Raven Black
Book One of the Shetland Island Mysteries
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4.2 • 471 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
The basis for the hit series "Shetland" now airing on PBS.
Winner of Britain's coveted Duncan Lawrie Dagger Award, Ann Cleeves's Raven Black introduces a dazzling suspense series to U.S. mystery readers.
It is a cold January morning and Shetland lies beneath a deep layer of snow. Trudging home, Fran Hunter's eye is drawn to a splash of color on the frozen ground, ravens circling above. It is the strangled body of her teenage neighbor, Catherine Ross.
The locals on the quiet island stubbornly focus their gaze on one man--loner and simpleton Magnus Tait. But when detective Jimmy Perez and his colleagues from the mainland insist on opening out the investigation, a veil of suspicion and fear is thrown over the entire community. For the first time in years, Catherine's neighbors nervously lock their doors, while a killer lives on in their midst.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in the remote Scottish Shetland Islands, Cleeves's taut, atmospheric thriller, the first in a new series, will keep readers guessing until the last page. Det. Insp. Jimmy Perez investigates the murder of teenage Catherine Ross, found strangled on a snowy hillside shortly after New Year's. While the police and citizens alike are quick to lay the blame on local eccentric Magnus Tait, who was not only the last person to see Catherine alive but also the prime suspect in the disappearance eight years earlier of another girl, Perez has his doubts. He's soon drawn into an intricate web of lies as he unearths the long-buried secrets of everyone from a roguish playboy to Catherine's only school friend. Cleeves, winner of the CWA's Duncan Lawrie Dagger Award (formerly the Gold Dagger), masterfully paints Perez as an empathetic hero and sprinkles the story with a lively cast of supporting characters who help bring the Shetlands alive. When the shocking identity of the murderer is revealed, readers will be as chilled as the harsh winds that batter the isolated islands.
Customer Reviews
Excellent read
Engrossing, with attention to cultural details and individual voices
Meh
The book managed to keep my attention, but I had some problems while reading it. I felt that there was a lot of unnecessary detail in the book, details that didn’t really add to the story and made it tedious. I feel like I didn’t need to know the backstory of half of the characters, but maybe that’s just me. Based on the evidence that was given, I understand the author needs to create suspense. But after finding out the conclusion, it was very anti-climatic for me. It just made certain information during the investigation all the more useless. The evidence didn’t bring the story together in the end, it veered off into left field. I also didn’t get the concept of Catherine’s film project. Based on the assignment, the footage she gathered didn’t add up to anything or really make any sense. It was okay overall. Not great but okay.
Raven Black
Good characters and imaginative story