Detective Inspector Matthew Venn and his team investigate the murder of a sailing adventurer, his body discovered on a dinghy anchored in an infamous cove in Greystone. The past figures heavily into solving the case and the team interview many of the locals trying to figure out who would want Jem Roscoe dead. Venn has some history with Greystone as a lot from the strict religious organization he was raised in resides there.

I liked Venn and his thought processes, as well as Jen, one of his investigators, who had a knack for getting information out of people. Wasn’t a big fan of Ross, who seemed selfish and immature, always in competition with Jen instead of focusing on the investigation.

The Raging Storm was an entertaining police/crime procedural, but the pacing was a bit slow. Even so it held my attention enough to want to find out who did it and finish the story. The author excelled at bringing the stark, cold setting of Greystone to life. Very atmospheric.

I didn’t read the previous books, but I didn’t feel like I missed anything crucial, and this was a stand-alone mystery solved in this installment by the end.

I alternated between an audio copy and e-copy. Jack Holden’s narration was excellent. I enjoyed his voice/accent and his performance enhanced my enjoyment. I listened at my usual 1.5x normal speed.

Princess Fuzzypants here: Along the north Devon coast, the roiling waves and the fierce storms send out a lifeboat to rescue a stranded sailor. It is too late for him but the sailor is not just anyone. He is a poor boy who made good with his many sea adventures that brought him fortune and fame. He had returned recently under mysterious circumstances but when Matthew and his team arrive, they soon realize that it is not just the sea that is churned up.
There are many webs of deceit and jealousy and high emotions. It is up to the police to try and sort through it all.

As so often happens, what seems to be apparent is an illusion and people can flummox even a seasoned copper. There are so many twists and turns including another murder and attempted murder before the things finally unravel. It is a merry journey for Matthew and the reader as the masks come off and the true faces are revealed.

Five purrs and two paws up.

The Raging Storm is the third in Ann Cleeves' Detective Matthew Venn series. Once again, Cleeves has provided us with a psychological mystery set within the confines of a coastal village, made even more constrained by the raging storm that has isolated the witnesses, suspects, investigators, and innocents alike. Venn himself is a self-contained and conflicted protagonist, still dealing with the effects of having been raised in an extreme religious community, one that is still flourishing in the village of Greystone where the murder occurs. Highly recommended.

This is the 3rd in the Detective Matthew Venn series - also known as Two Rivers. Although it can be read as a stand-alone, for any one interested in following a series, it may be better to consider reading the first books,

This story is based in Greystone, an imaginary town on the Devon coast. Citizens are excited when Jem Rosco, a hometown hero returns, who is somewhat of a celebrity. Each night he stops by the pub, visits and jokes with the locals, and talks about waiting to meet with a mysterious person. This goes on for about 2 weeks.

And then…One night he doesn’t show up.

Greystone resident Mary Ford, the lead team member of the lifeboat crew is awakened early to investigate a body found in a floating dingy.

Guess who? Yep…Enter Matthew Venn whose team is here to investigate Rosco’s death.

This is difficult for Venn to return to this town, because this is where he grew up, and in adulthood, he left the Brethen (a confining cult-like religion which is quite popular here) and was disowned by his parents for doing so.

“Since losing his faith, and marrying Jonathan, he hadn’t been back.”

Of course, during this whole time that Venn arrives there is a…

Raging storm! (Hence the book title!)

The story plays out in interesting ways…

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 as well as his knowledge of a community deeply impacted by an unyielding religion; and, the setting, not just the sea, but the isolation of this seaside village that doesn’t attract tourists or work-from-home folks.

Of course…There are many people not willing to help Venn get to the truth in the investigation which slows things up.

And…It doesn’t help when Venn and one of his officers are put in danger.

But…Eventually it all comes together, like an Agatha Christie outing where explanations are rendered towards the end.

This is an easy-to-read, slow-moving mystery. Inspector Venn is a meticulous, unemotional, but thorough character in his approach. He cares about his team, and is not easily detoured from his mission.

For those who like police procedurals, and cozy mysteries, this one will be a well-organized read.

But...If I am being completely honest, this will probably be my last Venn book. I find myself not quite attracted to how Cleeves writes her character/story. Yes, I gave it 4 stars, but, it still didn't create a connection for me.

For fans of Cleeves, Britbox has filmed The Long Call, but I have since learned that the series has been cancelled. Cleeves is also the author of the widely popular Shetland and Vera series, also on the television screens. I personally am more attracted to the television series than I am to her books. For whatever reason, she isn't a

Sometimes I wonder if I am smart enough to read an Ann Cleeves novel since I seem to be the last to the party.

It could be that because I am rewatching the Vera television series, but part of this book seemed familiar but also different at the same time. Matthew Venn is not Vera Stanhope, but they both approach the “dead body in the boat” the same way, and as their investigations broaden, other secrets come to life.

There is no way that I would have been able to guess the ultimate person responsible for the murder of the local celebrity, but I’m not sure that is what Ann Cleeves wanted. By the time I finished, I thought Greystone was the main character in the book and the body was secondary. The dark, gloomy, superstitious town of rumors and side-eye is what carried the novel through.

Of course, I will continue with Matthew Venn since his story is still coming to light, and one day, I hope to, not exactly be a step ahead, but at least not a football field behind.

Having recently-ish realized how much I enjoy reading mysteries, particularly of the crime variety, I jumped at the chance to start reading Ann Cleeves’ Two Rivers series when it started with The Long Call. I enjoyed the first book (review here), the second a little less so (review here), but I was still interested in reading The Raging Storm, book three and published in early September. It didn’t quite live up to my expectations and, sadly, I don’t know if I’ll continue with the series.

Here’s the book’s description:
When Jem Rosco - sailor, adventurer and legend - blows in to the local pub, The Maiden's Prayer, in the middle of an autumn gale, the residents of Greystone are delighted.
The whole place has a strange, unreal quality, the village that time forgot. Backed by a worked-out quarry, with a shingle beach and a north-facing quay, there's little to recommend it to tourists.
When Rosco disappears again, they think nothing of it; that's the sort of man he is. Until the lifeboat is launched to a hoax call-out and his body is found in a dinghy, anchored off Scully Cove, a place with legends of its own.
This is an uncomfortable case for Venn. Greystone is a stronghold of the Barum Brethren and he came here as a child. Faith and superstition mix as another body is found in Scully, and Matthew finds his judgement clouded.
The wind continues to howl, and he realizes that his own life is in danger.
The mystery - paired with the descriptions of the town where the murder took place - was what kept me reading The Raging Storm. I was intrigued and wanted to know how Rosco ended up dead and Cleeves was spinning a tale that kept me guessing. There was just enough tension to keep me on my toes without being too intense (I read mysteries, not thrillers, for a reason!).

Even though I read mysteries for the, well, mystery, I still like to feel invested in the characters. With this one, it honestly could have been any nameless, faceless cops who were solving the case. The three officers who were investigating could have been anyone and felt so incredibly two-dimensional, and that includes Matthew Venn, who’s the anchor of this series. It’s hard to criticize Venn sometimes since he seems to have some well-hidden and well-managed anxiety, past trauma, or something similar that keeps him from connecting with people. Unfortunately, in writing, he comes across as standoffish and it’s hard to care about a character like that. Not that we need to care about the characters but I think that’s a hope of Cleeves, that we’ll be so invested in Venn and the mysteries he solves that we’ll keep coming back for more.

Honestly, I don’t have much more to say about The Raging Storm. I wanted to like the latest novel from Ann Cleeves but it came up short in many ways. Maybe someday I’ll try another of her books but, for now, I’ll take a pass on any further Matthew Venn novels.

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the Canadian distributor of this novel, Publishers Group Canada, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own*

The Raging Storm was fantastic. It was the first I’ve read in this series and it was fascinating. The sense of place, the foreboding undercurrent – it all made for a great read. I look forward to reading more in the series, but it’s solid as a standalone.

It’s tough to say much without spoiling, but as you read, it’s like you’re walking alongside Detective Matthew Venn. Sometimes he went down the wrong road, sometimes you will too.

What a suspenseful book! I really enjoyed the plot and the characters. Ann Cleeves is such a good mystery writer. She has a way to creates a whole world and an interesting team of detectives. I really appreciate her writing and all of her books. .

Ok, so this is on me and I didn't realize this was the third book of a series until I was a bit into it. That said, I did love the writing and it's easy to see why her work gets picked up for television shows. I plan to get back to this after reading the first two books but I'm not sure when that will be.

Good mystery with twists and turns. Matthew Venn is investigating a murder of a sort of famous explorer who had come back to Greystone to wait for someone, but who is unknown. As he and his team investigate, the bodies start to pile up.

I enjoy this series and the characters in this small inclusive town are very intriguing. Looking forward to more in this series.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Anne Cleeves continues the Matthew Venn series with this suspenseful murder that takes place on the British coast. When Venn is called in to investigate a body found in a dinghy moored off one of the coastal island, he discovers the victim is the famous adventurer Jeremy "Jem" Rosco. Much of the evidence is washed away in a horrible storm (hence the name) so it is up to Venn and his cohorts to uncover why Jem returned to the town of his birth and who held a grudge bad enough to kill him. Braving blackouts, landslide and taciturn villagers Venn soon discovers that there is more than just an old grudge. Cleeves also gives us a new look into Venn's backstory that may shed light on the detective, as well as the murder. If you're a fan of Ann Cleeves you will love this latest installment. Venn fans will be delighted as will mystery lovers of all kinds. Many thanks to Net Galley for the chance to read an ARC.

Loved it! Every time I turned the page I wanted to know what was going to happen next I don’t but the book down

I listened to this book in audio format, and this may be why I'm rating it only a 4, and not a 5. The reader did a great job, actually, capturing the nature of each of the characters in his narration. However, the pace of the book was somewhat erratic and while I can speed up and slow down my own reading to match an inconsistent pace, it would have been inappropriate for Holden, the reader, to do so.

Erratic pace aside, this book is a great addition to the Two Rivers series. At the outset of the series, I wasn't sure whether I actually liked the main detective, Matthew Venn. He seemed rather stuffy and morose. As Cleeves has built his character over the three books in the series, however, I've grown to understand and like him a great deal. I also very much like his single-mother sergeant, Jen Rafferty, who plays a major role in this investigation. This is a strongly character driven procedural series, as is Cleeves' forte. The characters who are specific to this novel, as well as those who are ongoing regulars, are well developed...some likeable, some not so much. In this novel, it is difficult to tell which characters fall into which category until the very end.

The book takes place on the Devon coast, and the writing about the fierceness of the weather is compelling. The sea plays a significant role in the book both as a location for deaths and bodies, and as a force for obscuring evidence. It is also a source of a distinct atmosphere of remote wildness.

The book could certainly be read as a standalone without any sense of being left out of the full story. However, the previous two books in the series have helped to build a more sympathetic perspective on Venn than one might get from this book alone. Great writer, great series, great book.

A great third addition to the Two Rivers series, and an easy read whether you've read the others prior. This police procedural follows Detective Matthew Venn and his team as they investigate the murder of Jem Roscoe, a community legend. The characters of Venn, Rafferty, and May make for a dynamic team and bring different skills and mindsets to solving this case. As they race against the impending weather, they dive right in to examine his close knit and religious community to find a murderer. I was kept guessing to the very end and looking forward to the next Ann Cleeves book.

The third installation in the Two Rivers series, featuring Matthew Venn, takes the reader back to the Southwest Coast of England and a tiny village on the shore. Ann Cleeves's begins the door on a cold and blustery day which plays into the mood of the story. A sailing legend returns to his hometown and brings intrigue along to the village. Circumstances lead to an unusual death and many in the town look suspicious. This book took me awhile to read because of Cleeves's ability to write so beautifully that I did not want to rush through the chapters. Her writing begs the reader to sit with the words and imagine the characters and setting. I look forward to whatever Cleeves releases next. Her books are a must read for me.

Atmospheric and evocative, Book 3 in the Two Rivers (Inspector Matthew Venn) series,
this author (and this series) can be counted on for all the elements of a top-notch police procedural, with the bonus of a team of detectives, led by Inspector Matthew Venn, as well-developed, multi-layered and interesting as any characters you will meet between the pages, in any genre.

Beginning with Matthew himself, a victim of a stifling religious-cultlike upbringing, (now a self-chosen outcast), not so successfully battling the leftover shame, guilt and self-judgement threatening his peace-of-mind, as he attempts to find a way to finally enjoy life with his lovely husband Jonathan. Along with single mom DS Jen Rafferty, whose struggles to manage her own chaotic career, while somehow also caring for her two teenagers, carries its own burden of guilt. And finally, DS Ross May, whose raw ambition and somewhat juvenile competitiveness with his partner Jen can be seen to stem from his own unhappy and somewhat shabby childhood.

When the team is called to Greystone, a bleak and oppressive coastal North Devon town, the raging sea provides a powerful backdrop for murder. A body found in an anchored dinghy - the victim, a visitor to the town, known for both his sailing prowess and his cocky arrogance - proves to be a tricky homicidal puzzle to solve. As the plot weaves and waves its way through the village and its inhabitants, Matthew and his team encounter suspects, context, and danger as the storm intensifies and the body count grows - right up to a dramatic ending this reader came nowhere near to guessing.

A wonderful read, this is a perfect choice to sink into on a day when reading takes top of the agenda (you will not want to put this one down).

A great big thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author or an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.

I am a big fan of of the English tv series, Vera, and I never thought about the author bring a prolific mystery writer . Somehow, I thought the renowned director had the writing commissioned. So my surprise was outmatched by embarrassment as I discovered that Ann Cleeves was the author behind the show. Reading The Racing Storm, I could picture this new series featuring Mathew Venn, a thinking man’s detective as the old phrase stated, Turns out this is the third adventure in this series (seriously, I’m late to this party). I enjoyed how Mathew isn’t flashy or outgoing (he leaves that to his husband) and is still a little uncomfortable with homophobia in small town Britain. Now I have ordered the rest of the series and will report back. Meanwhile I enjoyed this masterpiece of a mystery and loved the characters of this odd town.

I expected the story to be dark as the retelling happens at the height of a September gale in an unappealing place, and it kept getting darker. There were several mysteries - how did the celebrity sailor arrive, who was he there to meet, how and why did he become a casualty?

Having read the previous installments of The Two Rivers Series my thoughts run parallel. The Raging Storm required attention and concentration. It was not a book that could be easily put down and left for a day or two. I had to reacquaint myself with the secondary characters and their relationships but in fairness this was my problem not that of the story.

Cleeves weaves an intricate mystery reintroducing the primary characters of the previous installments so there is definite continuity. Once again there were many secondary characters and potential subplots that constantly pulled at me - could it have been this one, but why, and if it was that one, what about the other him/her, and why would they have….. lots of questions about “who got caught up in the violence, the stories and recklessness”.

No question that Ann Cleeves is a master of this genre and I look forward to the next installment in The Two Rivers series. Manny thanks to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for a copy.

I adored Ann Cleeves’ Shetland series and was so sad when it ended. The Matthew Venn series, however, has become a delightful substitute. With each book, the carefully drawn characters and the gorgeous settings pull me into a wonderful world of crime and menace. The characters she creates are ones that you can’t help caring about. The Raging Storm was a satisfying detective story and I can’t hardly wait for the next in the series to see what Venn and his team have waiting for them!

When I requested this book, I didn't pay close enough attention to realize it was the 3rd book in a series. While I may have benefitted from reading the first two books before reading this one, I found it wasn't necessary. The Raging Storm stands well enough on its own. It's a cozy mystery, and full of interesting characters with lots of small town secrets. I enjoyed slowly uncovering the layers of this book and I plan to read the first two books of the series now that I've finished this one.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.