To be fair, I will read anything by Ann Cleeves. This is book 3 in the Matthew Venn series. Another good addition to the police procedural series.

My mistake was thinking this would read like a tv show, it didn't and I shouldn't have expected it to. It moved slower then I wanted for a mystery but I still enjoy Ann Cleeves novels. This one just didn't work for me.

DI Matthew Venn investigates the murder of celebrity Jem Rosco in the stormy small town of Greystone. It's also the same town that's home to the Barum Brethren, a religious group that Venn's mother belongs to, forcing the DI to deal with ghosts of his past as he tries to navigate the dark secrets of the townspeople and solve Rosco's murder.

I love the way Cleeves finds the perfect setting for this book -- a small town along the sea with an environment that is just as dangerous as the murderer. Fans of the tv series will certainly love this book.

As an added bonus to fans, there is a book trail that shows readers several of the sites mentioned in the book which can be accessed through this link https://www.thebooktrail.com/book-trails/the-raging-storm-ann-cleeves/

This is a police procedural set in England. I really enjoyed it and am glad to discover a new series author to read. I listened to this on audio and it's probably better in print.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this review copy

A great third installment! I love this thriller and can't wait for more

The Raging Storm is the third installment in the continuing Two Rivers series. It can be read as a standalone but if you’d like to know more about Detective Inspector Matthew Venn and his world, consider reading reviews of The Long Call, followed by The Heron’s Cry.

When she was a teenager, Ann Cleeves lived in North Devon. She never really considered it as a setting for her books, as she shared in an essay: “It lacked the wildness, the authenticity of Shetland and Northumberland. My books are traditional and domestic, but I didn’t think they fitted the tourists’ image of the place: a gentle landscape, thatched cottages, and cream teas.” After the death of her husband of more than forty years, Cleeves had to get away from her Northumberland home and friends—she needed “an escape from their pity and their memories,” so she “ran back to North Devon to stay with an old school friend.”

It was winter and rainy, but we walked along the beaches and the headlands, remembering the intense and happy times of our adolescence, the parties, the music, the wonderful friendships. It came to me that I wanted to write about this place and explore it again in my stories.



My friend had grown up in a tight, evangelical community, and we talked about that too. About the certainty of her parents’ beliefs, their support of older members of the group, but also the lack of sympathy for people who’d lost their faith. They would be ‘unfellowshipped’ and no longer welcome, cast out.



Matthew Venn developed from those conversations.

But let’s not get ahead of the plot. The citizens of Greystone, an imaginary town on the Devon coast, are excited when a hometown hero returns: “Jem Rosco—sailor, adventurer, and legend—blows into town in the middle of an autumn gale.” Every night Jem stops by the pub and regales the locals with his yarns and veiled allusions to meeting a mysterious woman. But one night he doesn’t show up.

Greystone resident Mary Ford is awoken by her pager at five am: she’s a member of the lifeboat rota—there’s “a mayday on channel sixteen.” Mary and her crew go to the designated coordinates where they find an anchored dinghy, which seems very odd. There’s a naked body in the boat. Muscle memory kicks in: Mary slides into the dinghy and maneuvers the man into the lifeboat. She performs CPR as per protocol, but she knows it’s useless: “this man was cold as ice and lifeless, though, and the limbs were rigid.” On the way back to shore, “For the first time, she looked closely at the casualty’s face, and realized that she recognized him. Jem Rosco, national treasure and her one-time hero.”

A verse from “Requiem,” a poem by Robert Louis Stevenson, seems appropriate: “Here he lies where he longed to be; Home is the sailor, home from sea.” Jem Rosco, a lad from a poor background, developed into a fantastic sailor—he conquered the world with his exploits, “becoming the youngest person to sail round the world single-handed.” He was greeted with jubilation and applause when he returned home. But as is so often the case, Jem Rosco was not the hero everyone wanted to believe in.

Matthew Venn is tasked to investigate Rosco’s death.

Greystone brought back memories for Matthew Venn. There was a meeting hall in the village and he’d been brought here by his parents. A visit to the village had always been a treat, and he remembered this odd, isolated place with affection. There’d been a big community of Brethren, with more children than he’d ever encountered in Barnstaple.

That was then. In adulthood, Matthew left the Brethren and was no longer welcomed in the community he grew up in. The same for Greystone: “Since losing his faith, and marrying Jonathan, he hadn’t been back.” Still, as Matthew approaches Greystone, his memories are of “a place where he’d been so happy.” Dorothy, Matthew’s mother, had even wanted to move to Greystone but his father said no: “It was too remote. Too self-contained.” A policeman from a higher jurisdiction tells Matthew that until Rosco’s death, he’d never been to Greystone: ‘I get the impression that they sort out their own problems.’ Is that a good thing Matthew wonders: “a community that policed itself sounded dangerous to him, with an undercurrent of control, bullying.”

Three strands of The Raging Storm wind and twist together: the mystery of Rosco’s death and how his friendships and loves from decades earlier play out in the present; Matthew’s personal life—his comforting and dynamic relationship with his husband plus his knowledge of a community deeply impacted by an unyielding religion; and lastly, the setting, not just the sea and the tides, but the isolation of a seaside village that doesn’t attract tourists or work-from-home folks.

Matthew encounters closed ranks as he investigates Rosco’s past as well as meticulously examining how Rosco spent the days before his death. He is confronted with obfuscation and downright misleading statements. When he speaks with a colleague, after all the dust has settled, he considers how difficult it must have been for Rosco to be truly accepted by his youthful, more affluent friends—to be “one of them.”

There was a moment of silence. Venn had never quite fitted in at school either. He hadn’t fitted in anywhere, until he’d joined the police, and found his own role, his own tribe.

There’s a tribe of readers who were happy to learn that the Two Rivers series will continue and BritBox will stream the “four episodes of The Long Call, a dramatisation of the first book in the Two Rivers series.” Matthew Venn and North Devon have captured our imagination.

When a famous adventurer turns up murdered and his body is found floating in a dinghy off the coast, DI Matthew Venn is on the case. If you are a fan of the British TV series Broadchurch or detailed British mysteries (think Agatha Christie), this could be the book for you. I usually love British mysteries, but this one was a bit too slow for me. While I did find some of the characters intriguing, there were SO many characters (virtually everyone in the small village is featured) that it was difficult to distinguish between them, and the action was achingly slow, so I gave up about halfway. Definitely a matter of taste and I will likely try again, but at this point, I'm just bored. It could be that I didn't really care who or why Jem Roscoe was killed, so I just wasn't interested in all the many interviews the detectives were conducting. Classy and well-written, this would probably make a great TV series for BritBox.

Set in Greystone, Devon against a raging storm, reclusive but famous ex-resident of the town Gem Rosco swirls back into town, but it’s not long until his body is found in an abandoned boat. Detective Matthew Vinn has ties to the town, as his mother was one of “the brethren” of the town, but he lost that faith long ago and was shunned by the community. When he is assigned this case, he must find ways to get the townsfolk to co-operate with him to help solve who is behind the murder. But the more Matthew and his crew dig into the murder, the more they are poking the hornet’s nest, and they find themselves in danger. I listened to the audiobook, and I highly recommend that, as the narration was quite good. A compelling story with and twist at the end that I had no idea was going to happen. This is the third in the Matthew Vinn series, but I’ve not read the other two, and this one works well on its own.

A dead body is found floating in a boat, how did they get there? what happened to the man? retrieving the boat and the body was a tough and dangerous job! the storm was going full force and the situation was perilous. I couldn't put this book down. I highly recommend this page turner.
the many twists and turns will keep your interest.

I predict that you won't solve the mystery before the end of the book!

The Raging Storm is the 3rd book in the police procedural, suspense series, Two Rivers. Greystone Village is a small fishing village that has lots of superstitions. When a body is found dead in a boat off Scully Point, the rescue team can be heard muttering words to ward off bad luck: 'Skulls and bones and the white, white light.' Matthew Venn and his team are called in to investigate. He's familiar with that area of Devon, having grown up nearby but he left his family's religious life behind at the age of 18, but as he investigates, memories return. When another body is found, Venn is worried about his own judgement. As the investigation continues, it seems no one is safe from the secrets and superstitions surrounding this case.

The setting of this story was a character in itself. With storms and winds and the superstitions surrounding the religious group in the area, it was extremely atmospheric. Matthew Venn is a very complex character and we learn more about his and his past in every book. His thoughts are written in a way that we feel like we are in his head. He is intelligent, but doesn't see it and often doubts himself. He is antisocial and doesn't open up to others, nor want to have anyone try to get close to him. Jen and Ross are on his team and they both have some issues as well. Jen has a chip on her shoulder and is always trying to prove herself. Ross seems to be trying to one up Jen to get Venn's attention, which isn't necessarily helpful on a team. This is a character-driven police procedural, with some twisty plotlines and suspense. It's fascinating to watch Venn lead the investigation and peel back the many layers of secrets to solve the mystery. I didn't figure out who the culprit was and I was surprised when the reveal came. Although this is often referred to as a thriller, it is more of a slow burn suspenseful story that I enjoyed and will continue to look for books in this series.

Thank you for letting me review this book. Book was well written and interesting. Would recommend to all who enjoyed author's previous books. 10/10.

I am so sorry. I read this long ago, before my divorce trauma, so I do not remember it. I do not have access to the book any longer and really do not remember anything about

I love all of Ann Cleeves works, and have looked forward to reading The Raging Storm. Descriptive settings, character development, and interesting plot lines all lead to an immersive and satisfying read. Another great, unputdownable story from one of my favorite authors.

I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!
I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!
I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!
I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!

This slow burn police procedural felt atmospheric and completely sucked me in. This book follows Detective Venn and his team as he is called into a small costal town to investigate the mysterious death of a local TV celebrity. The investigation leads to secrets a plenty as we wind through this beautifully written mystery.

This is my first Ann Cleeves book but it won’t be my last. Usually police procedurals are hit or miss for me and this was definitely a hit. While the pacing is slower the setting and writing more than make up for it. The small costal town felt like it came to life and the writing was engaging and kept me wanting to know what was going to happen next. The characters were entertaining and while this is the third in the series it can be read as a standalone mystery but be forewarned some of what was hinted at in previous books made me want to go back and start this series from the beginning. I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.

Jem Rosco is Greystone, Devon’s biggest celebrity. Sailor and adventurer, he gained notoriety for his solo sailing trip around the world. When he arrives in town during a storm, the residents of the tiny village are thrilled to have him around, but things take a dark turn when his naked body is found in an anchored dinghy and his rental cottage is a bloody crime scene.

Detective Inspector Matthew Venn and his team, Jen Rafferty and Ross May, descend upon the town to investigate Rosco’s past and present to find a motive for murder. There's more trouble brewing in Greystone, though, with another murder complicating the mystery. This is an uncomfortable case for Venn. Greystone is home to the Barum Brethren, a religious sect from which he was expelled after losing his faith and marrying his husband, Jonathan. He is now estranged from his family and church.

The Raging Storm is the third installment in the Matthew Venn mystery series. Cleeves has an uncanny ability to set the scene. You can almost hear the wind howl and feel the sea salt spray on your face. The characters are pretty fleshed out, but Venn could use a bit more pizzazz—he’s too elusive and emotionally distant.

The book isn’t too dark, but I wouldn’t classify it as a “cozy” mystery either. There's plenty of intrigue and atmosphere to keep you hooked, even if the action takes a back seat. I must say, though, that Detective Venn’s belittlement of Christians rubbed me the wrong way. If that's a sore spot for you, too, skip it.

The Raging Storm is a decent read, no doubt, but personally, I preferred the second book in the series, Heron’s Cry. 3.5 stars from me.

** Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a comp of this book. The opinions are my own.

Matthew Venn for the win yet again. I am currently loving unconventional police procedurals as a much needed update to an outdated genre. The team that Ann Cleeves has created for this series is easy to care for and I love the more rural or unusual settings they find themselves in.

I got about halfway through and realized it just wasn’t for me. I found the timeline to jump around a lot from the beginning. It wasn’t a bad book just a little hard for me to follow but still a decent story if you like Ann Cleeve I think this could be for you

3.5 stars rounded up.

My real issue with this book was that the timeline was all over the place. Mary would go out for a walk at lunchtime, then go drop off her kids at school…but reference the lifeboat trip she took in the afternoon of the same day…in the morning after school drop off. In that order. It was impossible to keep straight. Also, I wish we could have gotten to know—really know—some of the main characters more deeply. We learned little things about them, but there were many of them, and it was a lot to keep them all straight—let alone get to know them on a deeper level.

Overall, a good police procedural. There were loose ends, and not everything was wrapped up neatly. This was my first Ann Cleeves novel, so I’m not sure if the prior two books in the series also had unfinished business to return to in future books.

Ann Cleeves Matthew Venn series is one of my favorites. The Raging Storm finds Matthew investigating the murder of local legend Jem Rosco in Greystone, Devon. This place holds memories for Matthew, a place he visited often in his youth, a strict religious community.

Matthew is finding his voice in this third novel, his straight-forward, almost to logical personality seems to loosen a little and I found myself relating to him a bit more.

The plot is complex and twisty, layered with secrets and local community beliefs and speculations; this is often a hinderance in the murder investigation.

As with all of Cleeves books, the atmosphere is richly portrayed and lush. It’s always a joy to go traveling with her!
My thanks to St. Martins Press for this gifted DRC.

My apologies for the lateness of this review, somehow I missed it in my download shelf!