Retired Montreal detective Emile Cinq-Mars and his wife, Sandra, decide to take a vacation--but guess what? Murder intrudes! Although billed as the second in the Storm Murders Trilogy, this book has absolutely no connection to the crimes of the first book, although both feature storms. The plot here ends up being way too complex as Cinq-Mars eventually explains it, so don't even dream of solving the crime before he does. Farrow isn't that kind of mystery writer. Instead, enjoy the real star of the show, Grand Manan Island, off the coast of New Brunswick (although it is actually much closer to main). You'll find yourself checking it out on Wikipedia and making looking at real estate for sale. Although if the locals are as odd as Farrow portrays them--and have the same habits--you may end up reconsidering by the end of the book. The immensely enjoyable, though sometimes grim, story succeeds through its characters--the continuing story of Cinq-Mars, the increasingly involved Sandra, and the cast of characters they meet on the island, who include a Mountie with PTSD. No one does characters or settings better than Farrow. This certainly ranks as one of the best series ever written. It deserves a much wider readership. ( )

Farrow has written an enjoyable book here. His descriptions of storms, of the locations, and even people’s emotions and descriptions are vivid. But the smallest details seemly researched and believable. There is one character whom Farrow has seemingly developed from reality: a police officer who is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. How the officer deals with his illness could easily come from many accounts from real-life professional emergency workers and Farrow should receive kudos for the details he gives that character alone.

http://tinyurl.com/hazxjq3 ( )