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4.36 AVERAGE
4.36 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Another inventive and addictive Poe novel.
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There are books that come along with a heavyweight of hype and anticipation and then you read the book and feel so deflated. This was most definitely NOT the case with Black Summer. M.W. Craven deserves all the praise, awards and so much more. An incredibly clever writer that writes so creatively. It was a real joy to read about and spend time with Poe and Tilly.
I have to say this was my first adventure of the authors and I wish I had read Puppet Show first. However, I don’t feel I lost anything from not having done so. I did however promptly purchase Puppet Show when I was halfway through Black Summer. So I am lucky I get to spend more time getting to know Poe and TIlly.
This crime fiction feast kicks off with a chapter that I think I will remember forever. I can’t think about it without feeling queasy. They talk about setting the scene for the reader. Well M.W. Craven has that skill to perfection.
The plot of the book circles the question of how can someone be alive when they were murdered in the past. It really is genius and I loved that refreshing I didn’t guess the end. The book is character-driven and Tilly is my absolute favourite. She has zero filters, is incredibly intelligent and she loves Poe in such an innocent way.
I loved every twist and turn of Black Summer. It was an incredible read with a fantastic plot and memorable characters.
There was Cagney & Lacey and Jethro & Abby and they were great but now we have Tilly and Poe.
Five stars!
I have to say this was my first adventure of the authors and I wish I had read Puppet Show first. However, I don’t feel I lost anything from not having done so. I did however promptly purchase Puppet Show when I was halfway through Black Summer. So I am lucky I get to spend more time getting to know Poe and TIlly.
This crime fiction feast kicks off with a chapter that I think I will remember forever. I can’t think about it without feeling queasy. They talk about setting the scene for the reader. Well M.W. Craven has that skill to perfection.
The plot of the book circles the question of how can someone be alive when they were murdered in the past. It really is genius and I loved that refreshing I didn’t guess the end. The book is character-driven and Tilly is my absolute favourite. She has zero filters, is incredibly intelligent and she loves Poe in such an innocent way.
I loved every twist and turn of Black Summer. It was an incredible read with a fantastic plot and memorable characters.
There was Cagney & Lacey and Jethro & Abby and they were great but now we have Tilly and Poe.
Five stars!
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I've officially drunk the Kool-Aid and am completely hooked on this series. I basically binged the book and couldn't put it down until I'd read the whole thing. I don't know what magic or, in this case, special flavour Craven puts in these books (truffles?), but they're so addictive!
As with "The Puppet Show", the start of the story pulled me in quickly and had me making faces – specifically referring to the bird scene here. And off we went from there.
This time, one of the recurring themes was food, which honestly made constantly hungry. And of course, there are vivid descriptions of Cumbria again, along with some regional history, which was interesting to learn about. And once again, Craven's sense of humour that's woven into the characters had me laughing multiple times.
The case itself was again intriguing to follow and had me coming up with a couple of theories, some of which turned out to be correct!
The only thing that I was personally a little bothered by were some of the typos in the Estonian version as well as the translation for 'fish and chips', which was incorrect (into US chips, not UK chips). Twice. It did make me laugh though.
As with "The Puppet Show", the start of the story pulled me in quickly and had me making faces – specifically referring to the bird scene here. And off we went from there.
This time, one of the recurring themes was food, which honestly made constantly hungry. And of course, there are vivid descriptions of Cumbria again, along with some regional history, which was interesting to learn about. And once again, Craven's sense of humour that's woven into the characters had me laughing multiple times.
The case itself was again intriguing to follow and had me coming up with a couple of theories, some of which turned out to be correct!
The only thing that I was personally a little bothered by were some of the typos in the Estonian version as well as the translation for 'fish and chips', which was incorrect (into US chips, not UK chips). Twice. It did make me laugh though.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Black Summer by M. W. Craven
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Black Summer by M.W. Craven is the second in the Washington Poe books. I didn’t know about this series until I saw it on @netgalley and I am so glad that I did. I review all books neutrally and when they are as great as this I will freely leave 5* reviews on all my channels. I have actually found a new favourite author!
I would recommend reading the first book ‘The Puppet Show’ before this one as there are plot points that continue into ‘Black Summer’, however, you can read this as a stand alone if needed.
Black Summer begins with being introduced to Poe and his colleagues, his boss in the National Crime Agency Flynn and tech nerd Tilly Bradshaw.
He is called back up to Cumbria, which is where he lives, thinking it’s to do with his last case (covered in his previous book ‘The Puppet Show) but finds out it is regarding an old case where Michael Keaton, a celebrity chef who holds three Michelin stars, was convicted in a no body murder of his 18 year old daughter, Elizabeth. However, the daughter has just walked into a local library six years later saying she has escaped her captor.
I thought this weird setup of looking at a case from a different perspective was an excellent premise for a police procedural novel. Trying to prove that Poe was right in the first place and that Keaton did indeed kill his daughter. Of course, it wouldn’t be easy as there are scientific hurdles and an actual daughter to overcome but he gets there with the help of his colleagues.
I love the relationships that are starting to form between the characters but especially the juxtaposition of Poe and Tilly. It’s the combination of straight talking, evidence and feeling based Poe against Tilly’s data based and mathematical character. Experience versus innocence. However, they both have cores of steel and although they are awesome characters on their own when they come together they are unstoppable.
Tilly is a unique character, finished university when she was 16, doesn’t understand the real world, has a mother who incessantly coddles her from society and is completely unfiltered when it comes to saying what she thinks. It’s never inferred that she is on the spectrum but she certainly has some of the traits. I absolutely love Tilly Bradshaw!
Washington Poe feels like a character that still has a lot of background to unravel, especially when it comes to his family and childhood. He doesn’t have a lot of friends and they really are only Tilly and Flynn. This isolation is self enforced though and is reflected in his place of abode - it takes a two mile walk to get there as it can’t be accessed by car. However, you can feel him starting to thaw in ‘Black Summer’ and even begins to entertain romantic thoughts!
Poe and Tilly’s relationship forms an integral part of this series and I am honestly looking forward to the next instalment just to see how this progresses.
M. W. Craven is going to be one of those writers who becomes an icon in the UK crime fiction scene. His books are superbly plotted, his characters of Poe and Tilly are very clearly defined as the good guys and his themes show a large dollop of empathy. He understands that people are manipulated but that doesn’t ultimately make them ‘evil’, namely the doctor in this book and the killer from the previous book ‘The Puppet Show’. His plots are complicated but still feel realistic and are thought provoking and addictive. It’s rare to get a book this good!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Black Summer by M.W. Craven is the second in the Washington Poe books. I didn’t know about this series until I saw it on @netgalley and I am so glad that I did. I review all books neutrally and when they are as great as this I will freely leave 5* reviews on all my channels. I have actually found a new favourite author!
I would recommend reading the first book ‘The Puppet Show’ before this one as there are plot points that continue into ‘Black Summer’, however, you can read this as a stand alone if needed.
Black Summer begins with being introduced to Poe and his colleagues, his boss in the National Crime Agency Flynn and tech nerd Tilly Bradshaw.
He is called back up to Cumbria, which is where he lives, thinking it’s to do with his last case (covered in his previous book ‘The Puppet Show) but finds out it is regarding an old case where Michael Keaton, a celebrity chef who holds three Michelin stars, was convicted in a no body murder of his 18 year old daughter, Elizabeth. However, the daughter has just walked into a local library six years later saying she has escaped her captor.
I thought this weird setup of looking at a case from a different perspective was an excellent premise for a police procedural novel. Trying to prove that Poe was right in the first place and that Keaton did indeed kill his daughter. Of course, it wouldn’t be easy as there are scientific hurdles and an actual daughter to overcome but he gets there with the help of his colleagues.
I love the relationships that are starting to form between the characters but especially the juxtaposition of Poe and Tilly. It’s the combination of straight talking, evidence and feeling based Poe against Tilly’s data based and mathematical character. Experience versus innocence. However, they both have cores of steel and although they are awesome characters on their own when they come together they are unstoppable.
Tilly is a unique character, finished university when she was 16, doesn’t understand the real world, has a mother who incessantly coddles her from society and is completely unfiltered when it comes to saying what she thinks. It’s never inferred that she is on the spectrum but she certainly has some of the traits. I absolutely love Tilly Bradshaw!
Washington Poe feels like a character that still has a lot of background to unravel, especially when it comes to his family and childhood. He doesn’t have a lot of friends and they really are only Tilly and Flynn. This isolation is self enforced though and is reflected in his place of abode - it takes a two mile walk to get there as it can’t be accessed by car. However, you can feel him starting to thaw in ‘Black Summer’ and even begins to entertain romantic thoughts!
Poe and Tilly’s relationship forms an integral part of this series and I am honestly looking forward to the next instalment just to see how this progresses.
M. W. Craven is going to be one of those writers who becomes an icon in the UK crime fiction scene. His books are superbly plotted, his characters of Poe and Tilly are very clearly defined as the good guys and his themes show a large dollop of empathy. He understands that people are manipulated but that doesn’t ultimately make them ‘evil’, namely the doctor in this book and the killer from the previous book ‘The Puppet Show’. His plots are complicated but still feel realistic and are thought provoking and addictive. It’s rare to get a book this good!