Member Reviews

Kate Exeter has been kidnapped. Her husband Harry asks the Thames River Police to help him deliver the ransom money. The drop location is on Jacobs Island. The tunnels have many exits, and entrances. When Monks and his fellow officers arrive they are attacked at every angle in the dark tunnels. The money has been taken, and Kate has been brutally murdered. Monk is upset he fears that one of his men has betrayed him. The plans were discussed on the way to Jacobs Island, and he's not sure how everything ended so badly. This was my first book that Imahve read by author Anne Perry. The book kept me intrigued to find out what went so wrong.

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3.5 stars rounded up to 4

This mystery was filled with twists, turns, betrayals, and gruesome murders. The writing is excellent, as always, but the story seemed to drag a bit at times with repetitions of various aspects of the story. I enjoyed the story, but I missed the old Monk, this one seemed a bit old, tired and melancholy and not nearly as sharp as he used to be. I really love the stories when Hester and Scuff help Monk, but this time Scuff didn’t get more than an honorable mention and Hester’s input was to be home cooking dinner when Monk finally arrived home. From Monk’s demeanor throughout the entire book, it would not have surprised me to read Monk’s announcement that he was retiring and moving to the Cotswolds at the end of the book.

Sir Oliver Rathbone is an attorney and a good friend to William Monk – probably his best friend. When Rathbone arrives at Monk’s house one evening and tells him the story of Harry Exeter and his missing wife, Kate, Monk immediately agrees to help. Kate has been kidnapped and the kidnappers have demanded a huge ransom to be delivered to a very dangerous place – Jacob’s Island. Jacob’s Island is not really an island, but a place that the river is reclaiming – it is filled with buildings that are being sucked down into the mud and muck of the river and pathways are constantly changing as walls collapse, etc. Exeter asks Monk and the River Police to help him drop the ransom because he has no idea how to get through the island to the drop point. Monk immediately identifies with Exeter’s terror for his wife because Monk’s wife Hester was once kidnapped.

Kate Exeter was out for a walk with her cousin, Celia Darwin, who is also her best friend. They are having a lovely walk along the shore of the river when Kate is approached by a gentleman Celia doesn’t know. Celia doesn’t want to seem to be eavesdropping on the conversation, so she moves away slightly – then a group of people walks between them – and then – Kate is gone.

Monk, Exeter and five of Monk’s best River Policemen plan to deliver the ransom – exactly according to the instructions. Exeter is adamant – he doesn’t care about the money, he wants his wife back. Then, everything goes horribly, horribly wrong. The team is attacked and Kate is viciously murdered. What happened? They were doing exactly as asked – why murder Kate? Is there a traitor among the team who provided details of their movements to the kidnappers? Monk absolutely can’t believe that – but it must be true – how else would the kidnappers have known where each one of the team was stationed? Add two more murders into the mix and you have a really dastardly villain.

I was sure about who the villain was early on, but I also knew the author would throw some kinks into the story to make me doubt myself. There were a number of leads to follow and a few red herrings along the way. I loved that Runcorn took on a part of the investigation, but hated that he was more astute and less wrung out than Monk was.

The end seemed a little contrived and a bit abrupt, but finally, justice was served.

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"I requested and received this e-book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher."

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This is a new to me author. I really liked this story and the characters were great. I liked the mystery and the early police procedures. Very interesting. I will be looking for more books by this author. Monk expects to help a man get his wife back from kidnappers. What he doesn't expect is to get ambushed and then to find the poor woman dead. He knows that someone on the team had to betray them. There was no other way it could have happened. So, while trying to figure out which of his men betrayed them all, he has to figure out who the kidnappers are and why they killed Kate. As the investigation progresses, two more people end up dead and there is no answer as to who is responsible. Monk knows how it feels to have your wife kidnapped and maybe he isn't thinking rationally. Are his emotions getting in the way on this investigation?

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I was given this book through Netgalley for a fair review.

I had a hard time liking this book. It couldn't keep my interest and I felt like it didn't have consistency in it. I did like the twist at the end and felt the author did a good job with this. I would not recommend this book to anyone.

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I received this e-book for free to read and review for Random House. This is the first book I have read by author Anne Perry. This book kept me guessing until the end it was a little hard for me to get into the book at first but I continued to read and glad I did. This book is in a series I think this is 4 or 5 you don't have to read the rest of the serious to be able to keep up in the book. But would recommend going back and reading to get a better since of the characters. The main characters in this book our Monk, Hester, Hopper, and Sir Rathbone. This is a mystery and can be very any type of reader. The plot has suspense and mystery and will keep you thinking you know who was the culprit until the end.

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I love this series!
And there's nothing better than a series that you love that just gets better and better.
This one is another compelling story and I love learning more about the characters.

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This was an excellent addition to the Monk series. The characters were well developed, although I missed Charlotte having a more major role in particular book.

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Sir Oliver Rathbone comes to Monk’s home and asks for help with a problematic situation. A man’s wife has been kidnapped for ransom. The man, Harry Exeter, is willing to pay it, but he wants no police involvement. He simply wants Monk to accompany him to ensure the trade is made. Of course Monk agrees and with a few of his most trusted men set up a plan to safely ensure the exchange first, and once Kate Exeter is safely with her husband, attempt to capture the kidnappers. But their plan results in deadly circumstances and Monk is left with the gut-wrenching thought that they were betrayed by one of their own. Determined to find the perpetrators and ferret out who betrayed them, Monk throws his all into this case. But can he live with the truth! I have only read a few of the earlier Monk novels, but it was easy to pick up on the character and his current circumstances. I enjoyed the flavor of the late 1800’s as well as his loving relationship with his wife...who is also a strong female character of her own. My main complaint was the handwringing and “who do I trust” went on a bit much. But in the end, Monk redeemed himself and helped lay bare the truth, regardless of any personal consequences. Disclosure: I am voluntarily reviewing this book received through NetGalley.

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Set in the 19th century England, Thames River Police Commander William Monk's newest case!
Monk is asked to help get a kidnapped victim back it ends up going horribly wrong and turns into a murder investigation. With Monk starting to wonder if he can trust the men he works with to help find the answers
This was a fun read with nice twists and turns another 5 of 5 stars for Anne Perry

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Wow! Seeing justice prevail in the trial of a husband accused of his kidnapped wife's murder has Monk and his men gathering evidence down to the wire. Dark Tide Rising is a tightly paced mystery leading up to an intense trial which will have you holding your breath!

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Shockingly, I have never read an Anne Perry book before. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Early on I realize that it is part of a series. The orderly part of me wanted to start with the first book in the series, but knowing that the publisher wanted feedback now, I proceeded with reading. I used to read mysteries quite a bit but in recent years have gotten bored with them. The author sets the scene so well that I feel like I’m transported to another time and era. This keeps the mystery genre fresh for me. I have read many other authors that have turned out a number of books and after a while it feels like they are phoning it in. Since this is my first Anne Perry book I am a good judge of analyzing whether it feels clichéd or not and I must say it feels very fresh to me. Now I now I can start book one.

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An interesting historical novel set in the 19th century England. Lots of twists and turns with a few surprises. It moves a little slow but i still enjoyed reading it. Interesting how the police worked without the technology we have today.

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Thames River Police Commander William Monk's newest case was brought to him by his friend attorney Oliver Rathbone. Monk is needed to help Harry Exeter make a ransom drop in exchange for his wife Kate Exeter who has been kidnapped. When the mission goes horribly wrong, Monk must solve this horrible crime as well as find out if he has a traitor on his team who may have leaked information to the kidnappers.

Although this book is part of a long-running series, you don't have to read any of the prior installments to follow the plot or enjoy the book. However, readers who have been following the series will enjoy seeing how far Monk, Hester, and young Will have come in their relationships. As someone who has read all of the books in the series, I enjoyed getting to know Hooper, one of the men on Monk's team, better and found the connection he makes with another character he meets during the investigation to be interesting.

I like that Hester and Will decide to investigate some of Monk's men on their own to help him determine who has something to hide, but wish more of the details of their questioning would have been included. I enjoyed the twists Monk's investigation takes and the clever way he makes sure justice is done and the correct person is punished for the atrocious crimes that have been committed. It's not my favorite in this series, but I was thoroughly entertained from the beginning until the very end.

I received this book through the courtesy of Ballantine Books. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.

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Set in Victorian England, featuring William Monk, commander of the Thames River Police. Monk finds himself pulled into help with a kidnapping. But the kidnapping goes wrong and this is quickly turned into a murder investigation.
There are many twists and turns as you read through the book, following Monk as he tries to solve the crime. There were times when the book felt slow and repetitive, as the facts are lined out a few times. Though this does help you as the reader keep the facts straight. I was fairly certain I knew who had done it, but was proven wrong with the twist at the end.
This is my first novel by Anne Perry and I really enjoyed it. If you are looking for a good whodunit, this book has twists and turns that keep you guessing right up until the very end. I would highly recommend this novel.

Thanks to Netgalley for sending me a copy to read and review.

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Dark Tide Rising by Anne Perry is an especially good novel, number 24 in the William Monk series, not to be missed. Kate Exeter is kidnapped, a plan to pay the ransome and make the exchange is foiled! Amist trust, fear and extreme loyalty along high jinx are at hand I totally enjoyed this novel and Anne Perry does not disappoint!
Thanks to #netgalley#anneperry for a wonderful ride!

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4+ Stars
Dark Tide Rising is the latest installment in the William & Hester Monk series. Monk is approached by his solicitor friend Rathbone to assist in a ransom payment for a wealthy developer whose wife has been kidnapped. Monk gathers a handful of his men from the Thames River Police to participate in the exchange is in a squalid part of town. The handoff goes very wrong, leaving the kidnapped woman dead and Monk questioning whether one of his men was somehow involved.
Monk has to go through the process of peeling back the lives of his men and look at their innermost secrets to determine if any would have a motive to give information to the kidnappers.
The novel is well constructed with characters that come to life. A mystery but really a story about trust, love and what one perceives to be the truth in others vs what someone projects onto others as the truth.
Thank you NetGalley and publisher, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, for the opportunity to read this ARC.

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This latest in the Monk series by Anne Perry involves the kidnapping of a wealthy woman whose husband seeks out Monk to assist with paying the ransom in a very squalid section of London. The payoff goes awry, and Monk is consumed with guilt when the victim is brutally murdered, feeling special empathy for the widower since Monk himself had been through the kidnapping of his own wife. Monk, and therefore the novel, became bogged down with the notion that one of his men must have betrayed the force, and this plot stream became somewhat tedious. Each man, including Monk, was revealed to have secrets that might have made him vulnerable to blackmail. There were several red herrings as the plot unfolded, but somehow the whole certainty of betrayal was never completely convincing. The exploration of Hooper's past was interesting, and readers can hope that his character will continue to be developed.

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This thriller I could not put down. In a mystery of a ransom gone bad, the author reveals many secrets of the well-drawn characters. It is suspenseful and well-paced. The descriptions of the tunnel scenes were downright scary.

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Another excellent story in Perry's William Monk & Hester Monk series. As always, the characters have a very rich and complex internal dialogue played out in this page-turner. Being the 24th story in the series, one would think that Perry has exhausted the characters, but not at all. Monk's mysterious past is referenced, and the hidden stories of other characters take the center stage in the exploration of intimacy among friends and colleagues. I was suprised to identify the culprit immediately in this one, although Perry's mesmerizing writing continued to hold me to the end.

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I read one of Anne Perry’s novels years ago and although I enjoyed it never read another because historical mysteries are not usually my favorite genre.

I decided to try this new one and am glad I did. It is a well written, engrossing read with strong characters.

Dark Tide Rising is the latest in the series about William Monk who is now superintendent with the Thames River Police. The first in the series was written 28 years ago! Long time fans of Anne Perry will welcome this most recent addition, but it is not necessary to have read the prior novels to enjoy this one. Bits of Monk and his wife, Hester’s, past revealed here
have inspired me to go back and read some of the earlier ones.

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