Evie lives with Cyrus, a forensic psychologist. She has no memories of her past, but he believes that if he can just unlock the correct memory, he can help her to lead a fulfilled life. Then, the bodies of 17 migrants are washed up on the beach, all male. The bodies of 2 women are unaccounted for. This begins to trigger flashes of the past and together, Cyrus and Evie begin to investigate, taking Evie to places she would prefer not to be, but she can’t stop. A dark story of migrants and modern slavery, very relevant to today. I haven’t read any of the Cyrus Haven books previously- though I will be - and it certainly didn’t spoil my enjoyment of this pacy, action-packed book.

Great book, fast paced and action packed. We found out a lot of Evie’s back story in this one and wow the ending was so hopeful!

Covers themes of human trafficking, child abuse and rape.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Storm Child is the fourth book in the Cyrus Haven series by Michael Robotham, but could easily be ready as a standalone.

Evie Cormac has had a tough upbringing, but doesn't much talk about her past, much to the disappointment of Cyrus Haven, friend and forensic psychologist.

He knows he shouldn't push it too far, but the psychologist in him can't help but want to understand what happened to Evie so that he can help her move on.

They are at the seaside one summer's afternoon when something goes dreadfully wrong. A migrant boat tragedy..

The next thing Evie knows, Cyrus is carrying the body of a small child up from the water, and she can no longer speak.

Evie is hospitalised whilst they try to understand her mental state. She stumbles across the boy who was rescued and begins to speak with him in her native language. Cyrus realises that her own entry in to the UK just as traumatic as his, if not more so.

It's not until she translates the boys words into English that they realise there may be more to this than a simple crossing gone wrong. Someone is making money from those desperate to flee their own country for a better life in the UK, without a second thought to their wellbeing once they have their money.

And that's only the beginning ...

In some ways quite a difficult story to read, emotional and harrowing in parts but it’s necessary to portray the gravity held within the tale of Evie’s experiences as a child. The relationship between Evie and Cyrus is compelling reading and it is written with in such a way that you can picture everything. If you’re a fan of Cyrus and Evie this is a huge must read. Exceptional.
ARC copy

Trigger warnings: human trafficking, sexual abuse, child abuse

The epic fourth instalment of Evie & Cyrus.
This book is everything I needed it to be. Evie finally let herself be open to sharing what happened to her family, & how she ended up in that cupboard. Although it was because she was triggered after witnessing an ocean full of migrant bodies whose boat had been deliberately rammed.

This book gave me so much closure, & for the first time, I felt like Evie finally matured as a character & started to take responsibility. Cyrus as always, was the knight in shining armor. I love how he always supports Evie, no matter what.
I would love a fifth installment - maybe set 5 or 10 years in the future, just as a check in on Evie too see how well she’s doing.

So grateful for netgalley, Hachette Australia & New Zealand, & of course Michael Robotham for allowing me to read an early copy of Storm Child.
I won’t lie - I squealed like a kid in a candy storm when I seen the approval email.

Yay, Cyrus and Evie are back in a new book and this one is even better than the previous three. Storm Child follows on several months after Lying Beside You ends and fans of this brilliant series will be delighted to know that this book concentrates much more on Evie’s traumatic background and childhood.

With an unfortunately topical subject, Storm Child starts with Cyrus and Evie at the beach, when the body of a young child appears in the sea followed by another 16 bodies of men, women and children. They appear to be from an illegal boat trafficking migrants which has overturned. There is only one survivor, a young teenage boy and it’s believed two women are also missing. When the sole survivor tells the police the boat was deliberately sunk, Cyrus is assigned to help in this investigation.

Meanwhile something about this tragedy has brought back traumatic memories for Evie and she slowly begins to remember more about her past and what really happened to her family.

Storm Child provides the reader with so much more about the main characters past and their individual backstories. The bond between these two damaged individuals is so special and watching them both navigate new friendships and relationships is so lovely and heart warming. It’s a really fast paced book which looks closely at the immigration issues from both sides leaving the reader with lots of emotional and thought-provoking moments.

I’m not going to say anymore, because you need to read this series for yourself. This is definitely one of my favourite series and I would 100% recommend reading the books in order to truly appreciate the wonderful storytelling of Cyrus and Evie.

This is the latest stunning addition to Michael Robotham's Nottingham forensic psychologist Cyrus Haven series, a tattooed man with his own traumatic backstory who takes into his home the damaged, mercurial, self destructive, infuriating, nihilistic, Eve Cormac, now 22 years old, with a past we know little about, other than she is Albanian and her actual name is Adina Osmani. We finally learn of her horrifying and nightmare buried memories, her family and what happened to them, the journey to Spain, and how she finally ended up in Britain. Cyrus has organised a seaside and sun trip to the coast, only to be there when dead migrants float to the coast from a boat, having him rushing into the sea to help pick up the bodies with others.

The sight of the dead bodies have Eve turn catatonic and having to be hospitalised, which is where she meets the one survivor, a 14 year old Albanian boy, Arben, who tells a story of their boat being deliberately rammed by a trawler at sea. The lawyer, Florence Gatsi, who goes on to represent Arben, works for Migrant Rescue, a organisation set up to help refugees. She ends up working with Cyrus who finds himself in the investigation headed by DI Carlson. However, the recognition of a man Eve cannot remember or place has her and Cyrus heading to Scotland and St Claire in search of answers that result in the resurfacing of a haunting and harrowing past that brings with it grave dangers in the present.

Robotham is a stellar storyteller, he creates and develops complex characters that I could not help but care deeply for, whilst zeroing in one of our leading contemporary issues, the demonising of a refugee crisis, with a mendacious and deplorable government devising their desperate populist Rwanda scheme. It is hard to comprehend how just one terror after another keeps hitting the young Eve, right up to point she is finally discovered and rescued. The intensely bleak and dark narrative does finally conclude with some shards of light, for which I was so grateful for after so much heartbreak. Do not miss out on this brilliant series with this wonderful addition, I recommend it highly to all readers.. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

Storm Child is the fourth book in the Cyrus Haven series by award-winning Australian author, Michael Robotham. A relaxing Sunday at the seaside in late August takes an awful turn when the bodies of refugees begin washing up. The sight of Cyrus Haven carrying a dead child from the water dredges up memories that Evie Cormac has been avoiding, sending her into a catatonic state that requires hospitalisation

Of the twenty souls aboard the little boat, seventeen are dead, two young women are missing, and the only known survivor is a fourteen-year-old Albanian boy. While Cyrus is busy chatting to an angry black lawyer in motorcycle leathers, a recovered Evie happens upon the teen in his hospital room and is able to communicate in her native language. Both he and the lawyer claim this isn’t a tragic sinking of an inadequate vessel, but a deliberate act by men on a fishing trawler who rammed the boat multiple times. And one of the missing women is the teen’s older sister.

The whole situation triggers Evie’s recall of her own experience entering the UK, but Cyrus is wary of pushing it too far. When they are apprehended, Evie’s vague recognition of one of the men on the offending fishing trawler sends Cyrus to Scotland to learn more about this man. And naturally Evie refuses to be left behind. That turns out to be no picnic: they encounter some very nasty types intent on serious harm; there are guns and someone almost drowns.

Exploring the refugee situation, philanthropy, and modern slavery, this instalment is topical and thought-provoking. Robotham delivers a tightly plotted story sprinkled with enough misdirection to keep the reader guessing and the pages turning right up to the heart-thumping climax. There’s plenty of dark humour and the banter is often entertaining, but there are also characters with a jaw-dropping disregard for human life.

Once again, the narrative alternates between Evie and Cyrus: the situation brings back many of Evie’s memories that provide readers with her backstory, while Cyrus has several occasions recalling the wise words of his teacher, Joseph O’Loughlin. With most questions answered by the final pages, and one or two surprises, it feels like their story might be complete, but more of Cyrus and Evie will always be welcome. Unputdownable.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Little, Brown Group UK

Cyrus Haven & Evie Cormac are back. I've been following their series from the first book, and I can say they are my favourites.
The story revolves around a boat that carries a group of immigrants that sinks and kills all the passengers except one boy. Triggered by all the bodies in the water, Evie starts to remember her past trauma.
In this book, we will know more about Evie's past - her family, where she came from, and how she came to be in the UK.
I love those interesting twists, especially the ones towards the end of the story. However, the dynamic relationship between Cyrus and Evie in this series is not as alive as the previous ones.
The story also brought up a sensitive topic about boat people and asylum seekers.

4.5⭐️

No 4 Cyrus Haven series.

I’m a big fan of this series with the relationship between Evie and Cyrus so I was excited to read this one asap.

This one looks at the pertinent issue of people trafficking,a disaster with a small boat brings forth hidden memories for Evie. In this book we get much of Evie’s previously hidden back story which fit in excellently.

There is some character development for both Cyrus and Evie, and their relationship, but think they came across better in previous books as likeable characters.

I loved it, great story telling as always, it’s not one of my very favourites in the series.
I’m looking forward to the next instalment.

Storm Child is the fourth book in Michael’s highly acclaimed series about forensic psychologist Cyrus Haven and the troubled young adult, Evie Cormac.

The book gets off to a grim start with seventeen bodies from a refugee boat being washed up on a British beach. There is only one immediate survivor, a young boy, while two women are missing. Cyrus and Evie are on hand to witness the terrible sight. Cyrus rushes to help, but the sight is too much for Evie, and the memories that it brings up pushes her into a catatonic state.

Whatever happened all those years ago to Evie lies at the core of this new tragedy. Because these deaths are no accident. The same dark forces are reaching out again, dragging her back into the storm. Evie must now call upon Cyrus’s unique skills, and her own, in their search for the missing pieces of this complex and haunting puzzle. As Cyrus tries to track down those that are responsible, and find the survivors, the threat to him and Evie grows greater.

Storm Child brings to a head a lot of the themes and plots from the earlier books about what really happened to Evie as a child. There are frequent flashbacks to Evie’s childhood in Albania, and for the first time we get a clear view of the events that led up to the trauma that impacted so greatly on her childhood.

The background of people smuggling and the treatment of refugees gives the book a a very sombre feel, and Evie’s increasing distress as she remembers more and more, also adds to the darkness of the book. Fortunately this is somewhat balanced by the injection of some lighter moments in Cyrus’ developing relationship with a woman vital to the case, and in the interactions between him and Evie.

As usual, Robotham’s fine writing and his sharp-eyed observations of modern society give good depth to the book, and his depiction of a small town in Scotland vital to the story is very powerful. The themes around racism, greed and refugees are well handled, and resonate just as much in Australia as they do in the United Kingdom.

The pacing is not as quick as in the earlier books, and Evie’s recollections, while poignant, do impinge on the flow of the main plot. The tension does increase dramatically in the final quarter, however, and the ending is exciting and unexpected.

Overall, Storm Child is a powerful story that is a must read for fans of the earlier books.

See full review and more at: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/j...

Storm Child is the fourth book in this terrific series and although it could be read as a stand-alone it would be advisable (and enjoyable) to catch up with the back stories of these two characters in books 1-3 as this explains a lot about their personalities. This is possibly not the best book in the series but is still head & shoulders above many other crime books on the market.
Themes of people-trafficking and exploitation propel the plot along at a cracking pace full of tense and suspenseful twists. Cyrus and Evie's voices alternate throughout the book and the interaction of their very different personalities is particularly entertaining. As Evie's past is revealed it becomes increasingly clear why her life is in danger.
Thanks to the Little, Brown Group and NetGalley for an advance copy to review.

This series just keeps getting better and better. Robotham shows here why he is a master of his craft. I just adore both Cyrus and Evie and their relationship and growth is at the heart of this incredible series. This installment delivers up an emotionally-wretching, trauma-filled and thrilling mystery story which will grip you from the first page. There were some incredibly captivating reveals that left me thinking long after I finished the book. I shed a few tears along the ride. Highly recommend this series.

Amazon review to follow after release date.

Cyrus Haven and his housemate, Evie Cormac, are enjoying a day at the beach when they witness a distressing sight. The bodies of migrants are washed ashore, and the sole survivor tells of their boat being deliberately rammed by another. Evie is deeply affected by the sight and becomes catatonic due to reminders of her own past. As Cyrus helps the police investigation, the pair uncover more about Evie’s life.

Storm Child from Michael Robotham is the fourth book in the gripping Cyrus Haven series. The series focuses on the relationship between Cyrus, a forensic psychologist, and Evie Cormac, a young woman he has worked with to help her overcome the trauma of abuse. In the previous books, we discovered that as a child Evie was trafficked to the UK, a journey on which her mother and older sister died. Once in the UK Evie was tortured and sexually abused. When she was eventually rescued Evie couldn’t settle in foster care, her rebellious nature resulted in her being placed in a secure facility where she met Cyrus. As a psychologist, Cyrus was asked to try and help Evie. A strong bond was formed between the pair, with Cyrus becoming Evie’s guardian, giving her the opportunity to leave the secure facility and begin to heal. Cyrus has his own traumatic past and it is this past that has driven him to help others overcome their trauma.

Evie is still living with her past trauma, there are parts of her experience she is still not prepared to talk about, even to Cyrus. The sight of the bodies on the beach has a devastating effect on her, bringing on a catatonic state. As she slowly recovers, she forms a bond with the only survivor of the migrant crossing, Arben, a teenage boy, who is desperate to know if his sister survived. With help from Evie and Cyrus the police discover that the boat the migrants were in was deliberately rammed by a trawler after it refused to turn back towards France. Was this a far-right group taking matters into their own hands, or something far more sinister? They learn of the legend of The Ferryman, the person who controls all Channel crossings. For years it has been assumed he was just a bogeyman, used to frighten off people considering the crossing, but now it looks as if he may be real.

As the investigation digs deeper, Evie’s memories begin to resurface, memories she has kept buried because they are so painful. The threat of these memories being disclosed means that both Cyrus and Evie’s lives are in jeopardy.

A bittersweet conclusion offers Evie, and the reader, some answers to her past. Those answers are another step along the way to giving Evie the normal life she so desperately craves but feels she doesn’t deserve.

This year marks 20 years of my all-time favourite author, Michael Robotham, and his latest psychological thriller, The Storm Child, shows exactly why Stephen King calls him "an absolute master." The newest instalment in the Evie Cormac and Cyrus Haven series is a thrilling conclusion, finally uncovering the secrets of Evie’s dark past, her family, and how she ended up in England.

The story begins with Cyrus and Evie on a beachside holiday, which takes a dark turn when bodies of asylum seekers start washing up on the shore after their boat overturns. This tragedy triggers Evie’s traumatic memories, and as Cyrus dives into the investigation, he discovers Evie’s unsettling connections to the people smugglers involved.

Michael Robotham’s brilliance lies in his nuanced, complex characters. Now in the fourth book of the series, Evie and Cyrus are so vividly real, they leap off the page. The plot is taut and smart, weaving through dark themes as it unravels Evie’s disturbing past. I was gripped from start to finish, unable to put the book down.

For thriller enthusiasts who haven’t yet delved into this author’s books, you need to. All is his books are a masterclass in suspense and character development including this new one. I eagerly anticipate more adventures with Cyrus and Evie, but even if their journey concludes here, I can't wait to see what Michael Robotham has in store for readers in the next 20 years.

A huge thank you to @netgalley and @littlebrowngroup for an ARC of Storm Child for honest review.

I really enjoyed this book with Cyrus Haven and Evie Cormac. Cyrus is a psychologist, teacher and guardian of Evie living in the same house.

Evie’s mystery childhood had followed her into her adulthood and she starts to recognise people from her past. Cyrus tries desperately hard to help and support her

Finally, Evie finds her past, with Cyrus’s help, and Police find the human traffickers associated. A fantastic read. Highly recommended

Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown Book Group

I have loved this series but I think this is the weakest book so far. Evie and Cyrus are working to uncover an organisation involved in human trafficking of refugees seeking asylum that they think were involved in Evie's forgotten past.

I think that a plot surrounding the danger that asylum seekers face should have carried more heart and emotion than I felt whilst reading it. I understood the decision to link Evie's backstory to this plot and whilst my favourite parts of the book were when Evie was remembering more of her childhood in Albania, I felt like the inclusion was a bit forced. I also found that the overall "mystery" plot line wasn't much of a mystery - instead of feeling gripped throughout as I have found Robotham's previous books, I found that the story was falling a bit flat for me.

The thing I love most about this series are the characters Evie and Cyrus and their relationship, however, this also fell flat for me in this book. Even though it seems they spend the most time together in the whole series, I felt like I was being told a lot of the time how each of them was feeling rather than being shown.

I'm also getting a bit tired of every book there being a new female character introduced to be Cyrus' love interest - it's starting to feel a bit predictable and I would much rather if one could stick around longer than one book (although I do like Florence in this book, no hate to her!).

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy!

Storm Child by Michael Rowbotham is the fourth in the Cyrus Haven series and it is a stunning read, having read the other three books in this series, I was impressed with the way all of Evie’s earlier questions and recollections are dealt with in this book.
The storyline was haunting, with the tale of the migrants boat being rammed and people dying needlessly. It is all too familiar a picture in the summer months in the UK, when migrants end up washed up on beaches having drowned on their way here for a better life.
An impressive read of a fascinating series of damaged people.
Highly recommended

This is my first time of hearing of this author, and after reading this I quickly went over to the Kindle store to purchase the first book in this series.

This was written really well, with good pace and a solid plot.

Definitely look forward to reading more from Michael Robotham

This is the fourth in a series featuring psychologist Cyrus Haven and his former foster child, now friend and housemate, Evie. In this book we find out more about her traumatic past after she witnesses the bodies of migrant refugees being washed up on a beach after their small boat is sunk by a fishing trawler. When it becomes evident that this was no accident, Cyrus steps in to help with the police investigation, and it soon becomes clear that there is a connection to Evie who was herself an Albanian refugee. As with the previous novels, this is a hard-hitting crime story that racks up the tension, and offers humane insight into a very current issue. The developing relationship between Evie and Cyrus continues to be a joy-he is compassionate, ethical but not always cautious enough, she is a feisty, independent survivor of horrendous experiences, and somehow their unconventional partnership works. The psychological aspects of the narrative are also fascinating. A book that will grip from the start and packs a punch, but also offers empathy and heart.