This was a twisty story that kept me guessing. It’s about a married couple that live in a coastal town. After a terrible storm, the husband has gone missing. As the search for her husband begins, mysteries unfold

Holy smokes!!! The Rising Tide might only be Sam Lloyd's second thriller, but it reads more like his seventieth. There was so much happening in this book and the plot ends up being not only very complex but completely gut-wrenching as well. I was ugly crying at the end of the book and that is not at all what I was expecting would happen going into it. I didn’t really find too many clues as to what was going on while I was reading, so some people may find certain things to come from left field. This didn’t bother me though, and it actually didn’t even surprise me all that much but that is most likely because there wasn’t really much of an inkling in the story about what was to come. There are lots of suspenseful moments especially as we are coming to the end of the book, and I was going to go to the gym but held off because there was no way I was going to put it down until the last page was done.

The one thing that was lacking for me was the audiobook, and I wasn’t a huge fan of the main narrator Anna Wilson-Jones. Her pacing felt WAY off, and even on a 3x speed and above she still had weird pauses which was very distracting. I can usually listen to a book faster than reading it, but in this case, I feel like reading it would have been better. I could also hear her swallow at certain times and was just not impressed with the quality of her audio as a whole. The other narrator, Charles Armstrong, had a rather small part, but I really enjoyed him, and I kinda wish he would have read detective Abraham Rose’s parts as well though that would have taken away from the setup a little. I would normally recommend the audiobook over the book, but in this case, I am going to say you would be much better off reading The Rising Tide. Aside from my issues with the audio, this book completely blew me away and I will be on the lookout for future books from Lloyd. So happy to have found this author!

I believe I would have really enjoyed this book, but I did not connect with the writing style for some reason. I am in the minority here. I had a hard time connecting with Lucy. It was a decent thriller, but nothing I would highly recommend to my fellow readers.

This was a wild and intense ride! It was fast paced and had me guessing until the end. There were plenty of twists and turns I did not see coming. Detective Rose was my favorite character too.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A woman faces a nightmarish situation when her husband and children are caught out in a terrible storm. She has no idea why her husband would have launched his boat in such weather. She is baffled and terrified. Rescue boats fight the storm and one family member is saved. The others will be found later, but only one of the two will live.

What seems to be true is not true. Brutality ensues.

First published in Great Britain in 2021; published by Penzler Publications/Scarlet on March 15, 2022

Relationship drama bubbles through the backstory in The Rising Tide. Lucy and Daniel Locke are married. At the 18th birthday party of their daughter Billie, Daniel’s friend Nick Povey made a pass at Lucy. That same day, Daniel learned that Nick betrayed him in a way that will jeopardize the continuing existence of Daniel’s business. By the time the story begins, Daniel and Lucy are about to lose their home in Skentel, a village on England’s North Devon Coast.

In the present, Daniel takes their boat into the sea despite storm warnings. The boat is found adrift but sinking as the storm is building. Nobody is aboard. Lucy soon learns about the boat and realizes that Daniel and their two kids are missing. She joins the local boat owners as they perform a search-and-rescue operation.

As Lucy is searching for her husband and children on a violent sea, all she can think about is yelling at Daniel. At least that gives her a break from thinking about Jake Farrell, who agreed to take her on his boat to search for her family. Jake is Lucy’s ex.

At another point in the story, Lucy runs into the ocean and nearly drowns just to “see what it was like.” This is just hours after she was drenched in seawater after the boat in which she was searching for her family nearly capsized. Fear that a parent’s children are dead (although Lucy never believes that because “mother’s instinct”) might well motivate a parent to engage in bizarre behavior, but Sam Lloyd never managed to make me sympathize with Lucy’s hysteria.

On the other hand, perhaps the reader is not meant to like Lucy, at least not while the plot is taking shape. As the mystery of the missing kids deepens, collateral characters make unflattering statements suggesting Lucy might not be likable at all. Lucy has ambiguous thoughts about “what happened in Portugal.” Those moments add a layer of intrigue as the reader begins to wonder whether Daniel, who seems to be the villain, might have acted in response to something Lucy did.

Detective Inspector Abraham Rose investigates the suspicion that Daniel scuttled the boat, drowned his kids, and threw himself overboard. The evidence all points in that direction, which is enough to make the reader believe it isn’t true.

Rose has lung cancer. He’s also having a crisis of faith that leads him to believe in Satan but not so much in God. He nevertheless believes his investigation is compelled by “a higher authority” than the law. Since he isn’t delusional, it isn’t clear why he harbors that belief. Rose’s thoughts often turn to a mother who suffers from dementia and a girlfriend he lost long ago. Those thoughts inspire him to feel sorry for himself, particularly when prayer doesn’t make him feel any better.

Lloyd follows the common convention of adding first-person narratives to the story without identifying the narrator. Since it is clear that the narrator dislikes Lucy, and given the positioning of the narratives within the story, the reader is encouraged to assume that the narrator is Daniel. Seasoned readers will suspect that they are being played.

Part of the truth is revealed somewhere around page 250 (of 350). Another part (perhaps derived from a famous book that became a famous movie) is revealed a dozen pages later. If the truth seems a bit contrived, that’s the way the modern thriller goes. The story then becomes a whodunit that challenges the reader to guess the identity of a villain who has contributed to Lucy’s mess. The villain’s motivation is thriller-standard and not particularly imaginative or credible. On the other hand, the villain’s identity is not easily guessed (at least not by me). But on my third hand, I didn’t buy the ending because the villain’s actions are cartoonish. On my final hand, those are common flaws in modern thrillers and not sufficient reason to advise against reading the book.

The “mother’s fierce love for her daughter” theme is overdone, although I give Lloyd credit for writing an intensely moving scene at the end of Part I. The long walk to the ending feels padded, as though Lloyd wanted to avoid rushing to a climax and instead dragged the story to its conclusion. Characters share thoughts they had shared several times already. Regrets and loss of faith and memories of “a life that no longer exists” and just get on with it, can’t you? Even after the climactic moment arrives, another 50 pages await. A tightening edit could have enhanced this thriller’s sense of urgency and kept tension from dissipating.

Still, the novel places interesting characters in difficult situations, keeps the reader guessing about whether protagonists are good or evil, and creates a reasonable amount of suspense. The suspense wanes and the characters are problematic, but Lloyd’s prose is vivid and the story has enough strong moments to make it worth reading.

RECOMMENDED

Lucy had everything until the morning that the family yacht was recovered far out to sea, her husband is missing. Was he on the yacht? Where is he now? What happened? Getting these questions answered will not be so easy as a storm is raging....

Many are loving this book while I found it to be good not great. Although I enjoyed it, I wasn't wowed by it. I had a hard time connecting with Lucy. There are many twists and turns but even those did not push the rating higher for me.

As I mentioned, others enjoyed this more than I did, so please check out their reviews.

Thank you to Penzler Publishers, Scarlet and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

Just before a massive storm is about to hit their small fishing village, Lucy Locke's husband Daniel unexpectedly takes their yacht out. When the yacht is recovered at sea, Daniel is nowhere to be found. DI Abraham Rose is assigned to the case, and starts to bring to light things from Lucy's past that she hoped would remain a secret.

Talk about a wild ride! The author did a fantastic job creating the atmosphere of the quaint fishing town and what it feels like to be in an unrelenting storm. As Lucy searches for Daniel, you can feel her dread and anxiety. For me, <b>The Rising Tide</b> started off with a bang, lulled a tad in the middle, and then had my adrenaline pumping towards the end. It is very cleverly plotted and had me guessing until the very end. For most of the book, I wasn't sure what to think about Lucy, but DI Abraham Rose I loved from the start. He is such an interesting character and adds a lot to the story. This was my first Sam Lloyd novel and I really enjoyed it, and now want to check out his previous book, <b>The Memory Wood</b>. 4 stars.

When her husband, Daniel, left for work on the day of a once in a lifetime storm, Lucy had no idea he was headed out onto the water. What was he thinking? When there is an SOS call and their yacht is found drifting right before sinking, everyone assumes the worst. When Lucy later discovers that Daniel wasn’t alone on the yacht and she is in jeopardy of losing everything she holds dear, she goes into battle mode and absolutely nothing will stop her from saving her family and finding out the truth! A taut, fast paced thriller, that leaves the reader on edge and sailing through the pages to find out what happened in the midst of the storm.

This book starts off super slow, but stick with it! The mystery behind Lucy's husband's disappearance will keep you on the edge of your seat! I'm glad I stuck with it and was pleasantly surprised by this book overall.

Lucy and Daniel Locke and their two children, Billie and Fin live in a big house on top of a hill overlooking the Devon coast. A monster of a storm is brewing and Daniel, Billie and Fin, are lost at sea after taking the family yacht out. Daniel is rescued but Billie and Fin are still missing. DI Abraham Rose and his team are investigating and Lucy and Daniel become suspects. This clever and unique book starts out fast-paced and the reader is forced to keep turning pages in order to find out some answers. In the middle, the book slows down and gets a bit repetitive. Towards the end there are heart-pounding twists and turns culminating into an exciting surprise ending. I liked Sam Lloyd's writing and will be looking forward to reading his next book. If you enjoy mystery/thrillers, then you will enjoy this book. I would like to thank NetGalley and Penzler Publishers for an e-book for an honest review.

Lucy and Daniel seem to have a perfect life running their business and living by the sea but it' isn't. And now, Daniel has taken the family yacht out into a storm after taking their son Finn out of school. DI Abraham Rose is charged with figuring out what Daniel has done even as he's struggling with his own health. Lucy's got.a secret, you know,. Billie, Lucy's daughter from an earlier relationship has some trenchant thoughts about the whole thing but she s also a relatable observer. This one's hard to review without spoilers because of the twists. Suffice it to say, Lloyd has done a good job with the village atmospherics and created an interesting detective in addition to plotting a tricky one. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

Lucy Locke has the life that she’s always wanted. She and her husband built it from the ground up. With two children and two successful businesses, her family has everything they could ever need. Everything changes when their family yacht is found miles from land, empty of its passengers. Lucy is in shock to find that her husband was seen taking the boat out that morning. As the storm of a lifetime approaches, Lucy and the whole town desperately searches for her husband, hoping to find him before it’s too late. Lucy’s life seems to be unfurling before her eyes. When faced with trouble from her past, Lucy may not have any choice but to face it to save her family.

This book was incredible! I would give it 50 stars, if I could. My heartrate is finally slowing down. The surprises and shocking moments throughout the book made it truly impossible to put down. The intense and emotional ending had me in tears by the end. This is officially one of my favorite books! It’ll now be my go-to recommendation once it’s published!

A huge thank you to NetGally, Penzler Publishers, and Sam Lloyd for allowing me to read this advanced reading copy. This ARC was provided to me in exchange for my honest opinion.

Daniel Locke's boat is found drifting in the water with nobody on board and a big storm just beginning. It is soon learned that Daniels 7-year-old son, Fin, was picked up early from school by him and his stepdaughter, Billie, has turned up missing. Lucy, Daniel's wife, had noticed that he has been acting preoccupied lately. This story started out with a lot of promise but then it waxed and waned for me and then became very intense towards the end. I am not familiar with nautical terms and spent a lot of time on my Kindle looking up these unfamiliar words. This turned out to be just an OK read for me as I thought some of the incidents were a little far-fetched.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5 on here!

We follow Lucy and her family who lives in a small fishing village. Lucy has a life that many people would envy in a picturesque home. However, her life changes in a moment. Her husband had taken her kids out on a yacht right as a horrible storm is coming in, and suddenly the family yacht is found out at sea, empty.
*
This story starts out as a slow burn, but man o man does it pick up as it continues. The further along we get in the story, the less likely I was to put the book down for a break. I had to figure out what was going to happen. There are so many twists and turns and you are flipping the pages trying to understand more about the characters and how reliable, or unreliable they are. This is Lloyd’s second book, but the writing is absolutely wonderful! I would definitely pick up more books writing by him!

This review will be posted to my Instagram blog (read_betweenthecovers) in the near future!

If you're a sailing buff you'll follow every wave in the storm that's the center of this novel, whose central mystery is why Daniel Locke took his yacht out in the kind of weather no reasonable person would think of as a pleasure cruise And why would he take his younger son and teenage daughter with him? When a mayday calm from the Lazy Susan sends rescuers out to its last position, the mystery deepens - the boat is deserted, its seacocks open but no other obvious damage
A dramatic search is launched, with Lucy Locke consoling herself with the thought that the yacht was equipped with survival suits, flares, everything necessary to ensure the safe recovery of her family When Daniel is eventually rescued, he's wearing one. But the children are still unaccounted for, and their suits are still on the Lazy Susan.
What happened to her family, and why her husband seems to blame her for it, is not wholly believable In fact, while the scenes of life and death struggle with a dangerous opponent - the sea - are exciting enough, the plot has enough holes to sink the story .

Thank you so much to Netgalley for a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was amazing. Read it in 2 days and highly recommend. So good!!!

After a slow burn beginning this thriller gathered steam and led to a gripping, edge of my seat read. The seaside fishing village setting drew me in and then little by little seeing a bit of the underside of the characters kept me turning the pages. By the end I was reading through my fingers (covering my eyes) and wondering how the heck the author would work things out. I wasn't disappointed.

A wild, intense ride!

A distress call from Lucy's husband comes into the Coastguard station. "Is he okay?" Lucy asks. She is told that he is still missing.

Something happened out there in the sea. Lucy has to face reality.

A gripping, fast paced story with a great cast of characters. I really enjoyed Detective Abraham Rose. He was authentic and suffered from his own state of denial.

The guessing and the twists don't let up until the last page, which seemed fitting.

A solid 4.5 for me. This book was very good, the mystery of why her husband disappeared and what happened to the children, the feelings/descriptions of the sea really had you feeling like you were there experiencing it, more than most books. The detective, battling a fatal illness, the moral choices and the courage of various people. The descriptions of the children, again, made them very real. So a well written and unusual thriller