Originally, Ann Cleeves intended for her Shetland series of books to be a series of four, ending with the previous book, Blue Lightning. For various reasons, she didn’t want to let the characters she had created end. Many authors state that the characters they create call to them in some way to be written about, even after they thought they were done with them. This seems to be the case with Jimmy Perez and crew in the Shetland series.

In Dead Water, it’s six months after the events in Blue Lightning. After losing his beloved fiancée, Fran, during the events of that story, Jimmy Perez is still on leave from the Shetland Police Department. He’s been spending most of his time concentrating on taking care of Cassie, Fran’s daughter with another local man who isn’t really father material. Cassie has a relationship with him, but Jimmy has taken over as her primary caregiver in the wake of her mother’s death. Jimmy clings to caring for Cassie as his way of assuaging the guilt he feels over Fran becoming involved in the murder investigation that led to her death. At times, it seems like Jimmy is smothering poor Cassie. In a way, it’s fortunate that the body of a reporter is found in a skiff near the water. Although Jimmy is still on his leave of absence, the case begins to call to him and helps him to start living his life again.

The body in question is that of Jerry Markham. Jerry grew up in Shetland, but became a reporter for a big city newspaper down in London. His visit home is ostensibly on the trail of a big story involving the harnessing of the tides for energy. The Fiscal, Rhona Laing, calls in a new detective from the mainland since Jimmy is still on leave. Willow Reeves is an interesting character. She seems to be intent on proving her worth to the Fiscal and solving the murder. At the same time, she’s not sure what to do about Jimmy, who is sniffing around the case but seems intent on not returning to his job. I thought the two of them made for an interesting side-story to the murder, as it showed Jimmy trying to go through this stage of his grief that would help him start to live again. Willow is in charge, and Jimmy’s personality is very thoughtful; he’s used to keeping things close while investigating, rather than having to tell Willow everything that’s going on. This frustrates Willow time and again, but she steps carefully, knowing how highly Jimmy is regarded by everyone on the Shetland Police force.

When Jerry Markham left Shetland for the big city, it was a scandal as he was running away from a pregnant girlfriend. It created bad blood between the families. Does Jerry turning up in Shetland right before she was to get married have something to do with why she was murdered? Rhona Laing seems to be hiding something as well when it comes to the case. Willow is sure of that, but as an outsider, she isn’t sure how to proceed. Jimmy helps greatly with breaking down the barriers between Willow and the islanders as they investigate. When a second murder follows, it throws many of the theories both were working on out the window.

I love Ann Cleeves’ writing. Her characters are introspective, and she gets the reader inside their head. I understand Jimmy Perez’s grief all too well. He’s so conflicted and guilt-ridden that it’s hard for him to take the steps of continuing to live. The only thing moving him up until this case has been Cassie. What he doesn’t know is how worried Cassie is about him as well. She’s afraid of asserting the independence seen in girls of her age, as she doesn’t want to hurt Jimmy. His starting to reclaim his life is a blessing for her, really.

The way Cleeves describes the scenery of Shetland made me feel like I was there with them. I could picture the bleakness of a very insular community as it’s rocked by the two deaths. It’s hard to digest that someone you know could brutally murder someone. In earlier books, it set the stage for the Shetlands being a place where everyone knows everyone else. There’s a downside to that as well. Cleeves captures it all. There’s no real privacy on the island as everyone seems connected to each other in some way, and the secrets that are kept have a way of eventually coming out.

I did not guess the mystery here at all. Cleeves has a unique way of making it obvious in retrospect, but not while reading or listening to the book. The audiobook is very enjoyable. Narrated by Kenny Blyth, he immersed me in life in Shetland while at the same time being easy to understand. Some listeners reported difficulty with his accent. I don’t see that at all. I think the issue has more to do with terms that don’t seem to fit or are unfamiliar to readers who aren’t Scottish.

I’m happy to say that Cleeves hasn’t wavered in how well she tells a story, even with Dead Water expanding this series beyond what she originally intended. Jimmy is a compelling character. It’s interesting to see him on the outside looking in for a change, and Willow seems to be a terrific new character who has a much different style than he does, while at the same time being just as capable. I do think you need to have read Blue Lightning at the very least before this book. The whole series is great, though, and I recommend starting at the beginning if you’re going to tackle it.

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