Ann Cleeves writes gripping mysteries and this one is no exception.

A mystery man appears in a small town - a town in which he grew up and was not quite accepted. He is found dead in a mysterious boat.

While exploring the complex background of this rather private man, a second victim appears. Suicide or murder?

The writing is superb, I didn't guess who did it (always a plus!) and this is another fine edition to Ann Cleeve's novels.

The Raging Storm is the third satisfying installment in the DI Matthew Venn series. A sailing celebrity returns to Greystone in Devon, but the reasons for his return are shrouded in mystery. Soon enough his body is discovered in a dinghy off Scully Cove. Venn had ties with this community as a child, but he parted ways with it when he left the Barum Brethren and his judgment may be clouded. Another body is found and the team of Venn, Ross, and Jen may be in danger themselves as they work to find who is responsible.

There are a lot of characters, relationships, and questions to keep track of, and the resolution was slightly convoluted, but Cleeves explains it well. Her characters are quite human with flaws and doubts, and the raging storms lend lots of atmosphere to the carefully-written plot. By the way, this book has an excellent cover! I'm looking forward to the next installment in the Two Rivers series.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. It will be published on September 19, 2023.

I am a huge fan of the Vera Stanhope series. This series is good but characters are not as sympathetic as in Vera series. Lots of twists in this book before finale.

400 pages

5 stars

Ann Cleeves is definitely one of my favorite authors. Her characters are so life-like. They have individual backgrounds and very real feelings and problems. But, they don’t let these things interfere with their dedication to their job.

The reader is transported to the small village where this story takes place. Ms. Cleeves’ descriptions of the scenery and local folk in this story are colorful, and I felt as though I were in Greystone myself.

Detective Matthew Venn and his team are called to Greystone in the midst of a raging storm to investigate a suspicious death. Greystone is on the shore of the sea. Violent wind and waves hamper their progress.

The victim, a local who made good - even famous - Jeremy “Jem” Roscoe was murdered. Who knew that he was visiting the village? Who would want such a seemingly nice man dead?

When another murder occurs, the tension in the story ratchets up. Venn, Jen and Ross are pressed harder to solve the cases.

I am usually pretty good at identifying the evil-do-er in mystery novels. Carefully following the clues, I was glad to see that I was right. The reasoning behind it was lost on me though. I truly enjoyed the path to the solution, though. Ms. Cleeves is a tremendous writer. I will continue to read all of her books.

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for forwarding to me a copy of this great book for me to read, enjoy and review. The opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.

An exceptionally well written book. This book is so strong in both atmospheric description and characterization. One thing I love about Ann Cleeves it that she portrays her characters as real people formed by their pasts and lets the characters remain with their foibles and flaws, The plot was well developed and although I can usually guess the murderer I was surprised by the ending of this book. Somehow Ann Cleeves just keeps getting better and better. I highly recommend all of her detective series and can not wait for her next book.

Ann Cleeves is a great writer and storyteller so I knew I had to read her newest mystery. "The Raging Storm" has intriguing, solid characters and its setting of a remote coastal village provides great atmosphere. It kept me engaged until the end with a nice surprise or two. Highly recommended for mystery lovers. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. #TheRagingStorm #NetGalley

I love the Ann Cleeves books and shows, and this latest installment is no exception. As always the puzzle is tricky and the pages fly, and she uses the genre so well, while also remaining so fresh and modern, and making the salt and sea air come alive. Another home run, I say!

Another wonderful book by Ann Cleeves. Matthew is called in with a few of his team to investigate the unusual murder of a celebrity adventurer who mysteriously turned up in a remote coastal village two weeks earlier. Matthew spent time in the village as a child, his parents were part of a religious group that make up a large part of the village population.
The sense of isolation from the storms and from the tightly knit Brethren who don’t easily let outsiders in, the descriptions of the dark granite and old quarry, and the old fears of Scully Cove all serve to make this an atmospheric read. The characters are believable, with plenty of secrets and doubts. I really like learning more about Jen and her story. I didn’t see the end coming, and thank NetGalley and Minotaur Books for an advance copy that had me eagerly reading and trying to solve.

The Raging Storm is book 3 in The Two Rivers series by Ann Cleeves.
After finishing this one I’ve got to read the first two on the series.
An interesting, entertaining and very mysterious story.
Detective Inspector Matthew Venn is a strong protagonist.
I really liked the characters, each their own person, unique, interesting.
They were complex but realistic.
A wonderfully written procedural
This story is satisfying by all measures, engaging to the end.
The author's vivid descriptions of the landscape make for an immersive and compelling read.
I was thrilled for the opportunity to read and review this title.
Now I’m off read the first two books in this series.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Minotaur Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I enjoyed this third book in this series, it a real page turner. A dead man is found in a dingy anchored in a bay in Greystone, a grim little village. He was a celebrity, a man who had sailed solo around the world and done expeditions to the Poles and up the Amazon. He had come to Greystone two weeks previously, visiting the pub and thrilling the residents by his presence there. He said he was waiting for someone special to come to him. When Matthew Venn visits his rented house, all is in order until they go into the tiny bathroom. There's blood everywhere. How how did the killer get his body from this house at the top of a hill into a dingy and into the ocean without anyone seeing them? Also, there was a terrible storm that night which lasted into the next morning.

I enjoyed the character of Matthew Venn. He's unsure of himself until he gets an idea, and then he's unstoppable. Many thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy of this highly anticipated book. I didn't think I could enjoy anything as much as I love the Shetland series, but I was wrong!

Good book! This book had a bit of everything! It had suspense, intrigue, murder, mystery, A good who done it, and a few crazy twists and turns! The storyline was very interesting and kept me glued to my Kindle! I definitely recommend reading this book as it was well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

Greystone is not the place where Detective Matthew Vane wants to be. He spent his childhood there, raised as a member of the cultish Barum Brethern until he chose a different life. But now he’s back, investigating the murder of Jeremy Rosco, a semi famous sailor and adventurer. Rosco returned to his Greystone home to meet a mysterious unknown person and was found naked, floating in a dinghy during a wild storm. Venn and his team are drawn into a confusing mystery that may be linked to long ago events, events that have bubbled back into the present. The discovery of another body makes Venn more determined to find the killer but he will have to fight the wild storms, rocky cliffs, high tides and suspicion of his hometown.

What can you say about Anne Cleeves? What praise has not been given?. Cleeves is the master of the police procedural and The Raging Storm is a fine example of her talent. 5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Ann Cleeves for this ARC.

Matthew Venn returns to his childhood village where he was part of a religious community, some say cult that he left. The small community is grieving the death of one of their own - the infamous Jem Rosco. Venn needs to get to the bottom of the celebrity death as well as face some of his own demons. If you like Ann Cleeves or complicated policeman and perfectly plotted murder mysteries then The Raging Storm is for you! #STMartins #TheRagingStorm #AnnCleeves

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

I enjoyed this very much while I was reading it: the community and setting of Greystone were well done, and I enjoyed the characterization of the police officers. I struggled a little to keep all the characters and their relationships with one another straight in my mind, and even at times which generation they belonged to. The ending was quite exciting, and the resolution of the mystery was satisfactory, although I had anticipated something a bit less convoluted somehow.