Gull Island
By Anna Porter
Simon & Schuster, 256 pages, $24.99
It鈥檚 unsurprising to learn from her acknowledgments at the back of the book that former publisher, historian and novelist Anna Porter wrote her latest psychological thriller during COVID lockdown 鈥渨hen it seemed that the darkness would prevail.鈥 The author鈥檚 apparent pessimistic outlook goes some way to explain 鈥淕ull Island鈥濃檚 desultory tone and narrative approach. The vast majority of the novel features protagonist Jude alone on the eponymous island in Georgian Bay, where she has gone at her mother鈥檚 behest to search for her missing father鈥檚 will. Through flashbacks and Jude鈥檚 own musings while isolated on the island, we learn about her family鈥檚 dysfunctional history, the matriarch鈥檚 encroaching dementia, sister Gail鈥檚 jealousy, and the missing patriarch鈥檚 unsavoury business dealings. Jude skulks around the family cottage, a storm descends, and numerous gothic trappings 鈥 mysterious noises, hidden documents, a sweater floating in the water 鈥 combine to create an atmosphere of incipient dread. Porter鈥檚 novel is a slow burn, and takes its time getting to a conclusion that is heavily predetermined from the outset.
The Raging Storm
By Ann Cleeves
Macmillan, 400 pages, $25.99
Heavy weather and a remote setting also characterize the latest from U.K. novelist Ann Cleeves, the third in her Matthew Venn series of mysteries. In the current instalment, Venn and his team have been called to the fictional town of Greystone to investigate the stabbing murder of Jeremy Rosco, an adventurer who made his name by sailing around the world. His body is found abandoned in a lifeboat during a storm; the town is subsequently cut off with no power, and Venn must muster all his wits to find the culprit in a self-enclosed environment. The setting is the star here: Cleeves does a good job creating unease with her storm-tossed geography and small-town populace (including a cult-like religious sect that Venn was once involved with). The prose is less convincing, filled with clich茅s and a really staggering number of chapters that end with one or another of Venn鈥檚 team turning back to a building they鈥檝e just left to see a figure at a window or on a porch suspiciously watching them depart.
The Last Dance
By Mark Billingham
Sphere, 400 pages, $28.99
Bestselling British crime writer Mark Billingham returns with the first instalment in a brand new series, featuring detective Declan Miller, an upstart with a robust disrespect for authority, still reeling from the murder of his wife, a fellow police officer who worked the organized crime beat. On his first day back, Miller finds himself saddled with a new partner, Sara Xiu (pronounced 鈥渏us,鈥 鈥淟ike the stuff you get in fancy restaurants鈥) and a new case: the shooting deaths of two apparently unconnected men in contiguous hotel rooms. Billingham is clearly enjoying himself with this new series: there鈥檚 a high energy level to the plot, which twists and turns its way through Miller鈥檚 investigation, including conversations he carries on in his head with his dead wife. In crafting a portrait of grief, Billingham is adept at wringing a surprising amount of pathos from Miller鈥檚 situation. The plot is propulsive and largely entertaining, notwithstanding a sidekick that comes a bit too close to being a Lisbeth Salander (she of 鈥淭he Girl With The Dragon Tattoo鈥) clone (down to the jacked-up motorcycle she rides) and a wisecracking lead whose insistence on burying his feelings under incessant jokes will either endear him to readers or utterly alienate him from them.
Murder in the Family
By Cara Hunter
William Morrow, 480 pages, $24.99
Bestselling British author Cara Hunter鈥檚 North American debut is about precisely what it says on the front: a cold-case investigation into the brutal beating death of Luke Ryder, the stepfather of acclaimed documentarian Guy Howard. The twist in this case is the narrative structure Hunter has chosen to adopt. Guy鈥檚 latest project is a true-crime series for a Netflix-like streaming network called Showrunner, focused on his own family and the unsolved murder of two decades previous. Howard and his producer have gathered together a team of experts to re-evaluate the crime, the evidence, and the suspects live on camera; the novel consists of episode transcripts, text messages, emails, and newspaper reviews of the show. This only works intermittently; the discussions among the various experts are somewhat forced and it鈥檚 hard to imagine the viewing audience being at all engaged a lot of the time. And the conceit of having the producer call time on the shooting because the group has reached a cliffhanger moment beggars belief; cliffhangers are concocted, not discovered organically. It鈥檚 as if the series鈥 conniving producer is unaware that raw footage can be edited in post.
Correction - Oct. 10, 2023: This article was edited from a previous version that misspelled author Ann Cleeves鈥 given name.
Steven W. Beattie is a writer in Stratford, Ontario
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