Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook. I enjoyed this book overall. I've never read anything with the character Mathew Venn. I've seen both Shetland television series and Vera TV series, both based on the author's other well-known book series'. The author is great at weaving a good, solid mystery that I can never guess until just about the very end. The audiobook was great to listen to as well. The narrator did a good job and had a pleasant voice. He did a pretty good job of changing up his tone and voice just enough so you'd know there was another character speaking. I'm definitely a fan of this author and their writing style. I really enjoy the settings of her book. In this case it is a village called Greystone (I believe this is a fictional village name, but based on a real place in the area of North Devon). The author is great at painting a vivid picture in the mind of the beauty and magnitude of the scenery, the water, the cliffs etc. The story takes us through the events after a local "celebrity" named Jeremy "Jem" Roscoe comes to the village to wait for a mysterious visitor. Jem ends up dead and the police (Detective Mathew Venn, who is familiar with Graystone from his childhood) are sent to investigate. Great book and good story. I think this would be equally as good to read as it was to listen to.

I've really enjoyed the Two Rivers series by Ann Cleeves. They've been my introduction to reading her books, though I've been enjoying the Vera TV series adapted from her Vera Stanhope books, and have just started dipping into the Shetland TV series. While listening to this latest book about Matthew Venn and his team trying to solve the murder of a prodigal son, I realized that the common denominator between them is the humanity of her characters. These aren't one-dimensional hero cops boldly risking life & limb to solve the crime and save the day. She fleshes out her characters and exposes their foibles and their insecurities - not that they can't play the "hero card" when necessary. They feel very real, as do the locations. She's wonderful at setting up her characters, at establishing a very distinct sense of place and atmosphere. And of course she also comes up with excellent mysteries. I've been reading mysteries for a VERY long time, starting with Nancy Drew books as a young girl. These are probably my favorite types - not too cozy, not too thrilling - interesting, atmospheric mysteries with fascinating characters that I look forward to getting to know even better. Jack Holden's narration of the audiobook added yet another dimension to my enjoyment. I really do need to start diving into her other books - it's clear that they're right up my alley.
Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for providing a copy for an unbiased review.

I rarely read the same author’s books one after the other, but I love Ann Cleeves’s detective characters…so I listened to The Raging Storm immediately after reading The Heron’s Cry. This coincided with the return to work after a long summer break and took longer than I would’ve liked. If I dislike reading a book piecemeal, I hate it even more with an audiobook. Audiobooks don’t come “naturally” and it takes me a long time to settle in and get immersed. However, when narrator and narrative come together, I can appreciate the audiobook’s pleasures, though I’ll always prefer page over ear-bud. In this case, narrator Jack Holden and Cleeves’s sensitive characterization and evocative natural description come together beautifully in the third Two Rivers mystery, The Raging Storm. The publisher’s blurb to orient us:

When Jem Rosco—sailor, adventurer, and legend—blows into town in the middle of an autumn gale, the residents of Greystone, Devon, are delighted to have a celebrity in their midst. But just as abruptly as he arrived, Rosco disappears again, and soon his lifeless body is discovered in a dinghy, anchored off Scully Cove, a place with legends of its own.

This is an uncomfortable case for Detective Inspector Matthew Venn. Greystone is a place he visited as a child, a community he parted ways with. Superstition and rumor mix with fact as another body is found, and Venn finds his judgment clouded.

As the winds howl, and Venn and his team investigate, he realizes that no one, including himself, is safe from Scully Cove’s storm of dark secrets.

Of all Cleeves’s Matthew Venn series, I enjoyed The Raging Storm the best. While I missed the original Two Rivers setting and seeing Matthew with husband Jonathan more, I loved how the wild, isolated, stormy fictional North Devon town of Greystone reflected the characters’ internal storms. Only the placid, water-off-a-duck’s-back detective Ross May remained as obliviously ambitious as ever. For Matthew and Sergeant Jen Rafferty the past is churned up like the swirling waters which brought in Jem Rosco’s body. And the locals, some members of the religious community Matthew left and to which his mother still belongs, are at times forthcoming, at times reticent speaking with Matthew and his team. (On a side note, I was glad Cleeves didn’t make religious zealotry the murderer’s motivation.)

One of Cleeves’s great strengths is the sympathy with which she portrays her detectives. In The Raging Storm, Matthew and Jen’s pasts (not shared) are embroiled with the solving of Rosco’s murder. Not in a plottish way, not sensational either, no revelations to take you by surprise; rather, Cleeves connects their past with the settings and renders their inner questioning about decisions taken or not, how their pasts bear on the present, by allowing the reader to be privy to them.

For Matthew, this was the place and people he left and by whom he was subsequently rejected and set adrift without community. (I loved Cleeves’s final note to the reader about how Matthew finds the same sense of belonging by joining the police force.) Moreover, because of the case’s unfolding, Jen returns to the scene of her failed, violent marriage. Matthew and Jen’s personal musings mix with their dogged police work; they work through timing, motive, and character: sometimes shedding light and, because Matthew and Jen are human and weak, at times obscuring and going in the wrong direction. But Cleeves loves her characters and steers them with a steady hand: Jen and Matthew aren’t riddled with regrets about the past and their professionalism and morality see them through to the murders’ just resolution. Cleeves’s hand is as deft with secondary characters as her detecting cast: she’s especially good at portraying a variety of marriages, the difficult, the disappointed, the content, the compatible, the bored, the unequal in affection and commitment, and the idyllic.

While the elements I’ve loved and discussed make up much of Cleeves’s Raging Storm, I’ve neglected to say how great Cleeves is at creating suspense. As Matthew, Jen, and Ross come closer and closer to the murderer’s identity, Cleeves creates scenes of heart-stopping suspense. Again, part of what makes the scenes memorable is the motif of wild sea and scape, human evil, human error, and human good.

Cleeves left us with an author’s note which left me uncertain whether the Two Rivers series, with its wonderful Matthew Venn, Jenn Rafferty, partners, children, and extended families, will return in a fourth book. It would be most welcome by this reader. On a final note, narrator Jack Holden does the mystery honour: his voice is steady and attractive. His is my favourite kind of narrator: un-intrusive. Holden doesn’t make narrating about his performance, but about the text. Miss Austen would agree, The Raging Storm offers “a mind lively and at ease,” Emma.

Ann Cleeves’s The Raging Storm audiobook is produced by Macmillan Audio. I received an advanced file recording from Macmillan Audio via the Netgalley app. This does not impede the free expression of my opinion.

This review is going to start very differently than my others. My mother loves Ann Cleeves. She sings this author's praises left and right. Now, in my case, mom always knows best! She's the one who introduced me to Elizabeth George, Louise Penny, Ann Pachet, and many other incredible authors. The Raging Storm brings us back to Inspector Matthew Venn who I adore. He's in a bit of a predicament with this his latest case. Jem Rosco, famous world adventurer, has been found murdered in Greystone. Inspector Venn has a history with Greystone. It's a place he visited in his youth, but left due to its often closed-minded ways. As Matthew returns as an adult and authority figure, he's seeing Greystone and its familiar faces with new eyes. There are many interesting characters crafted by Ann Cleeves in this installment in the series. This was a solid addition to the series and a gripping read. I found it fast-paced and at times, I had to switch between the e-book (courtesy of St. Martin's Press/ Minotaur Books) and the audiobook (courtesy of Macmillan Audio). I listen to audiobooks at 2x speed, but The Raging Storm was a challenge for me. I had to slow it down and often switched to the text to read at my own pace, without missing anything! If you are a fan of Ann Cleeves, I recommend reading this latest release!

The Raging Storm, the third book in the Two Rivers series, was the first book that I had the pleasure of reading by Ann Cleeves. Even though I did not read the first two books in this series, I had no trouble following this character driven murder mystery. It can most definitely be read as a stand-alone book. I always enjoy a good police procedural book and The Raging Storm possessed all the elements required to make it a compelling one.

The Raging Storm was set in a quiet coastal town called Greystone in Devon, England. Greystone was a quiet little town where everyone knew everyone. Many of the residents grew up in the town and remained there as adults. Nothing very exciting ever happened there. The return of Jem Roscoe, tv celebrity and sailing hero, was the most exciting thing to happen in a long time. Jem Roscoe’s appearance in Greystone was soon known by all. He had rented a cottage and had the habit of ending his days at the local pub. Jem Roscoe let everyone know that he was expecting a special guest and would remain in Greystone until his guest arrived. One night Jem Roscoe failed to show up at the pub. No one even noticed or gave it a second thought. Then later that night, Detective Inspector Matthew Venn was alerted by the coast guard that a naked male body was discovered in an abandoned dinghy at Scully Cove.

Detective inspector Matthew Venn informed the members of his team to meet him at Scully Cove. He was met by Jen Rafferty, his sergeant, and Ross May. It was soon determined that the body in the abandoned dinghy was indeed dead and was no other than Jem Roscoe. Had he been murdered or was there some sort of an accident? Detective Inspector Matthew Venn’s work was just beginning. He and his team would not stop until they figured out what had happened to Jem Roscoe and who was responsible for it. His team split up and began interviewing people from Greystone that had had contact with Jem Roscoe. Matthew Venn was quite familiar with this coastal town. He had spent time there as a child. Many of the residents of Greystone belonged to a specific religious sect. Matthew had also been a member of the Barum Brethren. Venn decided to disassociate himself from the sect years ago. The Church actually asked Matthew to leave and he was not at all surprised or upset.

Matthew Venn was relentless in his investigation. No one was off limits from Detective Inspector Matthew Venn’s questioning. Then his investigation was impacted by severe raging storms. The storms were so severe that downed trees closed roads and the power was affected. With the confirmation that Jem Roscoe was indeed murdered, Venn knew he had to discover who the murderer was so no one else suffered the same fate. Would Venn be able to identify the murderer before the murderer had a chance to kill again?

The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves was a suspenseful police procedural murder mystery. I really liked Detective Inspector Matthew Venn’s character. Ann Cleeves presented him as a gay married man. I felt that that only enhanced his character. He was very forthcoming about his relationship with his husband. That definitely added another dimension to his character. I was surprised by the ending and I had not seen it coming. Overall, I enjoyed The Raging Storm. I listened to the audiobook that was performed very well by Jack Holden. In the future, I hope to read more books by Ann Cleeves. I recommend this book very highly.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen to the audiobook of The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves
Narrator, Jack Holden
Matthew Venn/Two Rivers Series
This is book three in the series and I have read them all. I think you get more out of the book if you have read the two previous books. I have to confess that I like the Vera series best, the Shetland series next best and this one comes in third. Truthfully, if I had read this series first I might have not read any other books by this author. It isn’t that the series is not well written, it's just that the main character is not very sympathetic, plus I am getting a bit tired of his problems related to his religious background.
After all that, I would still say this is a well written story and it was a compelling read. The ending was a surprise and it was all tied up very well.

Thank you #netgalley and Macmillan Audio for this #gifted audiobook to review.

The Raging Storm
A Detective Matthew Venn Novel
by Ann Cleeves
Narrated by Jack Holden
Duration 9 Hours, 47 Minutes, 32 Seconds


The Raging Storm starts off quickly with a murder in the tiny seaside town of Greystone in Devon England. This first death is centered around Jem Rosco, who appeared one stormy night. He rented a cottage and began sharing that he had arrived to meet a special visitor.

Cold winds and rain add the perfect atmospheric feel to Scully Cove’s dark secrets.

And, as might be expected, the small town is made up of interesting characters.

Concerns
My main concern was occasionally having to rewind to make sure I heard a name correctly. Detective Matthew VENN, JEM Rosco, and JEN Rafferty made listening a little challenging at times.

Final Thoughts
This character-based mystery is one you won’t want to overlook. And the narration is perfect for the story.

New York Times bestselling author Ann Cleeves returns with an evocative third mystery in the Two Rivers series featuring DI Matthew Venn. Prior to The Raging Storm (Minotaur), Venn had attempted to put the past behind him, but to no avail. When Jem Rosco, a celebrity adventurer, is found dead and naked in a dinghy drifting off the rocky coastline, Venn is dispatched to Greystone, Devon, to investigate the crime.
As a child, Venn had spent summers with his parents at the Brethren retreat in the dull seaside village. He now faces unpleasant memories about the religion he has questioned and rejected. And his own mother’s loyalty to the Brethren continues to torture him.
The tiny village of Greystone has a long memory, and the elders remember the embarrassment Venn caused his family and the sect. However, the town had been delighted about the return of another former resident, Jem Rosco. Rosco had been a delinquent youth, and contrary to the village’s predictions, he had achieved international fame as a sailor, adventurer, and legend. Although as a child, Rosco had never fit in: now as an adult, he is revered, but he has limited his community interaction to nightly pints at the Maiden’s Prayer pub.
Venn quickly discovers that no one knows a lot about Rosco’s present life. He is an enigma, blowing into the village like the North Wind. Yet the more Venn digs, the more he realizes everyone seems to possess an intimate connection to Rosco, himself, or the crime. But there is no evidence to connect any suspect to the murder. The only certainty is that Rosco had mentioned a mysterious mission — to meet a visitor who never materialized. Rosco’s untimely demise has left the village wondering about the true reason for his return and the identity of his visitor.
The Search for a Killer’s Motive
With the help of Venn’s loyal assistants, Jen Rafferty and Ross May, Venn scours the coast, uncovering the motives for killing Rosco. They are as varied as the shells, stones, and bones washing up on the shore. Old secrets and rivalries resurface in Rosco’s former lovers, spouses, school friends, admirers, and foster parents. Was it revenge, money, or jealousy that prompted Rosco’s murder?
Interestingly, Jem Rosco is not the only legend hovering over Greystone. As the result of a prank lifeboat call-out, his body was found afloat in the treacherous Scully Cove. Scully Cove is mired in superstitions as the scene of unexplained deaths, drownings, and accidents. The locals avoid it, and view the inlet as a place where the angry tides sweep people out to sea, or impale them on the sharp rocks. Contributing to the lore, Rosco’s death scene appeared staged. Someone wanted him found, but why? Why not dump the body in the roiling sea?
Chilling Mystery Shaped by Its Setting
Once again in The Raging Storm, Cleeves captures the heart and soul of Britain’s Devon Coast with her expressive, and impressive, use of landscape imagery. As in every Cleeves novel, the setting becomes an essential character, assuming a life of its own. This mystery would not have been as dramatic without the dangerous gale winds blowing, the white caps slapping against the shore, the jagged cliffs lording over the rocky shoreline, or the town isolated from the rest of the world by Mother Nature’s wrath.
In The Raging Storm, this landscape defines the residents of Greystone, while it creates impediments and unforeseen dangers for the strangers in town, like Venn, Jen and Ross. In the eye of a force nine gale, Venn and his team are forced to battle the elements, suspicious residents, and uncooperative witnesses to uncover the truth about Jem Rosco’s death. Meanwhile, Venn must battle his personal demons, unaware that his own life is in peril. For fans of Ann Cleeves, The Raging Storm offers an intriguing continuation of her new Two Rivers franchise. Cleeves has fashioned complicated characters, villains, and plots, and offers a glimpse of life in Devon England that leaves the reader craving more of Matthew Venn. The Raging Storm is chilling to the core.

So, the Shetland series.which I loved had ended. I as verklempt! My.thoughts were at least I still have Vera. Then a new series, so I read
the first two in series, liked it well enough but it didnt quite grab me. Until this one, the third in series, and now I like Venn but I love Jonathan. Matthew is a very lucky man.

i guess the message is, trust your favorite authors. The best in police procedurals, good storylines , not a lot of graphic violence, and a terrific mix of policework and private lives. Plus, as with all her books, the place, the atmosphere is fantastic and authentic.

The audio, narrator was terrific.

One of the best things about prolific writers is the book series they produce. Ann Cleeves is a master of the series and amazing at creating characters you want to know better. Detective Matthew Venn, his significant other Jonathan and Detective Sergeant Jen Rafferty are those type of characters throughout the series but as with the first two books, Cleeves introduces new characters that are equally intriguing. Another page turner that keeps you guessing until the end. Highly recommended book that can be read as a stand alone.

Jem Rosco is a larger than life figure in his hometown. Since sailing the world solo at a young age, he has earned admiration and something of legendary status. When he returns to his hometown unexpectedly and for mysterious reasons, the townspeople are charmed and eager to find out why he returned. In the middle of a storm, a gruesome discovery during a water rescue draws Detective Inspector Matthew Venn back to the region of his youth and into discovering who killed Jem Rosco. Which of the people involved with Jem took his life and why?

Matthew Venn is called in to investigate an odd murder. The body was transported into a dingy that was then towed to a cove, anchored and abandoned with the victim's naked corpse lying in the bottom of the boat as a storm was coming in.

So there are a lot of questions to be answered, not least of which is, where was the victim actually murdered and why stage the body to be found this way? Surely if the murderer wanted to get away with it, they would have tossed the body out to sea instead of anchoring it securely in a cove.

But as Matthew and his team investigate, they uncover more questions than answers, and the closer they get to the killer, the more likely it is that solving this mystery may cost them their lives.

If you like intelligent mysteries, you'll want to check this one out.

This is the third installment in the Matthew Venn series. I read the first book but missed the second one somehow. Regardless, I don't think you need to have read either of the earlier ones to understand what's going on in this one. So it works fine as a standalone if you want to jump into the series at this point.

Thank you to Ann Cleeves, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Ann Cleeves has penned the books that lead to two of my favorite British series - Vera and Shetland. She's a talented storyteller and I knew I would enjoy her latest book - The Raging Storm. It's the third book in the Detective Inspector Matthew Venn series, but can absolutely be read as a stand alone.

Jem Roscoe, a well known celebrity adventurer is found dead in a dingy during a storm at the harbor of Scully Cove and small village of Greystone. Venn is assigned the case, but he's not eager to return to Greystone. He has history with the village. The village is superstitious and full of legends. And then another body is found...

I adore character driven mysteries - and Cleeves is a master at this style. She has created a wonderful group of characters and I feel like I'm catching up with old friends when I start a new Venn book. Venn is smart, intuitive, honest and will go the extra mile to solve a case. His loves his husband Jonathan (as do I - his take on things is always frank, but thoughtful and light hearted.) The two DC's - Jen Rafferty and Ross May also have personal lives that continue to move forward with every book.

The setting is dark and atmospheric in this entry. Greystone is insular, and not overly welcome to outsiders. The inhabitants are unwelcoming and cautious with what they share.

And then there's the mystery. A great plot that kept me guessing. Just as I settled on my suspect, I was proven wrong. I'm also a fan of twists and Cleeves gives us a good one in the final chapter. I love the slower pace of the investigation.

I choose to listen to The Raging Storm. The narrator was Jack Holden and he did a great job. His voice embodied the mental image I had created for Venn. He speaks clearly and is easy to understand. His voice has lots of movement, capturing the emotions, action, and more. I often find I become more immersed in a book when I listen to it. That was definitely the case with The Raging Storm. An excellent performance of an excellent book.

The Raging Storm is the third book in the Two Rivers series about DI Matthew Venn. Like Ann Cleeves' other main characters, Detective Inspector Matthew Venn is not an easily understood character at first glance, but he quickly grows on the reader. The mystery is nicely plotted and captivating. The murderer took me by surprise.

A famous son, Jem Rosco, returns to Scully Cove on a stormy night, making the town wonder what he is up to now. When they found out that he rented a nearby cottage, there was more speculation about the reason for this visit. When he disappears and is later found dead in a dinghy, DI Venn is called to investigate.

Venn doesn’t have good memories of this area either. The close-minded religious community caused a lot of anguish for him when he admitted that he was gay. I love Venn. He is honest, and he has a routine that he likes to follow when on an investigation. Circumstances don’t allow him to do that sometimes, which makes him a little antsy. It reveals a lot about him when he deals with his frustration. We are learning more about his personal feelings and self-doubts not only on the job but also in his relationship with his husband. There are times that I want to give him a big hug because he is too hard on himself.

Ann Cleeves creates great characters as well as an extremely atmospheric setting. I love how she sets the stage for murder and dread. It is intriguing the way the atmosphere carries over to the residents of the town, which makes the story feel darker and the foreboding grows with each tidbit the author reveals about the town, the people, and the investigators.

I listened to the audio for this book. It is narrated by Jack Holden. I love the way Holden brings Matthew Venn to life. He does an excellent job conveying the gloom and doom of the area and characters. He pulled me into the story totally.

Ann Cleeves has another page-turner here that I thoroughly enjoyed. Jack Holden is the perfect voice for the story and these characters. I will be reading/listening to more in this series.

Enjoyed my first Ann Cleeves mystery novel and it's wonderfully atmospheric too. 4.5⭐

A local renowned sailor and TV celebrity Jem Roscoe returns to his hometown of Greystone. He rents a cottage and visits the village's pub daily for a pint or two. Townspeople are excited to see Jem and to rub shoulders with a legend while he waits to meet mysterious guests.

A coastguard call came in about a dinghy anchored in the shallow waters at Scully Cove, a place with bad luck and wild stories. A lifeboat "EMT" was sent to the Cove but was too late to save the naked man on board, Jem Roscoe.

Detective Inspector Matthew Venn with his team Jen Rafferty and Ross May arrive at this coastal town to investigate Jem's death. As an evitable storm approaches Greystone and a second body is found, Venn must crack the case before the killer strikes again.

Wow, what can I say, this novel is full of intrigue and the writing is superb. When you add stormy weather to a quiet coastal town and isolate it from the outside with a killer in the midst you have a winning recipe. I can't put this one down!

I don't normally pick up slow-burn mysteries/procedural but I think Two Rivers is a stunning series that I would add to my list. DI Venn's back story is interesting too as he returns to Greystone in North Devon and recalls old memories. I had no problem listening to The Raging Storm and it's fine as a standalone but there are many characters and a challenge to keep track of when listening on audio. I would love to visit the first two novels with audio and print copies as a companion.

I had my eyes on Cleeves' novels because of the TV series Vera and Shetland but never had a chance to check it out so my sincere thanks to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this audio copy for her new series. Jack Holden was excellent with the narration and made it very enjoyable to listen to.

The Raging Storm is the third procedural mystery featuring Detective Matthew Venn and his colleagues by Ann Cleeves. Released 5th Sept 2023 from Macmillan on their Minotaur imprint, it's 400 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats.

This is another beautifully written mystery set in North Devon and featuring Detective Matthew Venn, a cerebral and solemnly intelligent investigator and his ensemble team. The pacing of the investigation is unhurried and the characters built up so well and in such detail that they seem to live and breathe. The author always does a stunning job with the setting and this is no exception, a true three dimensional engrossing read. The wildness and remoteness of the coastal area, the palpable danger of a huge coastal storm, and the bravery and dedication of the folks involved in search and rescue are all beautifully and believably rendered by the author.

Although it's the third book in the series, it works well enough as a standalone. This book is also quite intricately plotted, but there aren't any major spoilers if they're read out of order. The denouement and resolution were exciting and satisfying.

The author does a good job of showing the frustrations and difficulties of dealing with the challenges of a very ill child and the lengths to which families must accommodate. The language is rough in places (R-rated), and there are some blood/gore descriptions on page, but nothing egregious.

The audiobook is unabridged, has a run time of slightly over 10 hours, and is most expertly narrated by series narrator Jack Holden. He has a pleasantly nuanced voice and manages numerous characters with widely divergent accents (and ages, and both sexes) impressively well. One of the main characters is from Liverpool, the secondary characters are varied and have accents from Scotland to the Southwest and points in between, and he manages all of them with expertise and precision. Sound quality and production values are high throughout the recording.

Five stars for the book itself, five for the audiobook. This is a superlative series. It would make a great choice for a mystery book club read, or buddy/binge read.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

OHHH how I love this series!! I remember being so sad when Shetland ended and I know I only have one more of Vera [so far], so this series has been a balm in the midst of series endings and bonus, it is SUCH A GREAT SERIES. I really like Matthew as a MC and the supporting "cast" is just fantastic [though I am still not a fan of Ross], and the way they all have to work in this one was some really great writing. Unfortunately, I knew part of the mystery early on [though the rest was a surprise] so it wasn't a five star read for me [but oh so close - enough that after a couple days of sitting with this, I may change my mind, you just never know]; I DID love how the former religion of Matthew plays deeply into this one and I hope we learn more about this cultish "church" in future books as I can see it being a fascinating subject to keep butting against.

Ann Cleeves is one of the best writers out there and this book is just more proof of that. I hope that tons of people find this series and dive deeply in - I don't think they will be sorry; I certainly am not.

I was able to get the audiobook ARC of this book and I JUST LOVE THIS NARRATOR!! He is so good reading this series and I know that I would listen to him narrate just about anything. He adds so much to the story with his delivery and I am so glad that I was able to listen to this book - I highly recommend Jack as a narrator!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Ann Cleeves, Jack Holden - Narrator, St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for providing both the eBook ARC and the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves features her newest character: Matthew Venn, a policeman, the head of his unit and the head of this murder investigation. Matthew is an interesting and complex character, easily envisioned given the gift telling of his story by the author. He had lived a troubled childhood, not of abuse, but of a lack of love. When he grew up, left the oppressive church his parents belonged to, acknowledged he was gay, and found Jonathon, things were changing for him. Now this murder took him back into the center of the Brethren, many of whom were good people; he just had a prejudice. The dead man had been a local, once, and had left and become famous by televising and writing about his travels on his sailboat. He had been well-known but now was past his prime. His body was found, naked, curled up in the bottom of a small dinghy in Skully Bay. There were lots of legends surrounding Skully Bay and plenty of the older emergency crew didn’t want to go there. The police were called and Matthew and his team arrived.

Greystone was a small town, close-knit. Matthew remembered it well from his childhood when his family attended worship here. He had some fond memories. But he couldn’t figure out why this man, newly arrived in his childhood home town, had been murdered. He reportedly spent most evenings in the Maiden, a local pub and was friendly enough. He said he was waiting for someone. That was all they had to go on. That and interviews with people who knew him. It was a tough mystery and it took all of the team’s expertise to solve the crime. Ann Cleeves is a wonderful author, always giving the reader a complex character and an interesting crime. Such was the case here, when they finally resolved the murder.

The book was read by Jack Holden who personified Matthew Venn, with his innate shyness and insecurities. Holden did a credible job with the other characters and the narration as well. I always have trouble at the beginning of a new audio book with the narrator, but Holden became familiar very quickly. Although I enjoyed the book, I enjoyed the audio book more. That is not always the case.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of The Raging Storm by St. Martin’s Press and a free e-AUDIO by MacMillan Audio. All thoughts and opinions are freely given. #Netgalley #StMartinsPress #MacMillanAudio #JackHolden #AnnCleeves #TheRagingStorm

A curving mystery in a small town.

I realize this is book 3 so I can’t speak to the other books, but it sounds like the MC was *new* to this series? I found it to be interesting but perhaps not my favorite small town mystery.

I was confused by the detectives relationship to his husband - like there was history we didn’t know (was it in the other books?) but he seemed so unsure of himself in their relationship which confused me.

I also, honestly, got confused with the plot it self and who everyone was. Perhaps a fault of listening to it via audio?

All in all, not a bad story just perhaps not the one for me.

My rating: 3*
—-
Thanks to NetGalley for the ALC. All opinions are my own.

The raging storm had a lot of complex characters and it made it hard to keep up with the story. I did like the plot and it was very interesting but there was just too many different characters and I was confused at time and couldn't keep up. This may just be me and my taste in audiobooks as well.

The Raging Storm is a character driven crime novel. Both the suspects and the investigative team are fully developed characters. There is a nice balance of mystery versus the personal issues of the characters. Ann Cleeves does a wonderful job of setting the scenes, especially the horrible storm at the beginning of the book. This is not a fast paced story, there were times I felt that the novel slowed too much.

The plot is full of secrets and interesting relationships. The more the team investigates, the more confused things become. Superstition and rumors tend to cloud the investigation. Class, money, and privilege are only part of this complex story. Some of the characters spent time in this community as children and had bad experiences. There is also a religious group in this community that everyone seems involved with even when they are not considered official members.

The Raging Storm is the third in the Matt Venn series. I listened to the audiobook and I enjoyed Jack Holden’s narration.