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The Shetland Sea Murders

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This is part of a long series.
It is a slow burn but the tension does build up. It is well written and kept me intrigued.
A good mystery

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Absolutely loved this book. Exciting plot to get your teeth into. I couldn’t put it down. Set in such a beautiful location. Lots of interesting twists and turns to keep you interested

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While onboard her last chartered sailing trip of the season, Cass Lynch is awoken in the middle of the night by a Mayday call to the Shetland coastguard. A fishing vessel has become trapped on the rocks off the coast of one of the islands.

In the days that follow, there's both a shocking murder and a baffling death. On the surface there's no link, but when Cass becomes involved it is soon clear that her life is also in danger.

Convinced that someone sinister is at work in these Shetland waters, Cass is determined to find and stop them. But uncovering the truth could prove to be deadly . . .

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An enjoyable thriller with lots of twists and turns. The main characters are interesting and believable,good to see their story develop. The plot is intriguing and goes back into the past as well as present day.

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Marsali Taylor’s affable and intelligent heroine Cass Lynch finds herself sinking her teeth into another complex and baffling mystery in the latest gripping novel in the Shetland Sailing Mystery series, The Shetland Sea Murders.

When Cass Lynch was awoken in the middle of night by a Mayday call while onboard her last chartered sailing trip of the season, she was immediately alert and determined to do whatever it takes to save the people onboard the vessel that had unfortunately capsized. As a very experienced sailor, Cass is used to all manner of emergencies, so from the moment she receives the call it’s all hands on deck as she cooperates with the coastguard to ensure that there are no casualties. Cass thought that there would be no further emergencies in the days that followed – until there’s a shocking murder and a perplexing death that end up placing her firmly in the line of fire and in acute danger!

The two seemingly disparate events do not seem to be connected in the slightest, but Cass’ gut is telling her that there’s more to these two cases than meets the eye. As she finds herself unable to resist digging deep into both incidents, she finds herself uncovering some startling revelations somebody is keen to keep buried. But just what lengths will they go to keep Cass from discovering their deepest and darkest secrets? Will Cass manage to solve this case before it’s far too late? Or will she fall foul to the sinister forces at play on the Shetland waters?

Cass will not stop investigating until she gets to the truth – even if it means paying the ultimate price in her quest for justice…

Marsali Tyler writes in bold and bright colours about the sea and the Shetlands isles and readers cannot help but be transported to this beautiful part of the world with her latest novel, The Shetland Sea Murders. A superbly plotted page-turner full of heart-jolting shocks, jaw-dropping surprises and nail-biting twists and turns, in The Shetland Sea Murders, the wonderful Cass Lynch is at the top of her game as she finds herself battling the elements and dangerous enemies to solve this case.

Marsali Taylor’s The Shetland Sea Murders is a highly enjoyable mystery guaranteed to keep readers hooked from start to finish.

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I had a little confession to make- yes yet another one. Although I have a couple of Marsali’s books on my ever increasing ‘to be read’ pile I haven’t actually read one……………until now that is. When I was invited to take part in the blog tour for ‘The Shetland Sea Murders’ , I thought that it would be an ideal opportunity to get to Marsali’s work. Having enjoyed reading ‘The Shetland Sea Murders’ as much as I did, I am now rather ticked off at myself that I left it this long to discover how good Marsali’s work is. I loved reading ‘The Shetland Sea Murders’ but more about that in a bit.
It didn’t take me long at all to get into ‘The Shetland Sea Murders’. In fact by the time I got to the end of the first chapter, I knew that I would have extreme difficulty in putting this book down for any length of time. So it proved to be. I became so wrapped up in the story that I managed to lose all track of time and just how quickly I was getting through the book. It took me just over 48 hours to read this book from start to finish. I found ‘The Shetland Sea Murders’ to be a gripping read, which kept me guessing and which kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.
‘The Shetland Sea Murders’ is extremely well written. The author certainly knows how to grab your attention and draw you into what proves to be one hell of a story. I love the very vivid and realistic way in which Marsali brings the Shetland area alive. In fact were I to close my eyes, it would be easy enough to imaging that I was there myself with the waves crashing all around me. For me, the story hit the ground running and maintained a fairly gentle pace throughout. The tension builds as the story continues, which leads to a dramatic conclusion. There were more twists and turns to this story than you would find on a ‘Snakes & Ladders’ board. I felt as though I was part of the story myself and at the heart of all the action, which is thanks to Marsali’s very vivid and realistic storytelling.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘The Shetland Sea Murders’ and I would recommend it to other readers. I will certainly be reading more of Marsali’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

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In the last few years the beautiful windswept Shetland archipelago has been turned into a murder hotspot by a couple of authors. One of the culprits is Marsali Taylor.
The author uses gorgeous settings to introduce dark, dramatic moments of danger and the scenes at sea just took my breath away. The characters are powerfully drawn and have much to say about the plight of women past and present.
This is a beautifully written novel and much more than just a crime thriller. I thought it was absolutely stunning.

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In the ninth book featuring Cass Lynch we find her ready to start a life on land for part of the time as policeman Gavin moves to Shetland. It is late in the season but The Swan, where she has been first mate takes on a final charter to take Stevie, who is celebrating his sixtieth birthday & his sister & two nieces to see some of the less accessible parts of Shetland. On their first trip they hear a Mayday call from a trawler stuck on rocks- it is one of the boat Stevie's insurance company has on its books. After a musical evening on Papa Stour Cass is unable to sleep & decides to go for a walk. She sees some suspicious activity & follows the men although she is unable to identify them. The next morning, whilst sailing to Foula she is shocked to hear that the last person she spoke to that night had been found murdered.

One of the things I love about this series is that along with a good 'whodunnit' you get wonderful descriptions of Shetland on both land & sea along with some wonderful & quirky characters. This series just gets better & better. It could be read & enjoyed as a stand alone but it is even more enjoyable when you have got to know Cass & the people that surround her. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book- what is going to happen in book ten- can't wait to find out!

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The Shetland Sea Murders is the ninth instalment in the Shetland Sailing Murder Mysteries series set on the Shetland Islands, a subarctic archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland. Indomitable and determined 30-year-old sailor Cass Lynch has a weekend job as mate on board Shetland’s own tall ship, the converted fishing boat Swan, moored up in Vementry. She was one of the last to be built in Shetland and was a working fishing boat until around the late 50s. She was restored as a sail training ship in the 90s, doing school and charter trips, visiting boat festivals and competing in the Tall Ships races. On this occasion, however, it is a charter for a family 60th birthday, but the atmosphere’s less than festive, with one niece determined to bring the birthday boy to court over historic child abuse, and her sister equally determined to deny it all. Their mother lived on Papa as a young woman, and it’s clear the isle holds many memories for her, not all pleasant. Then there’s the stranger who’s come to live on Papa; why are the residents determined he’s not staying? The past casts long shadows – and when Cass is asked to return to Papa, she soon needs all her wits to survive.

This ninth adventure has Cass exploring the western corner of Shetland under sail in a story of past trauma returning to affect the present day. It is a captivating and evocative murder mystery in which the sense of time and place and the rich atmospherics of Shetland, which is a character in its own right, light up the pages as you read. It's a slow-burner and you gradually become immersed in the vast local history and dialect, the island life, the pleasures of sailing, jolly sea shanties, the community on the archipelago and all of the cultural riches and delights Shetland has to offer. The story is steeped in the beautiful scenery, including the raging seas, rocky coastlines and rolling hills and the Shetland myths and legends that have arisen from the earth and its people. There are a few small twists and several red herrings before a larger, unexpected surprise comes into play. Protagonist Cass is a superb protagonist as she's different, capable, independent and completely fearless in her approach to almost everything. A thoroughly engrossing mystery set against the intoxicating backdrop of remote Shetland and laced with fascinating culture and tradition. Highly recommended.

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Atmospheric, Foreboding Mystery..
The ninth in the Shetland Sailing Mystery series finds Cass Lynch onboard for the very last chartered sailing trip of the season. When awoken by a mayday call, so begins a catalogue of catastrophic events. Written beautifully, pulling in all possible strands of atmosphere and foreboding, bringing the Shetlands with their history, people, traditions and sheer beauty to life. Immersive and engaging reading and a very worthy addition to the series.

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Cass Lynch loves her work on the training ship, Sorlandet. Between trips, she is home in Shetland, where she lives on her own 8 metre yacht, Khalida.
When the skipper of the charter boat, The Swan, is injured, Cass agrees to crew for a group who are celebrating a 60th birthday.
The birthday boy is Stevie Shearer, a larger than life character, together with his sister, Amitola and her daughters, Kirsten and Moon.
On the first night, there is a Mayday call from the Dorabella, which has run aground on rocks at Ve Skerries. Stevie is quickly making phone calls because it is his company which insures the ship.
The crew will be taken off the fishing boat by the lifeboat and then the cargo removed in the hope that it will enable the Dorabella to float off the rocks at the next high tide.
As the charter continues, there is a murder and an unexplained death and the complex relationships and events of 50 years start to be revealed.
This is the first of Marsali Taylor’s books which I have read and I did enjoy it. Her ability to describe the changing colours of the Shetland Isles draws the reader into feeling they are actually there. I love her use of the Shetland dialect and providing a Glossary was really helpful for the odd words which I did not understand. She has seamlessly woven the every day culture of life on Shetland into the story.

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I really enjoyed this book! It was a great read, i didnt want to put it down! I would recommend this to my friends and family

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This the second in this series written by Marsali Taylor that I have read, it features the intrepid and courageous sailor, the 30 year old Cass Lynch, and is set in Shetland. This is not a fast paced crime read, it immerses the reader in sailing, and the life, history, community, language, culture, and people of Shetland. We get to appreciate the seas, the dangerous rocky coastline, sea caves, the myths and legends, the songs, music, and the likes of the Papa Stour Sword Dance at a Kirk concert. Cass is crewing on the Swan, a boat chartered to celebrate the 60th birthday of insurance man, Stevie Shearer, accompanied by his older sister, Amitola and her 2 daughters, Sky, now known as Kirsten and Moon. A mayday is heard from a fishing trawler in trouble, the Dorbella, insured by Stevie who is worried about the cargo after the crew are rescued.

Cass overhears a disturbing conversation between the 2 sisters in which Moon makes claims about what happened in their early childhood, something Kirsten argues did not happen. There are some strange incidents that follow. On land, trouble is brewing with the return of Gideon and Jess's father, Paul Roberts, a man with a history of domestic abuse who left Shetland years ago. He changed his name to be able to rent the place he is now residing in, insistently claiming it his right to get to know his children and grandchildren. His ex-wife, Betty, is far from happy to see him, she, Gideon and Jen want him gone, but they have no grounds to achieve this. After a death on land, and murder on the chartered Swan trip, Cass cannot help investigating, finding Roberts a bully trying to intimidate her, simmering with his aura of violence. This is a dangerous inquiry that has Cass wondering if there could be connections between the 2 deaths.

One of the highlights for me was the inclusion of the history of Shetland women fighting for their rights and equality with men, including the early court cases, their vital role during the war, and how it is still a battle for women in contemporary times. I loved the character of Cass, determined, independent, and willing to take extraordinary risks to go to the rescue of a group of women and children facing a terrible fate with an approaching storm. She and DI Gavin Macrae are planning to live together, along with Cat and Kitten, and after years at sea, she is apprehensive about living on land and whether their relationship is strong enough to survive settling down. This is a great crime series, that I recommend to those interested in Shetland, a wonderfully atmospheric location, that is a central character in its own right. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

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I would like to thank Netgalley and Headline for an advance copy of The Shetland Sea Murders, the ninth novel to feature sailor Cass Lynch.

Cass is moonlighting on a tourist trip round the Shetland Isles when she hears a mayday call from a fishing vessel run aground on rocks. The call is still on her mind when some strange events, a murder and an accidental death play out over the next few days. Cass soon learns that indulging her curiosity could be life threatening.

I enjoyed The Shetland Sea Murders for its plot, characterisation and sense of place. I don’t know anything about boats so the sailing aspect passed me by, but it’s detailed so will no doubt be of great interest to those with even a passing knowledge.

The plot held my interest throughout. It is on the surface quite simple with a limited cast of suspects and a strong prime contender, but it’s difficult to cut through all the misdirection the author throws in, with history, alternative scenarios and several motives blurring the narrative, and get to the truth before Cass. There is also a big twist, taking the novel in a different direction than I had thought it would go. It’s well done and quite baffling.

I mentioned the sense of location which is strong, showing island life in all its glory, good or bad according to taste. I think the author is great at showing it as it is. She also takes the reader on some detailed trips round the islands, which I think will intrigue most readers. Unfortunately it is totally lost on me as illness has taken away my ability to visualise and place things in geographic context. I definitely lost a lot as this is a visual novel, but I can still appreciate the effect it will have on other readers.

I like Cass Lynch who seems almost naive in her fearlessness. Anyone else would think twice but she just batters on. It’s refreshing.

The Shetland Sea Murders is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

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Cass Lynch charters sailing excursions off the coast of Scotland. In the middle of the night her last cruise of the season, Cass hears a Mayday go out to the Shetland coastguard when a fishing boat runs aground. Then there’s a murder in the normally quiet area, and a suspicious death shortly after. Cass gets involved when it appears that her life is also in jeopardy No one is going to ruin Cass’s quiet home, not if she has anything to say about it. The beauty of Scotland combined with a feisty heroine makes this an exceptional read

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