Book Review: Hell Bay, DI Ben Kitto Book 1, Kate Rhodes
Book Review: Hell Bay, DI Ben Kitto Book 1, Kate Rhodes
When blog tour organizer Tracy Fenton from Compulsive Readers invited her blogging cohort to read the entire series of DI Ben Kitto books by Kate Rhodes, a mystery series set in the Scilly Isles off the coast of Cornwall in southwest England, I said yes without knowing much about the books. Still, the premise sounded very appealing.
“Very appealing” is a very large understatement. Rhodes has used the veneer of a mystery (and a very good mystery it is) to provide a travelog for an archipelago that sounds exquisitely beautiful. With around 2000 residents, the Scilly Isles are dependent on agriculture, fishing, and tourism for their economic health. Although the islands and islets are separated from each other, many of them are close enough to be visible from other island shores, close enough in some cases that a strong swimmer can go from one to the other.
Ben Kitto has taken a leave of absence from The Met, aka Scotland Yard, after working undercover for many years. A native of the very small island of Bryher, home to fewer than 100 inhabitants, Kitto has returned to his family’s home to consider his future. A traumatic incident involving his partner has made him question his vocation and his life. The only family remaining at home is his uncle, Ray, but the family house is his and his godmother has made sure it is in good shape for his return.
Shortly after he arrives, the islanders begin searching for a missing local teenager. Kitto finds the girl’s body, battered by the waves and rocks. Even the damage caused by nature, though, cannot hide the presence of a vicious stab wound in her chest. Kitto feels his investigative juices start to flow again, and when he is asked by the local policy chief to lead the murder inquiry, Kitto accepts.
But peeling back the layers of the island’s people is hard to do, even for someone who grew up there. Despite his years in London, Kitto knows almost everyone on the island. They are his friends, his neighbors, his teachers and classmates. One of them is also a murderer.
Rhodes writes with a passion for the islands and their people. Actual places and locations from the Scillies appear (with some modifications) throughout the book. The characters in the story are friendly and wary, taciturn and garrulous, cooperative and otherwise. The spotlight changes from suspect to suspent: the boyfriend, the ex-boyfriend, the parents, even his Uncle Ray are examined through eyes of suspicion. Balancing being a good neighbor with being a good investigator is hard under any circumstances. When the neighbors are people you’ve known since childhood, that balancing act faces high winds that threaten to ruin his standing in the community and the relationships he had hoped would restore his center.
Our thanks for the invitation to become part of Team Scilly, a blog tour organized by Tracy Fenton of Compulsive Readers and starting with the first novel in the series, Hell Bay. The opinions here are solely those of Scintilla. For other perspectives, check out the other bloggers on this tour.
Book Review: Hell Bay, DI Ben Kitto Book 1, Kate Rhodes