When Jez Cardew’s boat is found drifting empty on the Atlantic Ocean, DI Ben Kitto and his fellow lifeboat crew members immediately fear the worst. After an extensive search yields no results, the team are forced to retreat to dry land as darkness sets in.
THE OCEAN IS MERCILESS
But Kitto can’t let it go. Why would Jez – an experienced sailor – get into difficulty when the sea has been calm for weeks? Unless his disappearance was no accident.
BUT SO ARE THE PEOPLE . . .
The gruesome discovery of a hand washed ashore on the beach confirms his hunch. Because a medal is attached to the index finger, and it can only have been placed there by the killer.
This strange clue is the only lead to an agenda as cold as the ocean itself. Kitto must work fast, before the small, isolated community closes ranks. And it’s only a matter of time before the murderer among them strikes again . . .
Perfect for fans of Lucy Foley, Ann Cleeves and Elly Griffiths, this gripping new locked-island mystery will keep you on the edge of your seat until the bitter end.
My thoughts: a lot of the places in the Scillies have dark names and dark pasts, as in the titles of this series, and indeed this book. As Ben Kitto prepares for his wedding to Nina, the lifeboat crew is under threat.
The RNLI volunteers do an incredible job, and are true heroes, living on the edge of the Atlantic, the Scillies need them a lot, the main mode of travel is by boat after all. But someone has a problem with heroes, Jez, is found with a lifesaving medal attached by wire to his hand, drowned; possibly keel hauled, a truly terrible way to die. Can Kitto and his team find the killer before anyone else is killed?
The tension is this series in great, small isolated community, everyone knows everyone (or so it seems), there’s suspicion and whispers in the air. Kitto has to figure it out fast, he’s on a deadline after all. Can’t get married with a murderer on the loose.
My beloved Shadow, Kitto’s right hand hound is back to full health and finding clues again, because he’s the best detective around. There’s a personal angle as Eddie, Kitto’s DS is related to the first victim and taking it hard.
I don’t know how many more stories of murder and tragedy Kate Rhodes can find in the small collection of islands that make up the Scillies, but I hope there are more to come.
A MISSING CHILD St Martin’s is shrouded in bitterly cold fog when Jade Minear and her twin brother, Ethan, are attacked in a field, late at night. Ethan manages to return home but the shocking events of Jade’s disappearance have rendered him mute.
A LONG-HELD GRUDGE On a small island where there are few places a child can hide, DI Ben Kitto must battle the elements to search for Jade. When his investigation reveals that the Minear family have many enemies on the island, Kitto grows increasingly worried that Jade is in danger.
A KILLER HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT . . . Meanwhile, someone on the island knows exactly where the girl is. Someone with a deep-seated hatred of Jade’s family. To find the truth, Kitto must investigate the lives of the people he has known all of his life. Because one of them is lying – and it isn’t long until a body is found . . .
My thoughts: families aren’t always the safe place they should be, and when Jade, one half of the Minear twins, goes missing at the height of her family’s busy flower harvest, secrets and suffering inside the family threatens to overflow.
Ben’s investigating brings him into close contact with Jade’s twin, Ethan, who communicates mainly through music, as Jade was his voice. Can Nina bring him out of his shell and help him tell Ben what happened and where his sister is?
Someone holds a grudge against the family, and Ben has to work through each member and their secrets, trying to find out who and why they hate the Minears so much. It gets pretty dark as more members come under attack, and the final revelation shatters some. But once again, Ben and his team work together to break through the tough hard knit community prejudices to solve a terrible crime, with reverberating consequences for the island.
REVENGE DI Ben Kitto made many enemies in his time working as an undercover officer for the Met police, none more ruthless and calculating than gang leader Craig Travis.
IS WORTH Travis has longed to make Kitto pay for his role in getting him convicted – and that day has finally arrived. Now, a dark and twisted killer is heading for the Scilly Isles, one who has waited a long time for revenge.
WAITING FOR . . . With Kitto busy investigating the discovery of a body on the islands and distracted by the imminent arrival of his first child, his defences are down. He has so much to lose.
And Travis will stop at nothing to take it all from him.
My thoughts: before Ben returned to the Scillies, he worked undercover bringing down a criminal gangster, who is now dying in prison. The one person who loved that man the most is his daughter, and taking the lessons her father taught her, she has decided the time has come for revenge on those, like Ben, who betrayed him.
As she ticks off her list, travelling across England, with Ben last in her sights, she comes to the attention of the police. They want Ben on the mainland, but he knows he’s safer tucked away on an island, or is he?
Can he stop the killing, and will a different way of life stop Ruby from making any more mistakes?
This is definitely the most personal case Ben has investigated yet, the islanders have nothing to do with it, he’s brought this to them and with Nina and Shadow also potential victims, he has to stop the violence before they are harmed, or he is. The tension is incredible and the fact is that while being isolated on an island can be protection, it can also make you more vulnerable, cut off from help.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
As the sun sets on a cold November evening, the tiny community of St Agnes prepares for their annual Fifth-of-November festivities. Moments before the fireworks are scheduled to commence, an islander discovers a charred body left on the bonfire, and quickly it becomes clear that a killer is at large.
Ben Kitto is the Deputy Chief of Police for the Scilly Isles, and with a killer on the loose, he has no choice but to forbid all residents from leaving the island. With a population of just eighty people, everyone is a suspect and no one is safe.
When threats start appearing, written in the old Cornish language, Ben suspects that the killer’s motive is to rid the island of the newcomers who threaten their traditions. With time running out, Ben hurries to discover the secrets of the island’s peculiar residents, but he knows it’s only a matter of time before another fire is started . . .
No place to run. No place to hide.
My thoughts: return to the dark side of the Scilly Isles, where this time the killer is someone who hates newcomers to their island and is determined to get rid of them. But with a population of only 80 residents, this should be an easy solve, right.
Even though Ben is from the Isles, the residents of St Agnes aren’t keen to open up and share their secrets and suspicions so he has to race against time to prevent more deaths by finding the killer. But even with so few suspects, it’s not easy. People are protective of their families and friends but happy to point the finger at those who stand out. Like the Birdman, who doesn’t speak and has taken to hiding in the woods around the island. He’s afraid of the killer but also of Ben. But he might be able to help, if only they can find him.
Another sinister and brilliant case, set in a tiny community and full of secrets and a few red herrings, with everyone under suspicion.
WITH A KILLER ON THE LOOSE As the scorching summer sun beats down on St Mary’s in the Isles of Scilly, DI Ben Kitto and his team are training for the annual Swimathon, until they discover a body hanging from Pulpit Rock, dressed in a bridal gown.
ON A TINY ISLAND An obsessive killer is hunting for female victims. Kitto has no choice but to stop anyone leaving St Mary’s, but soon another woman is attacked.
EVERYONE IS A SUSPECT The killer must be a trusted member of the community. Kitto’s investigation is being watched closely, the killer always one step ahead, as the next victim is chosen . . .
NO ONE IS SAFE
My thoughts: Ben doesn’t exactly make friends easily, having to lockdown islands every time another crazy killer emerges. What is in the water that makes the Scillies so full of serial killers? This time the murderer is dressing their victims up as brides, marrying them to the island or to the sea perhaps? But whoever they are, Ben will find them. The first victim is a friend, a fellow trainee for the Swimathon.
As he tries to find out who is involved and why they’re leaving old charms, possibly stolen from the island’s museum, on the bodies. What are they trying to say? Once again, in the face of police interest, the community goes silent. Someone knows who the killer is, someone is keeping secrets, but Ben and his team will find them.
I like the use of Cornish traditions in these books – the charms are ones sailors’ wives would give them to bring them home safely. But it does turn them into macabre symbols when a killer uses them. The Scillies are beautiful, but this series delves into the darkness within and the wounds people are walking around with, twisting their minds and driving them to murder.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
Today is my first post on this epic tour covering all of Kate Rhodes’ Isles of Scilly Mysteries series, featuring DI Ben Kitto. Follow the hashtag #TeamScilly on social media for the other hosts.
DI Ben Kitto needs a second chance. After ten years working for the murder squad in London, a traumatic event has left him grief-stricken. He’s tried to resign from his job, but his boss has persuaded him to take three months to reconsider.
Ben plans to work in his uncle’s boatyard on the tiny Scilly island of Bryher where he was born, hoping to mend his shattered nerves. His plans go awry when the body of a sixteen-year-old girl is found on the beach at Hell Bay. Her attacker must still be on the island because no ferries have sailed during the two-day storm.
Everyone on the island is under suspicion. Dark secrets are about to resurface. And the murderer could strike again at any time . . .
THE ISLAND OF TRESCO HOLDS A DARK SECRET SOMEONE WILL KILL TO PROTECT.
Ben Kitto has become the Scilly Isles’ Deputy Chief of Police. As the island’s lazy summer takes hold, he finds himself missing the excitement of the murder squad in London. But when the body of professional diver Jude Trellon is discovered, anchored to the rocks of a nearby cave, his investigative skills are once again needed.
At first it appears that the young woman’s death was a tragic accident, but when evidence is found that suggests otherwise, the islanders close ranks. With even those closest to the victim refusing to talk, it seems that plenty of people might have had reason to harm her. As the islanders remain guarded, Ben Kitto suspects a killer is on the loose in Tresco.
Everyone is a suspect. Nobody is safe.
My thoughts: Ben Kitto has returned to the Scilly Isles off Cornwall’s Atlantic coast, the place he called home as a child. He hasn’t been back for a while and he’s on extended leave from the Met following his partner’s death.
More or less immediately after arriving on the island of Bryher, he’s drawn into the search for a missing teenage girl. When her body is found on the beach, he volunteers his services as a Murder Team detective to the local DCI. He’s a local and has the skills to catch a killer.
There’s not many people on the island and the killer has to be a local, in a tight knit community, this is devastating. When another teenager disappears, the DCI decides it’s case closed – the missing boy killed his girlfriend and then himself, but Kitto doesn’t believe that at all. His unorthodox methods and willingness to ignore orders put his life in danger, but he will find the truth.
I really like Ben, I like his silly dog Shadow too, even though Ben doesn’t want a dog. I like the islanders, they’re a tough bunch, isolated by tides and weather at times, dependant on fishing and tourism for much of their income, in a place famous for its historic smugglers and not known for violent crime. A murder sends shockwaves through the community, but they pull together and help Ben where they can.
I think his deputy, young detective Eddie, is a sweetheart, desperate to do a good job, delighted by his impending fatherhood, keen as mustard and with good instincts too, he’s the perfect foil for Ben’s jaded cynicism.
In book two, Ruin Beach, the tragedy is on another island, Tresco, but it’s still Ben and Eddie’s patch so off they go to investigate.
The victim this time is another woman, older than in their last case, mother to a small child and a well known diver. Born and raised on the island, she knows the waters well so her drowning is shocking.
Under the seas around the islands lay hundreds of shipwrecks, some ancient, and there are a lot of people keen to find the possible treasures still aboard. I always feel a bit uncomfortable about things like this, as those ships are also grave sites, a lot of sailors will have gone down with their ships and their remains rest at the bottom of the ocean.
But others have no qualms, and while taking anything without handing it over to the authorities is very illegal, people in nedd of money, like some of the islanders, might be willing to do desperate and stupid things. Did Jude and did her killer find out and murder her for her treasure?
As Ben and Eddie dig into the case, more people are put in danger as this very ruthless killer stops at nothing to evade the police and find the sunken ship, hoping to make their fortune. There’s a few red herrings, Jude seems to have fallen out with her brother and several others, and there’s a dodgy couple from the States hanging around, but after working his way through the suspects, can Ben stop anyone else from being harmed?
If anything, this was even more chilling than than Hell Bay, with the killer kidnapping people and leaving them to drown – a truly horrible way to die. Their desperation makes them do awful things, but Ben Kitto isn’t a man to let it go, and even risking his own life to save another, won’t slow him down.
Join me next time for more #TeamScilly crimes and don’t let them put you off heading to the Isles for a visit, they’re meant to be truly stunning and are on my list for the next time I head to my beloved Cornwall.
*I was kindly gifted copies of these books in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 