I really enjoyed this book. Ann Cleeves is a very clever author! All the characters are fully developed and believable. You can really relate to all of them! There are two people that I really liked. One is Annie and the other is Holly. Annie is one of the people in the the high school reunion. This story takes place in England and all the high school reunions take place on Holy Island and the reunions are always in same place. Pilgrims House. Holly is a wonderful but young police detective who is always looking for validation from Vera, her boss. Holly will try every avenue to find the culprit.🥲 Vera herself - a chunky woman with a hearty appetite who's totally unconcerned about fashion - is my favorite character. Ann Cleeve's Vera Stanhope books are the basis for the TV series 'Vera', in which the Detective Inspector is wonderfully played by Brenda Blethyn.

Ann Cleeves is the author of over thirty critically acclaimed novels, and in 2017 was awarded the highest accolade in crime writing, the CWA Diamond Dagger. She is the creator of popular detectives Vera Stanhope and Jimmy Perez who can now be found on television in ITV's Vera and BBC One's Shetland. The TV series and the books they are based on have become international sensations, capturing the minds of millions worldwide. Holly is worried she is going to be like Vera, alone and single and nothing to show for it but her job.Cleeves, who captures the world and its people in shades of gray tone, evokes compelling images of nostalgia, sadness, yearning, envy…and murder. She is adept at conjuring the texture of their complex relationships, their stories, and the stories they tell themselves to keep on going. The setting of Holy Island just felt desolate. I don't know if I would be comfortable running around a place that gets cut off due to the tides. The story starts with a reunion of friends who meet every five years and, of course, there are hidden secrets and past sins that are threatening to resurface to the point that someone desperate enough is led to murder to keep his secrets hidden!

Holy Island. Known to southerners as Lindisfarn. The scene of an ancient tragedy. Isobel Hall flew into a rage and left the island just as the tide was coming in. Her car ran off the causeway and Isobel died. That was 45 years ago. My favorite part of the book is the location. Interestingly, the accesibility of Holy Island is totally dependent by the tides. The causeway to the island is totally inaccessible two times per day whenever the tide is high. This timing plays a big role in the story. I must be getting used to Janine Birkett’s voice because it didn’t bother me as much with this book.

Is Vera ending? Brenda with co-stars Sarah Kameela Impey and Kenny Doughty (Credit: ITV1) How old is the character DCI Vera Stanhope? THE RISING TIDE is yet another example of Cleeves’ skillful writing, especially including a reference to COVID without dwelling on it. The ending is powerful, and one must applaud Ms. Cleeves for it. The story leaves one anxious for the next book. The 76-year-old actress has been playing DCI Vera Stanhope ever since 2011 when the series first aired.

The Rising Tide is the tenth book in the Vera Stanhope series by Ann Cleeves. It was the first book by Anne Cleeves I have read. Reading it as a stand-alone did not inhibit my enjoyment.Now they are 50 years older, all at different places in their lives, about to begin another weekend of eating, drinking, meditation, swimming, and lots of walking and talking. But plans change; one of there number won’t survive the weekend! THE RISING TIDE is a murder mystery with enough suspect twists to have your head spinning. The story is told from multiple viewpoints, adding to the drama. My first introduction to this author was her Shetland series. I read them all and then watched the series on television. Both were brilliant. I then discovered this series and Vera but my intro was reversed. Watched the series and then read the books. I seem to love pretty much anything this author writes. Vera Stanhope. A dumpy woman with an incisive mind, a terrier-like hold on problems, and the habit of chivying her staff to get results, sometimes pitting them against each other, all in the name of solving the case.