboat crew to aid someone in distress. But when they come upon the small vessel, it’s clear this wasn’t a typical call. They discover the naked body of a local legend, clearly stabbed to death and with the boat anchored in place. Detectives Matthew Venn, Jen Rafferty, and Ross May must navigate the weather as well as local social politics, delving into the relationships between members of the sailing club, the Brethren, and the defunct local quarry to find possible motives for the adventurer’s murder. When another body is found near the first, they must decide whether the two deaths could be linked and if so, who would have wanted them both dead when the two men seemed to be so at odds with one another.

Envy and jealousy played a significant role in The Raging Storm and, although the themes of power structures were still present, it was more through a critique of class and wealth than in the institutional sense of the previous novels in the series. Seeing the everyday tensions within the core team of investigators – especially given where some of them stand by the end of the novel – might be enough to keep me invested in this series moving forward. Because the mystery at the heart of the novel didn’t end up doing much for me. There were certain small tidbits stirred up during the investigation that felt like they should have carried more narrative weight and could have supported decent subplots but instead the sense that the detectives were spinning their wheels to kill time was a little too strong.

It’s impossible to get into what it was about the resolution that bothered me without giving too much away. Suffice it to say, the motivation behind the murders felt tenuous and forced instead of logical or natural. Instead of a clever puzzle that the reader can piece together alongside the characters, it feels like more of a muddle designed to distract the reader into thinking the characters are clever for figuring it out when really it just doesn’t hold together that well in the first place. When the big reveal came, I actually rolled my eyes at both how it unfolded and the reasoning behind it all. It’s one of those cases where I wanted to like it and I enjoyed reading most of it, but the ending fell so flat that it ruined my enjoyment of the rest. And it’s an even bigger disappointment because I do find so many of the characters so compelling and I do want to keep reading about them and their lives… They just need more satisfying cases (perhaps a case that hits closer to home, and not just geographically close).

The Raging Storm will be available September 5, 2023.

In telling us the tale of the life, and death, of Jeremy (Jem) Rosco, this author sucks us into a place where the sea dominates everything in life. The mood is set with vivid descriptions of the sea, the storms, and the insular people who live in this small village where narcissism and obsession seem to run rampant.

As the son of a single mother, Jem Rosco had been looked down upon. He wasn’t accepted as an equal among his peers – and you’ll vacillate between thinking him a good guy and a bad guy. Whatever you decide about him, you will know he didn’t deserve to die the way he did or be left the way he was. Why would he return to North Devon after decades away? What drew him back? WHO drew him back? He told everyone he was waiting for someone. Was he? He was now a world-famous adventurer, television personality, and author – what in the world could he want in Greystone?

Inspector Matthew Venn is fairly new to leading his team and they are still adjusting to each other’s idiosyncrasies. Matthew had a strict upbringing as part of the religious cult, the Barum Brethren. That upbringing still causes him issues – especially in places like Greystone where the Brethren have a strong presence. Jen Rafferty is a contradiction, but a good sergeant. It took her years to escape an abusive marriage and now she’s filled with self-doubt about her parenting skills. Jen likes to drink and have a good time since she missed out on all of that by marrying too young and having babies too young. Ross May is also a conundrum. He has aspirations for finer things – he has the showcase wife (whom he actually loves) – and he dresses extremely well. Oh! And he’s the golden child of Venn’s boss – Superintendent Joe Oldham. Can such a disparate bunch ever solve such a convoluted crime as this one? You bet they can!

I’ve loved the character growth of the team over the three books of the series and I can’t wait to see where they are going. This case was a very puzzling one and each of the three on the team worked to their strengths and came up with an astounding solution. Believe me, you won’t know who the villain is – even when you start eliminating all of the red herrings.

I can definitely recommend this excellently written, well-plotted, perfectly paced story to you. I’ve just finished this one and I’m already anxious for the next one. I hope you’ll enjoy the book as much as I did. Happy Reading!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I've read a lot of Ann Cleeves and enjoyed them. In this story, Jem Rasco, a celebrity comes to Greystone to the small close-knit town's delight. But shortly after he disappears and is found dead. DI Matthew Venn is in charge of the investigation and soon finds himself embroiled in lies and questions he can't answer. The death of another citizen mounts the pressure on DI Matthew and his team. DI Matt and his team's lives are in the line of fire and he needs all of his expertise to survive and get the killer.
The story was long and it took me a while to read it. I do recommend it but be aware it's slow-moving. Thanks to NetGalley and publishers St Martin’s Press for this ARC

With all of the hit shows based on her books, Ms. Cleeves is a busy woman. And we are all very glad for that. This series is the Matthewl Venn series. We watch all three of the series and love them.

Detective Matthew Venn is busy. Investigating the murder of a celebrity in Scully Cove. Jem is a lot of things, bigger than life, and now dead.

The case will take him to Greystone. A conservative community whose values he did not uphold. When another body turns up, he is afraid he can’t be objective about this case. And maybe that is a good thing! Because is anyone safe in Scully’s Cove?

Lots of juicy and dark secrets in this one!

NetGalley/ St. Martin’s Press, September 05, 2023

4.5 stars. Ann Cleeves does it again! The Raging Storm, the third entry in this excellent series, is a tightly-plotted, character-driven police procedural that provides a superb read. DI Matthew Venn, who left his childhood village and the cultish Barum Brethren religious community of which he was a part, returns to investigate the death of Jem Rosco, a somewhat famous adventurer and sailor from the area. As Venn and his team (especially Sgt. Jen Rafferty and Officer Ross May) begin to unravel the clues surrounding the man’s murder, Venn’s past and present once again collide because the murder may have some links to the religious cult he has renounced.

This series just seems to get better and better, and reading this newest installment lets us discover what some of our old friends (Venn, his team, and his husband Jonathan) have been up to. I definitely am looking forward to the fourth in this series!

I really enjoyed this book! It’s the third book in the series, but can be read as a standalone. However, I think it would be appreciated most if you’ve read books One and Two. Matthew, Jen, and Ross are called out to a remote village to investigate an odd murder. I don’t want to give too much away, but really advise you to read this book. Ann Cleeves is a master at character and story development!

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

4 stars / This review will be posted on goodreads.com today.

The Long Call was the first Matthew Venn novel. This is the third. While it always helps to read the prior novels, I have been happy to find that Ann Cleeves’ novels are standalone. You can pick up any of her mysteries and be happily immersed without needing the previous.

Venn finds himself in Greystone, a place he was quite familiar with as a child. The town is settled with many who are Barum Brethren, a sect of Christianity that is rather private and devout. Matthew, as a gay man, gave up his faith many years ago, but the memories still tend to haunt him.

So being back here, in Greystone, isn’t all that comforting him. He’s here to investigate the finding of a famous sailor, Jem Rosco, murdered and floating in a dinghy in a cove. Along with Venn are his fellow detectives, Ross and Jen.

From the beginning, Venn feels that the town is hiding something. Something he needs to know to be able to solve this murder. Between the weather and the locals, he doesn’t seem to be making any headway. He can sense that there’s more to the story than he’s getting, but he can’t quite wrap his head around what is missing. Then the bodies start piling up.

Cleeves has a way of wrapping you into the story. Caught up in the seaside community of Greystone - it’s gray and bleak feeling - almost as though you could feel the sea spray and the cold. The people of the town feel almost as cold as the weather. It is so well written and enjoyable. I love reading her novels.

And now I know that there is a companion TV series! Sign me up.

“The Raging Storm” is Ann Cleeves third detective novel featuring Matthew Venn, set on the coast of Devon England. The ocean, the geography, and the weather are all part of this series’ appeal.

This time, the coastguard receives a mayday and heads out. They find a fishing boat with a dead body inside – that of a well-known TV personality and adventurer, Jem Rosco. Rosco is something of a rags-to-riches celebrity, who grew up poor only to become the youngest man to sail single-handed around the world. Rosco returned to the remote seacoast village of his childhood a few weeks earlier, reportedly to await the arrival of an unnamed visitor.

The suspicious death falls within Matthew’s jurisdiction so he, along with Sergeant Jen Rafferty and Officer Ross May show up to investigate. There are former schoolmates of Rosco’s who both admired and despised him. Love triangles and bad business deals from the past resurface. To further complicate things, the Brethren -- a cultish religious group Venn was raised in -- is active within the community. Midway through, a second murder occurs. The detectives believe the two deaths are linked, and what’s more, are tied to something in the past.

I keep reading Ann Cleeves’ mysteries because of: (1) the way the atmospheric setting is almost another character; (2) seeing the recurring characters grow and develop; and (3) her exploration of motives within the human heart. Keep writing, Ann.

The third installment in the Two Rivers featuring Matthew Venn is a welcome addition to the series. Venn and his supporting crew are working on the murder of a famous travel and adventure journalist, known for his seafaring and television show. Soon, they are drawn into the seaside community of Greystone, a sanctuary of the conservative religious order of Venn's youth. Local superstition, folklore and rumor all mix with class, wealth and fame to impede their investigations. With Cleeve's wonderful sense of atmosphere throughout, this title will please readers and listeners alike.

This is the third book in the Two Rivers series. While I haven’t read the first two books (I didn’t realize it was a series until I had already started reading), it was easy enough to follow the story and main character without prior exposure. This was my first Ann Cleeves book and it certainly won’t be my last - she provides an immense amount of detail for her characters, setting, and story. The ambience of this book is also suspenseful and mysterious, without going too dark. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys murder mysteries and will be sure to catch up on the earlier two books in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Minotaur Books for an advanced reader’s copy.

LOVED the third novel in the Two Rivers series. Ann Cleeves is a genius at character development and plot twists and turns..

Thank you to St. Martin Press, Minotaur Press and Net Galley for the ARC.