Raven Black

By: Ann Cleeves

Narrated by: Kenny Blyth

Length: 10 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's Summary

It is a cold January morning and Shetland lies buried beneath a deep layer of snow. Trudging home, Fran Hunter's eye is drawn to a vivid splash of colour on the white ground, ravens circling above. It is the strangled body of her teenage neighbour Catherine Ross. The locals on the quiet island stubbornly focus their gaze on one man – loner and simpleton Magnus Tait. But when police insist on opening out the investigation a veil of suspicion and fear is thrown over the entire community. For the first time in years, Catherine's neighbours nervously lock their doors, whilst a killer lives on in their midst.

©2006 Ann Cleeves (P)2018 Isis Publishing Ltd

I am so glad it’s a series!

Fantastic book narrated by an excellent voice. I loved the slow burn of the story as we get to know the characters and the island itself. The ending threw me totally, which I loved, and I’m just so happy to know it’s the first of a long series! Downloading the next one immediately.

Treat yourself to a taste of the Shetlands!

I love this series. I actually read book 2 first, but now I have finally read the first one. Love the characters, and they seem very very realistic. The author really knows how to give you a taste of life in the Shetlands. Her language is wonderfully descriptive when talking about places, characters, and thoughts. It may seem a little bleak at times, but not nearly so compared to Scandinavian fiction. Jimmy Perez is a great hero, and is relatable to any of us who have felt a bit different at one time or another. I can only recommend this book and series!

WOW!

I love the Shetland series from Ann Cleeves. Having visited the island I feel she reals brings to life the atmosphere of the place in her books and this is helped so much with the fantastic reading in this story by Kenny Blyth. His accents are great and the pace is just right.
There are so many twists in the story that I absolutely did not see the ending. It was also great to learn more about some of the characters that I knew from the later Shetland books.

Beautifully narrated

This recording is beautifully narrated. I found I looked forward with anticipation to the next time I could listen in. The story was gripping.

A Good Mystery

Enjoyed the story. It involves two mysteries, the murder of a confident teenage school girl Catherine Ross originally from England, and a missing child Katrina that dissapeared eight years prior and who has never been found.

Magnus Tait is a lonely old man, and a bit simple. He spends his time waiting for people to call on him but no one ever does.

Magnus had been suspected of being responsible, for katrina and was questioned at the time by the police but never charged. The treatment he received by the Police was not a pleasant one so he's very wary of them. The villagers treat him as a pariah and warn the school children not to go near him.

Then eight years later a girl is murdered and it looks like Magnus's nightmare is about to start again.

A good mystery that keeps you guessing. Reccomended.

Brought in the sale and pleasantly surprised

As a rule I prefer the Vera Stanhope series of books and would not have used a credit on Raven Black however it was a gripping story, lots of twists and turns and a brilliant plot and unlike some of the later Vera books the narration was perfect. Would recommend

Great read

Great story, well read. Kept me coming back for more. Can't wait for the next book.

another Ann Cleeves 5star offering.

Brilliant book....many stories woven around the central plot...well written....keeps you guessing. The accent and tone of Kenny Blyth brought the characters to life. Ann Cleeves and Kenny Blyth....a winning combination.

Wonderful Listen

Well constructed plot with twist and turns. Characters believable . I easily conjured up the landscape of the Islands. The narrator's voice was a delight to listen to. Have yet to listen to a book by this author that I haven't thoroughly enjoyed.

Slow

This book was extremely slow burning. Didn’t really enjoy it. Not much to say.The plot was interesting but not really a twist . I would not consider it a 5 star rating

A Great Thriller

A really enjoyable book, from start to finish it had you guessing, the narrator was superb. I cannot wait to listen to the next one.

Predictable

Don't think I would read another book by this author. Felt as if things were being explained too simply in case I was unable to work them out for myself. Guessed who the murder was before the police spoke to the murder. A bit disappointing.