EXCERPT: 'Message four, received today, 12.17 p.m.'

Crackles on the line. Clicks and whistles.

'...Lucy...'

It's him. It's Daniel.

And yet something in his voice - dark, alien - isn't Daniel at all. In an instant, Lucy knows she's utterly unprepared for how bad this might get.

Around her, the playground darkens. The sound of children's voices fades. Time slows, then stops completely. Parents and offspring become graveyard statues welded to a tarmac sea. Colour seeps from their skin, their clothes. Lucy feels no wind in her hair, no speckling of rain on her cheeks. Her heart doesn't beat. The blood in her veins doesn't flow.

The phone is clamped so tightly to her ear that the hiss and burr of static fill her head. She concentrates hard, as if by deciphering those electronic shrieks she can divine Daniel's location, his intent. She hears wind, or what sounds like it. A chaotic symphony of whistles and chirrups, as if the broadcast is reaching her from deep space.

Lucy feels sure the connection is about to drop entirely. And then, with a buzzing that makes her wince, the clarity on the line is restored and she hears something else, something she didn't expect, another voice, fainter than the first, one that she recognizes as clearly as her own: 'Daddy, no-'

ABOUT 'THE RISING TIDE': HOW DID IT COME TO THIS?

The news doesn't strike cleanly, like a guillotine's blade. Nothing so merciful. This news is a slovenly traveller, dragging its feet, gradually revealing its horrors. And it announces itself first with violence - the urgent hammering of fists on the front door.

Life can change in a heartbeat.

Lucy has everything she could wish for: a beautiful home high on the clifftops above the Devon coast, a devoted husband and two beloved children.

Then one morning, time stops. Their family yacht is recovered, abandoned far out at sea. Lucy's husband is nowhere to be found and as the seconds tick by, she begins to wonder - what if he was the one who took the boat? And if so, where is he now?

As a once-in-a-generation storm frustrates the rescue operation, Lucy pieces together what happened onboard. And then she makes a fresh discovery. One that plunges her into a nightmare more shocking than any she could ever have imagined . . .

MY THOUGHTS: In a market awash with pale imitations, The Rising Tide is a true psychological thriller. I was thrilled from the first page to the last; never quite on an even keel, always a little off balance, never entirely sure who to believe. That was one enjoyable, wild ride, and I want to do it all over again!

All the words that are bandied about, hold true for this, Sam Lloyd's second novel. Intense. Thrilling. Suspenseful. Breathtaking. Twisty. Heart pounding. Jaw dropping. Chilling. Compelling. And even all banded together, they don't do The Rising Tide justice. It is all those things and more. Sam Lloyd scares me. He had me on the edge of my seat, nails digging into my palms, crying out, 'No, no, no, no!' as I read. Twenty four hours after finishing The Rising Tide, I still get breathless thinking about it.

Who are these people, Sam Lloyd's characters? Is Daniel a monster? Or a loving father and stepfather? Is Lucy cold, calculating, cheating and manipulative? Or is she a loving mother who has had her world ripped apart?

My favourite characters are the delightful Bibi Trixibelle Carter, a very sharp eighty something year old, and the doomed Detective Inspector Abraham Rose and, of course, Lucy's daughter Billie.

The Rising Tide is at the very top of my favourite books list for 2021, and I seriously doubt that anything is going to displace it. Five stars are simply not enough. The Rising Tide deserves a whole galaxy.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#TheRisingTide #NetGalley

I: #samlloyd #randomhouseUK

T: @samlloydwrites @BantamPress

#contemporaryfiction #crime #familydrama #fivestarread #psychologicalthriller #suspense #thriller

THE AUTHOR: Sam Lloyd grew up in Hampshire, where he learned his love of storytelling. These days he lives in Surrey with his wife, three young sons and a dog that likes to howl.

DISCLOSURE: A huge thank you to Random House, Transworld Publishing, Bantam Press via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The Rising Tide by Sam Lloyd. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon and my webpage

Thank you to Netgalley, Random house UK & Transworld publishing for the review copy.

Set in a village on the coast of Devon, The Rising tide is a corkscrew of continual twists. A giant storm is looming over the coastal village & main character Lucy, with her seemingly perfect life and family has her own personal storm coming. It starts with a mayday call from the family yatch, Lucy's husband Daniel has for unknown reasons taken the boat out in the middle of a severe weather warning but the story quickly decends into a nightmare of Job like proportions.This book is a tense psychological thriller, someone is playing a sick and twisted game & Lucy cannot trust even her closest friends, not even her own family. By the time to storm ends will Lucy have any good thing left in her life? Will she even survive? The narrative shifts between Lucy's point of view and Abraham Rose, the Police Detective in charge of the investigation into Daniel's disappearance. Somehow I ended up emotionally involved while at the same time trusting no one completely not even Lucy and Abraham. This novel kicks you in the heart right to the bitter end.

I had no idea where the plot was going to go next with this story & could not have predicted even half way through the novel just what was actually going on or who was responsible.

Lucy seems to have it all, until one day her family’s yacht is found drifting at sea, empty. She soon realises her husband is missing, and with him her children. A storm is brewing that threatens to wipe away any clues and any hope of finding survivors. Atmospheric and with twists galore, The Rising Tide will keep you o the edge of your seat until the very end.

This is the second book I have read by this author I absolutely loved the debut novel The Memory Wood, so was happy to read the authors next book.
Lucy and Daniel Locke seem to have the perfect life, happily married, a young son Fin, a teenage daughter which Lucy had before she met Daniel. They have built a good life, living in a large house they rescued from dereliction it’s perched high on the cliffs of Morris Point, with a fantastic view of the harbour and township. Daniel had started a successful marine business and Lucy had opened a bar called The Drift Net which has become a place where the people of the community go for good food, music and local art. They all love the sea, whether they be sailing or swimming. But then everything changes in the blink of an eye.

Bee, Lucy’s bar manager and friend bangs on the door, to tell Lucy that the coastguard had found their boat drifting out to sea. Lucy thought Daniel was at work but it turns out he had made a mayday call to say he was in trouble, but when the coastguard found the boat it was empty. Then Lucy discovers the children are nowhere to be found and a huge storm is heading their way across the Atlantic, Lucy begs the community to help her find her family.

This story is again so brilliantly written, intense, claustrophobic as the storm is coming in you feel Lucy’s stress as she hopes and prays her family are safe and sound. But this is such a huge storm.

Then in comes DI Abraham Rose he is a sick man with a lung disease, a loner, he recites religious passages to push himself along not just in living but also to help him investigate. He suspects something is wrong, something doesn’t quite sit right with him. He feels Lucy is holding back on something but why? Is she as innocent as she makes out or is there a darker side? Then there’s Daniel he is popular within the community but he had been in trouble and spent time in prison as a teenager. Neither of them seemed to trust the police. Is there more going on that they are afraid to say.

Can Lucy find and save her family? She can’t lose them, she has to find them. This is a well paced atmospheric read, it will have you turning the pages with your heart pounding, jaw dropping, chilling thriller.

I would like to thank #netgalley and #BantamPress for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair and unbiased review.

This was such a brilliant book, so twisty, it was one of those books which kept me guessing right through to the end. First I thought it was the husband, which really was too obvious, and then I thought it was another person, and then someone else but, I had no idea it turned out to be the person who I’d not even thought of. This was a great story I. So glad I chose it. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Lucy appears to have it all, a perfect life. One day a knock on the door and she is told that her husband’s yacht has been found drifting but no body is located so far. Her husband Daniel and two children are missing. Lucy refuses to accept the situation and the story then centers on her trying to find them all and solve their disappearance and reasons why. A steady average read. Thanks for an ARC and the chance to read a new author.

Second book read from the stable of this author: thoroughly enjoyed The Memory Wood, and The Rising Tide does not disappoint. Regular family, couple with teenage daughter and seven year old son, successful, affluent and hardworking and as a bonus, incredibly popular with the locals. Yet behind this facade lies hidden secrets, a difficult past, and both man and wife struggle with their own demons. The catalyst, exacerbated by a series of bizarre events, leaves the family, the local residents and the local police in the midst of disappearances, mayhem and suspected murders with no tangible reason or logic. Yet dig deep enough and skeletons begin to emerge, lives destroyed with a relentless storm destroying everything in its path including evidence and ability to solve the mystery. The storyline, a balance of a storm at sea, expertly described in fine detail, alongside the raging maelstrom of peoples lives leaves the reader exhausted yet desperate for more. The three dimensional characteristics of the chief protagonists alongside unexplainable actions, become intrinsic to events emerging leading towards a brilliantly written exhausting conclusion . Many thanks to author, publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.

Wow what a read!
This was an edge of the seat thriller that gripped you all the way. It is definitely a book that is difficult to put down, the race against time element meant that you just wanted to keep on reading.
There are a few flashbacks to previous moments in time and in some books this can make the book a little disjointed but in this book it just added to the story and fleshed out the characters who were well written and believable.
A real page turner of a book that would make an amazing movie.

My thanks to Random House U.K. Transworld Publishers/Bantam Press for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘The Rising Tide’ by Sam Lloyd in exchange for an honest review.

After reading the opening chapter I realised it was going to be a winner with me and so purchased its unabridged audiobook edition to allow for an immersive reading experience.

I enjoyed Lloyd’s 2020 debut, ‘The Memory Wood’ and so was excited to read his second novel. I also enjoy novels with themes linked to the sea. As this is a thriller I won’t say too much about the plot as I feel that these kind of novels are best read without too much prior information.

‘Life can change in a heartbeat’. We have seen protagonists like Lucy Locke before in psychological thrillers: a beautiful home, a great marriage with her devoted husband, Daniel, and two beloved children. Billie has just turned eighteen and is interested in studying marine biology and Fin is seven. Daniel co-owns a marine outfitting company while Lucy has established the Drift Net, an eatery that is also a live music venue.

So on this particular morning she is advised that the Lazy Susan, their family yacht, has been found abandoned at sea. Had it slipped its moorings or been stolen? No one is able to locate Daniel… and Lucy begins to wonder if he could have taken the boat. If so, why and where is he now? Then a major storm makes any rescue operation difficult. The situation quickly worsens plunging Lucy into a nightmare that has only just begun….

This was certainly a page-turner with a gripping plot that I felt unfolded very organically with plenty of surprises. The North Devon setting was atmospheric and stressed the symbiotic relationship between the sea with its unpredictable nature and those living in close proximity to it.

Overall, compelling storytelling and strong characterisation made this a cracking read. Certainly I will be continuing to follow Lloyd’s future projects.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

A really good read. Lucy's husband's yacht is found floating out at sea. Her husband is missing. Things get even worse for Lucy. Although the plot is somewhat unbelievable, Lloyd writes so well that the reader get drawn in. Once I reached two thirds I just had to finish in one sitting. I felt Lloyd had written for the enjoyment of the reader rather than just his own pleasure. To say there is a twist is an understatement.
This is an honest review of a complementary ARC.

Based in the small fishing village of Skentel on the North Devonshire coast, The Rising Tide is a complex and well-written thriller that mostly kept me on the edge of my seat.

I have quite a few deep dark fears in life and one of those is the sea, in particular being stranded/injured in the middle of it - this book absolutely reinforced that fear for me! It’s incredibly atmospheric and so easy to picture the author’s detailed descriptions of the in one moment calm looking, gentle waves and in the next second stormy and unforgivable whirlpool of horror.

The author is very clever in the way he depicts this story - you follow narrator Lucy’s unimaginable horror as she is told her husband is missing and expect the plot to unravel a certain way but instead you’re taken on a completely different path. Along with Lucy, the other prominent characters are bold and distinctive and really made the novel for me - especially D.I. Abraham Rose, who has his own demons to face. There are some extremely raw and heartbreaking moments within this story which, although upsetting, only add to an already powerful and evocative read.

The only reason I’m giving this book 4 stars is because I felt that it was a bit more of a slow start than I would have preferred - other than that, it was turbulent and engrossing and I would definitely recommend to thriller fans.

The Rising Tide is an excellently crafted, well-rounded thriller that is gripping all the way through. It is filled with nuanced and fascinating characters, sophisticated prose and enough plot twists to make your head spin. The ending especially, I found enthralling, fast-paced, original and poetically brilliant up to the very last page.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Lucy and Daniel Locke are the perfect successful dream couple. Daniel had a tough start in life, but he had worked hard and had a successful business with his partner until recently. Lucy, an artist, has a constant flow of customers for her pictures where she can display and sell them at the Drift Net Cafe, that she manages. Lucy has two children, a teenage daughter Billie, who she had before she met Daniel, and Fin who is seven, Daniel’s son.

The family live on the top of the cliffs overlooking the harbour at Skentel on the Cornish coast. When Daniel’s boat, The Lazy Susan, is found drifting and Daniel is missing, Lucy is determined to go out and find him. The weather takes a turn for the worse with no chance of it improving soon. The sea is rough and threatening. Then things go downhill fast when a further horrific discovery is made.

What a terrific story this is! My emotions ran high as my feelings were all over the place as more of the story unfolded. One of my favourite characters was DI Abraham Rose. Rose, quite a religious man, was hiding his secret. He didn’t take what he saw and heard at face value, he had a lot of experience on the force and had a sense of knowing when something didn’t sit right. Nothing about this couple felt right. They weren’t reacting as they should.

The story has plenty of depth, terrible consequences and strength, that can only be gained, with fight or flight situations. I couldn’t help but feel involved as so many chapters took my breath, whilst others made me cry. I liked this iceberg story, which had far more going on under the surface than I first thought. Cracking characters and story.

I wish to thank the publisher and Net Galley for an e-copy of this book which I have reviewed honestly.

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Memory Wood by Sam Lloyd I was very interested to read this follow up novel, which was very different.
Lucy and Daniel obviously have money problems but Lucy is adamant they have a strong happy marriage. And yet it seems that Daniel has taken their boat out to sea as a storm is brewing and tries to scuttle it. The descriptions of the sea and the storm are so evocative. As the story unfolds there is so much to learn about Lucy, about Daniel. The characters of Billie and Fin are endearing.
A real page turner, well worth reading.
Solid 4 star read.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Sam Lloyd/Random House UK for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book starts with a letter to Lucy … that was eerie as I am Lucy. Was the letter to me? Seriously, it was spooky! Luckily the letter was written to the main character of our story, Lucy Locke – a married mother of two who lives in a coastal Cornish village.
The story starts when Lucy’s husband’s empty boat is found drifting at sea. Things start fairly calmly, surely the boat just slipped its moorings or something? However it soon becomes apparent that Daniel had been on the boat … with the storm getting worse, Daniel is missing and so are the children …
Lucy’s worst nightmare is about to begin...
Overall this is an action-packed, fast-paced thriller with twists that come in just the right place. The pace of the books somewhat echoes the storm that is brewing … it starts slowly with increasing darkness, moves towards a sense of inevitability, a strange calmness at the centre of the storm & then more turbulence. It is realistic both in terms of a scenario that could happen (the boat drifting, the missing husband …) and the way people react in unusual circumstances. The ending didn’t work for me, but it wouldn’t stop me recommending it to others.

@TransworldBooks #TheRisingTide #NetGalley

Sam Lloyd’s debut novel The Memory Woods was a best seller, so his second, The Rising Tide was keenly anticipated. Another standalone story, it begins with a contented married woman with an idyllic life and happy family. Then her husband’s boat is found drifting at sea, yet no body is found. As things turn catastrophically worse, the police investigate and the details of their lives are revealed. With every twist and turn the mystery deepens, tension rises until a climaxing bloody finale. Lloyd is a masterful story teller, but the occasional religious reference in The Rising Tide is jarring and an unnecessary detraction. As a result, the ambiance suffers, the book is diminished and so only a three-star rating. With thanks to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and the author for an uncorrected proof copy for review purposes.

This book was very thrilling and kept me on the edge of my seat. I couldn't wait to find out what happened.
It was action packed from the very first chapter. Although there was something I wasn't keen on but I can't put my finger on it which is why I couldn't give it 5 stars!
Thank you to Sam Lloyd, NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

HOW DID IT COME TO THIS?

The news doesn't strike cleanly, like a guillotine's blade. Nothing so merciful. This news is a slovenly traveller, dragging its feet, gradually revealing its horrors. And it announces itself first with violence - the urgent hammering of fists on the front door.

Lucy Locke lives in the beautiful Cornish seaside village of Skentel with her husband Daniel, teenage daughter Billie and seven year old son Fin, life is good until one morning everything turns on its head when Lucy is told that their yacht has been recovered out at sea and Daniel is missing. As she is trying to figure out what happened a fierce storm is brewing, which is causing problems for the rescue operation, but things are about to get worse for Lucy as she realises her worst nightmare is about to begin...

The Rising Tide is an intensely, atmospheric read, the plot is perfectly executed by this author who takes the reader on a journey that is as turbulent as the storm that the rescue team are battling against. This is a fast paced, edge of your seat thriller that kept me guessing throughout, with twist after twist and very graphic descriptions, I was hooked from beginning to end. I loved Lloyd's debut novel, The Memory Wood, so was excited to read this one and it didn't disappoint. I highly recommend this chilling read.

I'd like to thank Random House UK Transworld and Netgalley for the approval, I will post my review on Goodreads and Amazon.

The 2nd book by Sam Lloyd following the brilliant The Memory Wood is a bit hit and miss for me.

A tragic story tells the tale of a manhunt for 2 missing children, taken out to sea in the worst of storms, he survives, but where are the kids?

The premise is great, the atmospheric, brooding tension is palpable through and it’s a decent well written story but it’s just a bit weird.

The characters are not nice people. I couldn’t like any of them. The detective is very unique to the point of cringe and the final denouncement is all a bit of a let down.

It’s a good read but just missed the Mark for me

This is the best book I have read in a long time, I stayed up late turning pages to find out what happened next. The story is horrific and also realistic to how people can behave in real life.

Throughout the book I had not really connected fully with the lead character but empathised with the situation and the children involved. When I read the end of the book I had tears in my eyes. I think this was brilliantly written and pulled on the heartstrings whilst keeping you on the edge of your seat. I would definitely recommend this to friends and family.