The past catches up with several members of a community and things do not end well. Who's the mastermind behind all the deaths and what is the motive?

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I have not read the first two Matthew Venn novels, so please bear this in mind when reading my review.

The mystery was solid. I appreciated the breadth of the characters solving the crime and really did not anticipate the final culprit.

However, perhaps because I had no knowledge of the previous Matthew Venn, some of the characterization seemed stilted and out of place, creating some one note characters. What is behind Matthew’s obsession with the Brethren? I don’t think it had solely to do with this mystery given the continual references without connection to the solution. Ross and Jen have promise but their personal struggles lacked depth.

I would not hesitate to read another Ann Cleves novel, but would make sure I read through a series chronologically if I did so.

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio/Minotaur Books via NetGalley for this audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVE ANN CLEEVES!!!! Out of all of Ann Cleeves characters Matthew Venn has quickly become my favorite. I honestly wasn’t sure how I would feel about this book with it centering around sailing/yachting but surprisingly I found it really interesting learning about something I had no clue about. I really like Jen’s character trying to navigate being a single working mom. Ross I find really annoying and petty. I could not stop listening I flew thru this book just like every other Ann Cleeves book. I was so shocked at the ending I literally gasped out loud. I can’t wait to read more Matthew Venn or Ann Cleeves in general. Please give us more!!!!

A well-known son of the community returns with a secret. Before he can divulge it, he's found dead and adrift. Matthew Venn and his team must work to solve the crime. The audiobook is narrated to perfection by Jack Foster. Fans of intricately plotted mysteries set in tight-knit communities will enjoy it.

Jem Roscoe is a celebrity of sorts, so when he comes to this small town, the town he grew up in, named Greystone and is eventually found dead, it is a monumental happening. Scully Cove, the place where Jem was found, has a reputation as well, so when Jen's body is found there in a dinghy it sets the town ablaze with rumor and innuendo.

Detective Inspector Matthew Venn, is on the case, a returnee to the town that holds superstitions and secrets. A second body is found and Venn realizes that in this mysterious town, no one is safe.

Teaming up with his partner they try to solve the case while handling a crew of mysterious people including a religious group called The Brethren. With the atmosphere of the sea, it all blends into a very mysterious and somewhat eerie background.

Ann Cleeves gives much definition to her characters, the setting, and of course inspires us with great details, but you have to pay attention, careful to witness the clues she lets trickle out.

I enjoyed this atmospheric, murder mystery, and wish to thank Ann Cleeves, Macmillan Audio, narration by Jack Holden, and NetGalley for the ability to listen to this tale due out this September.

I enjoyed "The Raging Storm," by Ann Cleeves--the third in her "Two Rivers" series but the first that I have read. DI Matthew Venn finds himself drawn back to Devon and the religious community he grew up in when the stabbed-to-death body of a famous sailor and adventurer, Jem Rosco, turns up in a dinghy anchored off the town of Greystone. As a storm howls around them, Matthew and his team--Jen Rafferty and Ross May--try to piece together Rosco's past and his movements in Greystone, an insular village whose guarded residents are not keen to be embroiled in an investigation. When another body is discovered, however, Venn and his team must race against the clock to solve the crimes before the murderer strikes again.

Matthew Venn is not a character that I immediately warmed to, but he certainly intrigued me, and although "The Raging Storm" works perfectly well as a stand alone title, it did make me want to go back and get to know Matthew Venn and his team better through the earlier books. As she did with both her Shetland and Vera Stanhope series, Cleeves makes the rugged Devon seaside setting of "The Raging Storm" come alive not only with skillful descriptions of the natural surroundings and the tides, but also with thumbnail portraits of the townsfolk and of the village pub and houses--she has a real eye for a telling detail. I listened to the audiobook of this title and thought narrator Jack Holden did an excellent job of furthering this sense of place with the local accents and dialects he seamlessly used for various characters. I'm sure I'll be on board for the next Matthew Venn book.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Macmillan Audio for providing me with an ARC of this audiobook in return for my honest review.

Audio
I have listened to at least one other in this series, which I liked more than this one. This was a good mystery, though I found it a bit slow paced. The characters are interesting and well-developed. The story is more character driven and intellectual. I enjoyed the dark, moody atmosphere. The author very effectively created ambiance. I would read/listen to another in the series.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Well written book. When I started this book I did not know it was the 3rd book in a series, that being said I have not read any books by this Author. Although the book was good, I believe I should of read the first 2 books first which is what I'm planning on doing then reading this book again.

For fan of Ann Cleeves' pervious series, 'Shetland' and 'Vera', this, Matthew Venn detective novel is an amazing successor. It is atmospheric exploration of south west England. As a detective, Venn is a by the book guy, but his buttoned up manner belighs the fact that, he is also a happily married gay man, who is a former member of a Christian fundamentalists group. Venn's insecurities make him an interesting and all too human hero of this series.

This book was riveting! I’m so glad I was able to read it. I’ve never read any of Ann Cleeves’ books. I’ve watched the Vera series and loved it so I knew that The Raging Storm was going to be good.

The book starts out at a slow but steady pace, building up the characters and the scene so that I felt immersed in the story. I could “ see” it all happening. I liked Detective Mathew Venn right away. He is serious and stays calm under pressure but also has a gentle way about him while remaining in control. When he is called to investigate the death of a seasoned sailor, who happens to be a celebrity, he gets thrown into a tight- knit community where everyone knows everyone else’s business and news spreads like a wild fire. He’s not alone though, he has Jenn Rafferty and Sargeant Ross May to assist him.

As the story went on there was shock after shock! Just when I thought that Venn was close to cracking the case something unexpected would happen to take the investigation on another course. At the end I was floored. I literally gasped out loud! It was a shocking reveal!

How have I missed out on all Ann Cleeves novels!! In a way it’s nice because I have so many stories waiting for me now. First I need to read two previous books that started The Detective Venn series.

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the chance to review this ARC.

#TheRagingStorm #AnnCleeves #MinotaurBooks #MacmillanAudio #JackHolden #NetGalley

This atmospheric novel is the third in the Matthew Venn series. Ann Cleeves does a splendid job evoking the wild, wind-swept coast and the dark, brooding intentions that lead to murder.

Jem Rosco, an adventurer and local legend, arrives unexpectedly at the Maiden's Prayer in Greystone, Devon, one stormy night and is welcomed by the patrons there. He declares he's there to meet someone and retreats to the place he has rented for his stay.

Shortly thereafter, he disappears and is later discovered dead, floating in a boat off Scully Cove.
For Detective Venn, Scully Cove holds some painful memories and mixed emotions. As he investigates the murder, the reader is drawn into the betrayals, jealousies and emotions simmering just below the small-town facade.

Cleeves, as always, does a thorough job of untangling the twisted skeins, revealing buried secrets and the hidden motives behind this murder and the one that follows it until the entire truth is revealed.

Jack Holden does a great job of narrating the story with genuine feeling making this advance listening copy entertaining and intriguing.

3.5 stars

In this addition to the "The Two Rivers' series, Detective Inspector Matthew Venn investigates the murder of an adventurer. Venn is a cerebral and introspective detective who thinks hard about every aspect of his work. This is the third book in the series, but it can be read as a standalone.

*****

Jeremy (Jem) Rosco grew up in the North Devon town of Greystone, where - as a youth - he loved to sail. No one in Greystone anticipated Jem would become the youngest person to sail around the world single-handed, and go on to visit both Poles and the Amazon. Over the years, Jem became a world famous adventurer, frequently seen on television.

After being away from Greystone for many years - during which he became wealthy and renowned - Rosco strolls into Greystone's Maiden's Prayer pub one rainy night, toting nothing but an oilskin bag. Rosco has two pints of rough cider, says he's staying in town to await a visitor, and retreats to the little cottage he's rented.

For several weeks after that Jem drops into the Maiden's Prayer pub every evening, has a couple of pints, chats with the locals, and drifts back out. Then one day, Jem doesn't show up for his two pints.

Later, during a tempestuous storm, an alarm goes out for the Greystone lifeboat, helmed by Mary Ford. Mary loves her position as lifeboat captain, but can only be on call when her father is visiting. Mary's school-age son Arthur has a serious degenerative illness called Jasper Lineham Disease, and the boy needs constant monitoring.

Mary and her lifeboat crew are launched into the water, and find Rosco's naked body in a dinghy anchored in Scully Cove - a waterway with spiritual significance to the citizens of Greystone. Jem has been brutally stabbed, and Detective Inspector Matthew Venn and his team, Detective Sergeant Jen Rafferty and Detective Constable Ross May, come to Greystone to investigate.

Greystone has particular significance to Venn, because it's one of the hubs of a strict religious sect called the Barum Brethren. Venn grew up as a member of the Brethren, but rejected the order's beliefs as a teenager. Still, Venn feels he has an understanding of the Brethren that might help with the police inquiries.

Matthew also gets incidental assistance from his husband Jonathan, whose schoolteacher friend Guy taught Jem Rosco many years ago. In fact Guy helped young Jem join the Greystone sailing club, which led to Rosco's fame and fortune, and maybe to his death.

The detective team proceeds to interview Greystone residents, collect evidence, and look into Rosco's life elsewhere. The squad learns that Rosco had a number of women in his orbit, including a high school girlfriend, an ex-wife, a housecleaner, and a current lady friend. The investigators also discover that Jem was a bit wily and manipulative, and that some people envied his fame and success.

Things get murkier when another body is discovered in Scully Cove, though it's not immediately clear whether this was an accident, suicide, or murder. In any case, Venn realizes something is very wrong in town, and after a violent incident, Matthew figures out exactly what it is, and why Rosco was killed.

Meanwhile, Jen Rafferty and Ross May must meld their police careers with their private lives: Jen is a single mom to two teenagers, and Ross and his wife Mel are ambitious and upwardly mobile. In this regard, Ross sees his colleague Jen as a professional rival, and he's constantly trying to 'best' her as a detective. (This gets quite annoying. 😏)

The book is a good police procedural with a roster of engaging characters. As always, it's interesting to peek into the lives of the Barum Brethren, who must meld their traditional values with their lives in the modern world.

I enjoyed the story and look forward to the future investigations of Venn and his colleagues.

The audiobook is narrated by Jack Holden, who does an excellent job.

Thanks to Netgalley, Ann Cleeves, and Minotaur Books and Macmillan audio for a copy of the book.

I requested this book to try out the NetGalley audio function. It worked quite well. Unfortunately, the storyline and characters were dull and uninteresting which made for a difficult listening experience. No fault of the narrator, he just didn’t have good material to work with. I will try other audio books in the future.

I received a free audio copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog.

Really great as usual! I really appreciate the depth of characters and the wonderful sense of place. Jack Holden was a wonderful narrator for this book. Thank you Ann Cleeves. I was grateful for the author's note at the end of the audiobook. I loved hearing her voice and was glad to hear what she had to say. I was happy it was at the end and not an introduction.

I enjoy Ann Cleeves, but simply could not finish this one. It started out great, but ultimately, was not my thing.

Twisty! This one has a couple turns that you probably won’t see coming. It starts a little slow but it builds up well and the ending gets more complicated. It was good but I feel like maybe a little bit too complicated at parts.

🌀Synopsis
A body washes up and it happens to be someone famous. It’s not long before the news starts to get out. This famous guy isn’t living a “normal” life either. His story starts to get interesting just as they start to dive in. From an apartment that he barely stayed at to a place where he forwarded mail. There are a lot of directions to go.
When another body shows up, things get even more interesting. The two definitely have to do with each other and now there are even more pieces to fit together.

The Raging Storm is the third installment in Ann Cleeves' Two Rivers series. Since I have not read the first two, I do wish I had realized this before requesting this one. I'm not sure how much backstory I missed that might have influenced my reaction to this mystery.

The audiobook narrator, Jack Holden, was excellent, and I enjoyed listening to him read this complex story. Due to the large number of characters, several with similar-sounding names (Jen, Venn, Jem) and many referred to at times by first names and at other times by last names, I do suspect the story would have been easier to follow in print format. The audiobook required close listening to be clear about relationships among the various characters and whose actions impacted the events.

Matthew Venn is a detective, leading the investigation into a murder in the seaside village of Greystone, where he had lived at one time. There were frequent references to his departure from the village, populated primarily by a religious community, when he had "lost his faith" but there was no elaboration on these references, which were apparently included to provide a sense of distance and suspicion between him and the members of the community. In the midst of the investigation, a second body is found, and then a woman disappears, and the case becomes significantly more complicated. With red herrings planted abundantly by unreliable narrators, will investigators solve this case before another murder occurs?

Thank you to the publisher (MacMillan Audio) and NetGalley for providing and audio ARC in exchange for an objective review.

Thank you to @MacMillanAudio and #NetGalley for the audio ARC of #TheRisingStorm. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

As a fan of Ann Cleeves Shetland series, I was excited when she released the Two Rivers series. Cleeves main characters are similar in that they are police detectives from small communities with interesting backstories. While the similarities make the books/series feel comfortable and familiar, there are enough difference to keep you coming back again and again.

This book finds Venn and his team investigating the death/murder of Jem Roscoe. A local boy turned "celebrity" explorer, Roscoe is in Greystone to meet a "mystery guest". So when his body is found in a dinghy anchored in the bay following a rough storm, there's lots of questions and even more suspects.

In general, this series is quieter than the Shetland or Stanhope books, but Cleeves writing and character development remains strong. She writes characters you want to know and keep visiting.

A blustery seaside town, a dead celebrity, and a close community with secrets. Matthew Venn and his team are called in to solve the mystery of Jem Rosco’s murder. He became famous for sailing around the world and being an adventurer on TV. When he winds up dead it’s up to the detectives to investigate his past, how he fit into the small town of Greystone, and figure out who would’ve wanted to kill him.

The mystery kept me engaged the entire time, I never felt like I had predicted the reveals before they happened. The setting of this cold, rainy town added a lot to the atmosphere and overall feel of the story. I also liked how Venn had a background with the town, having been brought there by his family when he was a child. His past with the closed off religious group gave him interesting insight into the community, and it added to his feeling of being an outsider for no longer being a believer.

Apart from the mystery plot I enjoyed getting to see the glimpses of the personal lives of Matthew, Jen, and Ross. Their relationships and experiences add to how they work the case and try to solve the mystery. Even though I find Ross to be an annoying character I appreciate that he brings a different perspective to the story.

I think if you enjoy mystery novels then you’d be able to jump into the series at any point. While you’d miss out on some of the characterization from the previous entries, the mystery plots are contained to a single book. And I think Ann Cleeves does a good job at reintroducing the characters and giving background info. If Cleeves keeps writing books in this series then I’ll definitely keep reading them.

If you are looking for an investigative/detective novel this is the one for you. It’s the 3rd book in the inspector Matthew Venn series. A man named Jem Rosco who is also a sailer goes missing one night during a storm and is found dead. Was it on account of the weather or did someone help him to his death?

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio for an ARC of this audiobook. The narrator’s voice was very soothing. So soothing in fact I found myself dozing off and had to re-listen to the parts I missed. I had a hard time getting into this book. I unfortunately had to give up about half way through. I feel like this book just wasn’t for me.
I’m sorry.