I'm a sucker for first books in a series. If the first book is a winner, it sets up the rest of the series to be the same caliber. The first book sets up the central characters and a small peice of their back story as well as building the community they will live and work in. It may move a little slower but it's well worth it when the author gets it right. And Dana Perry gets it right with the first book in the Detective Abby Pierce series.

Set in a small community on Martha's Island, a young woman has gone missing. She's the heir to a cosmetics company so kidnapping is assumed. Detective Abby Pierce will lead the investigation. She learned her skills on the streets of New York City after living in this same small town until circumstances caused her to run away. Abby's intuition tells her this is not a kidnapping but a ransom demand changes her mind. Until......

This is an excellent start to the series. The young woman's disappearance will be solved in this bppk but there are several over arcing stories leading to the next book. Like, why did Abby run away?

Dana Perry’s Her Ocean Grave is absolutely ideal for readers who like their thrillers fast-paced, twisted and full of surprises.

On the sleepy little island of Martha’s Vineyard, keeping a secret is next to impossible – or so everybody thought. The small community that would leave their doors unlocked without worry is flabbergasted when teenager Samantha Clayton leaves for an afternoon bike ride and never returns. Shockwaves reverberate all around the community. Samantha’s mother is out of her mind with worry, her stepfather is strangely silent and every single person on Martha’s Vineyard is on edge wondering just what lurks behind the closed doors of this once idyllic island.

Detective Abby Pearce is on the case and she is determined to find Samantha. Time is not on her side and her investigation is hampered by her parents’ inability to tell her anything which could shed any light on their daughter’s disappearance. Why didn’t her parents know what Samantha was wearing? Or who her friends were? Why don’t her parents know even the most basic things about their missing daughter? Abby cannot help but be suspicious and as more shocking discoveries are unearthed, she realizes that she needs to be on her guard because on Martha’s Vineyard nothing is what it initially seems…

As a girl’s shoe is discovered on the, beach, Abby is floored when it transpires that Samantha was not the only teenager to have been kidnapped from Martha’s Vineyard. Something sinister is going on here and Abby plans to get to the bottom of this complex and tangled mystery. When another teenager’s body is found, Abby realises that she needs to act fast – before the killer claims another victim…

Dana Perry certainly knows how to keep his readers glued to the pages of his novels. Her Ocean Grave is a top-notch crime novel with a smart, strong and determined detective readers are going to devour in a single sitting.

Deftly plotted and cleverly constructed, Her Ocean Grave is a chilling tale of small town lies, killer secrets and hidden dangers that is tense, shocking and so absorbing readers will not want to miss a single second of this superb crime novel.

Dana Perry is fast becoming one of my new favorite, go-to authors, and now this is the start of a new series! I enjoyed this book so much, it actually broke my reading slump! Highly recommended.
TB

OMG what a great book! It had me never wanting to put it down! Believable characters... that had real issues... Loved this book...can't wait for the next one!

This new series by Dana Perry introduces us to Detective Abby Pearce. After spending time as a detective on the NYPD, Abby has returned "home" to the island she left as a teenager. She has come back with the hopes of finding a slower pace, but the disappearance of a young girl becomes a difficult murder case. Abby shows she is an experienced and determined detective in pursuit of the facts and truth. While she searches for answers, we learn more about Abby and her past. It's a great story with unexpected outcomes. I am anxious to read the next book about Abby.

This is book 1 in a great new police series called Detective Abby Pearce. Abby spent 15 years on the New York City police before returning to her small home town on Martha's Vineyard to become their only detective. She comes bearing baggage from being raped when she was a teen. When a girl goes missing Abby starts digging and finds numerous girls have gone missing. I loved this story and how she handles small community politics and a past filled with the people on the island. Can't wait for book 2. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

First in what is set to be a great crime thriller series. Abby Pearce is a detective in a small holiday town, its one of the safest places
So when a body is found in the water and a teen goes missing there is suddenly a lot of work to be done. Abby believes there's a link and decides to investigate further.....

I really enjoyed the premise of this book. It’s always hard when reading any book that involves children especially missing children. However I found that this crime thriller manages to capture the anticipation required to want to follow the investigation all the way to the end. Abby Pierce is clearly an investigator who goes above and beyond to find the answer. We are informed of her previous issues with alcohol as well as her being a bit of a rule breaker. It was quite interesting as it is our first time meeting this detective is still felt like we knew quite a lot about her personal background from the get go. As lead protagonists she could be written slightly better however with all first in a series that is growing pains so I am happy to take her as she is.

I actually found that the investigation itself was pretty well written and I enjoyed all the twists and turns that we were given on the journey. At one point I really had no idea what was going on and how or why everything was linked but I was excited to find out who was responsible and why they were responsible. I really enjoyed and it’s very clever. It was great from start to finish, The style of writing worked well for me as a reader which made it even more it’s joyable. I asked myself questions throughout and the author managed to answer them all.

All in all I enjoy the book and would rate it four stars I think there were parts of the book that were lacking a little bit for me, however it was a fun read and I couldn’t wait to get through it. If you are like me and crime thrillers or your genre of choice you will find that there’s less blood and guts and gore in this one however it’s still worth a read I really think we have a new detective that is worth following.

Thank you to netgalley, Dana Perry and the publishers for the free digital advanced copy of this book in exchange for my fair and honest opinions.

I read this book and I was delighted that I could add another mystery series to my list. I prefer series over standalones and based on this first book this shaping up to be a good series. The crime was complex. Intriguing, and the right mix of predictable and unpredictable. The personal lives of the characters did not overshadow the main crime. The personal lives were also interesting enough that you wanted them included. Normally I don’t like a lot of female characters, but Abby was okay. I liked that she was flawed and came with this baggage. The best part about finishing this book was read I already had a copy of book two.

Really struggled to get into this and DNF. The writing style and first person narrative just wasn't for me. Won't be reviewing anywhere else because I didn't finish

This was a new author to me. It is a fantastic story with believable characters. Once I started reading I didn't want to stop.
I look forward to reading more

Sixteen year old Samantha Claymore, heiress to a massive cosmetics company, goes missing from her vacation at Martha's Vineyard. Newly appointed detective Abby Pierce is called upon to lead the investigation but is it a missing persons enquiry or a murder case?
Her Ocean Grave is an engaging police and crime thriller, featuring a flawed but likeable lead character.
The book is written from Abby's first person perspective. This gives us insights into her character and the events which have shaped her. I liked Abby's sparky personality and the way she deliberately doesn't take the easy option. She chooses to work with someone who envies her job, she clashes horns with the local journalist and she stands up to the chief of police.
Abby's battle with alcoholism gives a depth to her character as well as an emotional endearment as she faces her demons. She has demons in her past, haunted by the death of her partner. However, she faces the case and her own future with determination and courage. Her character feels authentic and realistic due to her flawed human nature.
The case itself is emotive with the disappearance of a teenager, every parent's nightmare. There are red herrings that had me firmly convinced of the outcome but there were twists to keep me guessing!
Her Ocean Grave was a great start to a new series and I look forward to seeing what happens with Abby next.

Her Ocean Grave is a solid start to a brand new police procedurial series by Dana Perry. I have previously read the Golden Girl by him which I  loved and it didn't take me long to request this title on NetGalley.

Abby Pearce, a decorated NYPD homicide detective and a recovering alcoholic returns to her home town of Martha's Vineyard after ten years in NYPD and takes up the position as Cedar Cliffs Police Department's sole detective, looking forward to a slower, more laid back pace to life and work which she hopes will help her cope with   her past demons, troubles and alcoholism. However, within six months of her coming back she is plunged into a high profile case when Samantha Claymore, the sixteen year old heiress to multimillion dollars empire Claymore Cosmetics disappears while on a vacation on the island with her mother Valerie Claymore. Initially it looks like a straightforward missing person case but Abby soon discovers that Samantha's disappearance might have a connection to some past missing cases of young girls and her father's Ronald Claymore's death five years ago.

This is a solid, cracking, well written, fast paced book. The plot is constantly moving with no drag moments and even 61 chapters don't seem a lot to read in this case. I really can't find any fault with this book and I look forward to reading more of this new series.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher Bookouture and the author Dana Perry for the e-Arc of the book.

A good start to the series, I liked the speed with which Abby worked in searching for the missing child. the pages turned fast, and the characters had their moments. Overall, a solid police procedural

Her Ocean Grave by Dana Perry is the first book in the Detective Abby Pearce series, which was an excellent book. I found it full of twists and turns throughout that had me hooked within the very first few pages. and I did find it very hard to put it down, so all my chores for the day went out of the window.

I highly recommend Dana's latest book. It did not disappoint

Big thank you to the author Dana Perry, Bookouture the Publishers and Netgalley for the digital copy. Read and reviewed voluntarily,

Her Ocean Grave by Dana Perry is the 1st book in the Detective Abby Pearce police procedural series, and my first book by this author. Abby returns to the island, for the first time she left as a teenager. A sixteen-year-old girl has gone missing, and Abby is determined to find her. This book was a wild ride, so many twists and turns. Once I started this book I kept reading until the end. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. I highly recommend this book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Her Ocean Grave is the first instalment in the Detective Abby Pearce series set in Cedar Cliffs on the island of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. The blurb promised a good story and I've got that. This is a smooth , well written story with good twists and turns that kept me glued to my kindle until the very end. I really had to see what will happen in the next chapter and didn't wanted to stop reading
The main character, Detective Abby Pearce is built well, that goes deep into her past and because of that she is very relatable. I would be happy to read more instalments where Abby will solve new cases.

*5 Stars*

Copy kindly received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really good read and the characters were interesting. Just when I thought I knew who it was, another twist would come along. There were surprises and the ending was good. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

Would definitely recommend.

Excellent book! It kept me guessing all the way through. The characters were great. I can't wait to read more of this series.

Interesting read which diverted my attention from moving stress. Great characters and a well plotted mystery. I am looking forward to the next release.

First in the series of Detective Abby Pearce.
Abby was a detective in New York but has come home to Martha’s Vineyard.
Not been back long when a young girl has gone missing.
Lots of twists and turns.
Loved this book.
Can’t wait for the next one.
Thanks NetGalley