📖 Book Review ~ Hangman Island by Kate Rhodes #TeamScilly

Simon &Schuster
22 October 2023

DI Ben Kitto #7

My thanks to the publishers and Tracy at Compulsive Readers for my copy of this book 
And for the opportunity to be part of this epic readalong during 2023.

ON A REMOTE ISLAND

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.

📖 My Review

When a crew member of the local RNLI goes missing, Ben Kitto and the rest of the team speed into action, desperate to find one of their own before the sea claims him. However, this is no ordinary search as pretty soon it becomes obvious that the crew members are being targeted in a series of violent attacks. When then follows is a claustrophobic and highly charged story which takes Ben Kitto, and his investigative team, into the very heart of the community they serve only to find that there are some deadly secrets amongst the inhabitants St Agnes and beyond.

Once again the beautiful Isles of Scilly take centre stage and those readers who are familiar with this best selling series will know just how passionately the author brings this beautiful area to life in a series which captures the imagination from the start. Even though this is now book number seven in the series, each book feels just as fresh and compelling with the added advantage of knowing, and caring about,  the characters.

The pace is fast and furious and the claustrophobic nature of the investigation adds an extra dimension so that my heart was racing during the last few chapters as all the complex threads of the mystery start to come together. What I love most about these stories is that I can never predict the outcome, each of the endings have surprised me and Hangman Island is no different. 

Atmospheric and compulsive reading, Hangman Island is every bit as good as I expected it to be and long may this series continue. Can’t wait for book number eight…but I’ll have too ! 

About the Author

Kate Rhodes is an acclaimed crime novelist and an award-winning poet. She lives in Cambridge with her husband, the writer and film-maker, Dave Pescod. She visited the Scilly Isles every year as a child which gave her the idea for this new series. She is one of the founders of the Killer Women writing group.

Twitter @K_RhodesWriter #TeamScilly

@simonschusterUK

@Tr4cyF3ntOn