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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
I recieved an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
"The weak shouldn’t have to fear the powerful, and the powerful shouldn’t simply be allowed to take what they wanted without consequence. Power should be a burden, not a shield. It should be used to everybody’s betterment, not merely for the person who wielded it."
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle was my favourite book of 2018 and I became an instant fan of Stuart Turton. The Devil and The Dark Water is his second book and I can safely say that I will probably read anything this author publishes.
The Devil and The Dark Water takes place in 1634, a time period where colonialism and superstition, especially about witchcraft, thrived. Samuel Pipps is a detective accused of being a traitor and he's being shipped as a prisoner from Batavia to Amsterdam. He's being accompanied by his friend, Lieutenant Arent Hayes, who is the Watson to his Holmes. But before the ship sets sail, a mysterious leper appears and announces that the ship is under threat by a devil. Before they can question the leper, the man bursts into flames and dies a brutal death. The ship sets sail, but now the passengers and crew are conscious of the fact that a devil in disguise is walking among them.
The setting is limited to the ship, but that's what makes the story atmospheric. Not once did the setting feel static; that's how interesting the mystery is. The story itself is a bit of a slow burn, but the author does a great job building the tension on the ship as well as the creepiness of the atmosphere. At a certain point in the story, I began having doubts about the direction of the plot. But luckily, it worked out really well in the end. I managed to solve some of the mysteries, but there were still some pretty twisty revelations that shocked me.
I was also pleasantly surprised by how feminist and anti-colonialist this book ended up being. The story references the Banda massacre multiple times and the author makes some great social commentaries on the evils of colonialism and capitalism. The time period is a bit familiar to me because it takes place a couple of years before the Dutch settled in Mauritius. But that's the only bit of Dutch history I know about, so I actually learned some new stuff from this book.
Stuart Turton has only published 2 books so far and both of them are winners for me. I don't think this author can write ordinary books. It's not in him lol. He writes the craziest shit and I am here for it!!
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
definitely a solid book, just didn't grab me the way his others did
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-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:
No
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
‘The Devil and the Dark Water’ by Stuart Turton is not the usual historical mystery! In a twist on the locked-room murder, death is stalking passengers on an Indiaman ship traveling from Batavia (present day Jakarta, Indonesia) to Amsterdam in 1634. The passengers are a mix of nobility, merchants, sailors, and mercenaries hired to protect Jan Hann, the governor general and his wife Sara and their daughter, Lia. Hann has worked diligently making profits for the United East India Company hoping to be promoted to the Gentlemen 17, the Company’s ruling body. The message announcing his promotion arrived! But Hann is not such a good man, gentle reader. He beats his wife. He mistreats those who are of a lower class.
Two who are being mistreated as the book opens are Sammy Pipps, thief-taker, and his bodyguard, Lieutenant Arent Hayes. Inexplicably, Pipps has been arrested and thrown into a prison cell shortly before they were expected to leave on the Saardam. Arent is not under arrest, but he is an honorable man, determined to protect the diminutive Pipps whatever the cost to himself. Arent cannot understand why Sammy, a talented detective and alchemist, has suddenly come under suspicion of some heinous crime.
I have copied the book blurb below because it is accurate:
”Goodreads Choice AwardNominee for Best Mystery & Thriller (2020)
An Amazon Best Book of the Year — 2020!
"Compulsively readable."—New York Times Book Review
The extraordinary new thriller from Stuart Turton, author of the bestselling murder mystery The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, winner of the Costa Best First Novel Award.
A murder on the high seas. A remarkable detective duo. A demon who may or may not exist.
It's 1634 and Samuel Pipps, the world's greatest detective, is being transported to Amsterdam to be executed for a crime he may, or may not, have committed. Travelling with him is his loyal bodyguard, Arent Hayes, who is determined to prove his friend innocent.
But no sooner are they out to sea than devilry begins to blight the voyage. A twice-dead leper stalks the decks. Strange symbols appear on the sails. Livestock is slaughtered. Anyone could be to blame. Even a demon.
And then three passengers are marked for death, including Samuel.
With Pipps imprisoned, only Arent can solve a mystery that connects every passenger. A mystery that stretches back into their past and now threatens to sink the ship, killing everybody on board.
For fans of Steven King, The Devil and the Dark Water brings a chilling new spin to the Sherlock Holmes detective duo in a thriller of supernatural horror, occult suspicion, and paranormal mystery on the high seas.”
The ship is manned by quite a few sailors and mercenaries who can only be described as criminal scum. One wonders if this could have been intentional! Captain Adrian Crauwels, first mate Isaac Larme and Guard Captain Drecht are afraid of the crew. They depend on cruel punishments to manage the men. Johannes Wyck, boatswain, is particularly brutal. Senior Officer Reynier van Schooten, chief merchant, is constantly drunk and depressed. He is a man with secrets!
Sara Wessel has been married to her terrible husband for 15 years, an arranged marriage. Hann is much older than her. She protects her friends and her daughter Lia, a genius whose intelligence must be hidden, even when Hann is being difficult and punishes her. She doesn’t let her fear of her husband smother her completely, often following her instincts for right and wrong despite his punishments. One of her instincts is that Arent, the large bodyguard for Sammy, can be trusted with her problems. It’s a good thing they begin to work together, because after a number of horrors, they need to trust each other to save their lives!
There are a lot of suspects, including a possible demonic force called Old Tom. At first, most of the main characters are uncertain if there is possibly someone on board who is supernatural. However, every character is definitely being haunted by their pasts! The secrets are plentiful and strange! This novel is more [b:Darkly Dreaming Dexter|17231|Darkly Dreaming Dexter (Dexter, #1)|Jeff Lindsay|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1557598685l/17231._SY75_.jpg|2113743] than it is Sherlock Holmes and Watson, gentler reader. Plus, it is the Watson substitute Arent who is solving the puzzles. I enjoyed this slow-burner!
Two who are being mistreated as the book opens are Sammy Pipps, thief-taker, and his bodyguard, Lieutenant Arent Hayes. Inexplicably, Pipps has been arrested and thrown into a prison cell shortly before they were expected to leave on the Saardam. Arent is not under arrest, but he is an honorable man, determined to protect the diminutive Pipps whatever the cost to himself. Arent cannot understand why Sammy, a talented detective and alchemist, has suddenly come under suspicion of some heinous crime.
I have copied the book blurb below because it is accurate:
”Goodreads Choice AwardNominee for Best Mystery & Thriller (2020)
An Amazon Best Book of the Year — 2020!
"Compulsively readable."—New York Times Book Review
The extraordinary new thriller from Stuart Turton, author of the bestselling murder mystery The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, winner of the Costa Best First Novel Award.
A murder on the high seas. A remarkable detective duo. A demon who may or may not exist.
It's 1634 and Samuel Pipps, the world's greatest detective, is being transported to Amsterdam to be executed for a crime he may, or may not, have committed. Travelling with him is his loyal bodyguard, Arent Hayes, who is determined to prove his friend innocent.
But no sooner are they out to sea than devilry begins to blight the voyage. A twice-dead leper stalks the decks. Strange symbols appear on the sails. Livestock is slaughtered. Anyone could be to blame. Even a demon.
And then three passengers are marked for death, including Samuel.
With Pipps imprisoned, only Arent can solve a mystery that connects every passenger. A mystery that stretches back into their past and now threatens to sink the ship, killing everybody on board.
For fans of Steven King, The Devil and the Dark Water brings a chilling new spin to the Sherlock Holmes detective duo in a thriller of supernatural horror, occult suspicion, and paranormal mystery on the high seas.”
The ship is manned by quite a few sailors and mercenaries who can only be described as criminal scum. One wonders if this could have been intentional! Captain Adrian Crauwels, first mate Isaac Larme and Guard Captain Drecht are afraid of the crew. They depend on cruel punishments to manage the men. Johannes Wyck, boatswain, is particularly brutal. Senior Officer Reynier van Schooten, chief merchant, is constantly drunk and depressed. He is a man with secrets!
Sara Wessel has been married to her terrible husband for 15 years, an arranged marriage. Hann is much older than her. She protects her friends and her daughter Lia, a genius whose intelligence must be hidden, even when Hann is being difficult and punishes her. She doesn’t let her fear of her husband smother her completely, often following her instincts for right and wrong despite his punishments. One of her instincts is that Arent, the large bodyguard for Sammy, can be trusted with her problems. It’s a good thing they begin to work together, because after a number of horrors, they need to trust each other to save their lives!
There are a lot of suspects, including a possible demonic force called Old Tom. At first, most of the main characters are uncertain if there is possibly someone on board who is supernatural. However, every character is definitely being haunted by their pasts! The secrets are plentiful and strange! This novel is more [b:Darkly Dreaming Dexter|17231|Darkly Dreaming Dexter (Dexter, #1)|Jeff Lindsay|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1557598685l/17231._SY75_.jpg|2113743] than it is Sherlock Holmes and Watson, gentler reader. Plus, it is the Watson substitute Arent who is solving the puzzles. I enjoyed this slow-burner!
A really fun and easy to read murder mystery on the high seas. What could only be described as a 1600s Sherlock Holmes and muscular Watson are taken on an ocean trip from India to Amsterdam, and their ship has barely left port when strange things start happening and ominous signs and portents are everywhere.
The book mixes whodunnit style murder mysteries, light occult elements, pirates, ghost pirates and other fun stuff into a real page turner. I quite liked The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and IMO while The Devil and the Dark Water isn't as big a surprise as Evelyn was, it's a better book.
Definitely recommended.
The book mixes whodunnit style murder mysteries, light occult elements, pirates, ghost pirates and other fun stuff into a real page turner. I quite liked The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and IMO while The Devil and the Dark Water isn't as big a surprise as Evelyn was, it's a better book.
Definitely recommended.