The second book in this interesting police procedural series featuring DI Shone Oliver. This was an action packed read that kept me entertained all the way through. I particularly enjoy the RNLI aspect of the story, which gives this series an unusual twist. The characters are nicely developed from the first book. The only exception being Shona's husband, Rob, who I find to be rather a jarring element of the book. There were plenty of twists and surprises in the book but the final outcome was flagged up quite early on and wasn't a total surprise.
Overall, an entertaining read and I look forward to the next book in the series.

The second book in the series to feature DI Shona Oliver is set in the Solway Firth. Shona and her team are under pressure to find the killer of a local man found dead on an island off shore. The writing is good with some lovely descriptions and the book has a steady pace throughout. Shona's personal life is a bit up and down due to her errant husband and teenage daughter but I like how Shona is determined to overcome her personal problems. She really has to ditch Rob though! The plot was different, featuring MOD land and environmental issues. Overall, this is another very good read from the author. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

I read the first Shona Oliver book and really enjoyed it so I was delighted to receive the second in the series through Netgalley.

New case but many of the same characters. Some may find her a little cliché but I admire her as a high ranking police officer, wife and mother. She is flawed but hard working and always with good intentions.

Lynne McEwan has created a captivating character and I hope more books follow!

#2 Detective Shona Oliver, Dumfries and Galloway Force and a local lifeboat volunteer.

A nighttime mayday call from Kilcatrin Island in the Solway Firth summons the lifeboat where they find a badly burned man’s body and a seriously injured boy nearby. Shona quickly realises that their horrific injuries are from a World War II phosphorus bomb and that there are numerous other bombs bobbing near the sea shore. Later, Shona is informed that they have probably washed ashore from Beauforts Dyke a deep trench in the Irish Sea where they have been dumped many years ago. More grenades wash up on the local beaches forcing a public safety ban. What was the victim doing there and how did they get to the island as no boat or vehicle are found? Does the death have any links to local protests about the armament dumps in the trench? Kilcatrin Island is an MOD site, what do they use the island for?

First of all, the Beaufort trench is real as is the submerging of ordinance there since 1945 and so I really like the focus of this, raising awareness of something that environmentally should concern us all. Kudos to the author for this as I for one had no idea about it!

The plot is a good one, it’s solid and meaty with plenty of things to think about. The MOD involvement via inspector Wallace is a really good angle making this just a bit different from other police procedurals. His character is a good one and I really like the changes he undergoes, he really is an interesting guy!

The Shona family dynamics are interesting, frankly Shona, ditch the husband! Her daughter Becca and her teen rebelliousness as well as her understandable environmental concerns are really good as is the characterisation. There’s a diverse police team too, all of whom are well portrayed. There is tension and suspense and it twists its way to a good ending.

I’ve just one small quibble, I’m not 100% convinced Shona would be allowed to investigate the death because of personal connections but it is fiction and it is a good storyline so I’ll let it go!!

Overall, I enjoyed this one which keeps you entertained from beginning to end as well as dealing with pertinent issues.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Canelo for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Set in beautifully evocative Scotland, aptly-entitled Dead Man Deep is the second in the series with a focus on DI and lifeboat volunteer Shona Oliver, the cases she is in charge of and her family life. A man is discovered dead with an injured boy near by. What makes this so unusual is the discovery of hundreds of dangerous WWII phosphorous bombs in the water, not something encountered every day. The dead man is local and known by Shona as he was married to her friend. The impact on tourism and the environment is an important factor amid protests.

Shona's personal life is on the rocks as her young daughter is rebelling and her relationship with her husband could be better. He runs their struggling B&B but Shona's absence is a bone of contention. Shona's team of police and Inspector Wallace dig for answers and are met with a bevvy of secrets including illegal activity.
Local angst and suspicion cast long shadows. Neighbours, friends and spouses may think they know each other...but do they really?

My favourite aspects are the historical WWII incendiary information and the atmospheric sea setting which is almost a character in its own right. Shona's personality is irritating in my view but a good book needn't be full of likeable people. The political correctness felt a bit unnatural.

Police procedurals don't usually float my boat as much as other thrillers but the blurb on this one was irresistible. If you seek something a bit different, do add this to your to be read list.

My sincere thank you to Canelo and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this worthwhile book. I'm curious about what the author has in store for us next?

This is the second in Lynne McEwan's Scottish crime series set on the Solway Firth, featuring Dumfries and Galloway police officer and lifeboat volunteer DI Shona Oliver, receives a Mayday call coming from Kilcatrin Island, a bird sanctuary. Under skipper Tommy McCall, they set off on the Margaret Wilson, and upon the beach, badly burned by phosphorus, is the dead body of a man, and a 12 year old boy lies gravely injured nearby, he is taken to hospital. Strewn all around them are scores of WW2 incendiary bombs, presumably washed up by the tide from Beaufort’s Dyke, an offshore arms dump deep in the Irish Sea. If you are thinking this is pure fiction, think again, this terrifying historical dangerous practice is an all too true grim reality.

This results in Shona having to work with MOD Inspector Simon Wallace, their wary relationship develops into a much stronger one once it becomes apparent both want nothing but the truth. The dead man is Tony Carlin, a local fisherman, his son, Jamie, the child victim, Laura Carlin is a friend of Shona's, raising the question whether she will be able to be objective in an investigation that attracts an intense media focus. These nightmare events put an unbearable economic strain on locals, deterring tourists, in a despairing community already suffering hardships from the decline of the fishing industry whilst triggering environmental protests about the hazards below the waves. Once again, there is cross border co-operation with the able DC Dan Ridley of Cumbria Police that yields vital leads for Shona and her hardworking team of DS Murdo O'Halloran, DC Kate Irving, and DC Ravi Sarwar in an complex case that takes in illegal cockle operations, and the suspicious death of Emma Johnstone, blogger and journalist who Shona had thrown out of their B&B.

Shona's marriage to Rob continues to be problematic and her almost 16 year old rebellious daughter, Becca, is pushing boundaries making it difficult to protect her, wanting a nose piercing, threatening not to take her GCSE exams, and with her worrying relationship with 23 year old political activist, Willow Moon. These are not the only pressures Shona faces in this dark, intense, engaging and suspenseful addition to this terrific Scottish crime series with its wonderful sense of the beautiful Solway Firth coastal location. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

This is second book in the series featuring Shona Oliver, I was interested to see how the series progressed so was very glad to be given a chance to read this book before it was published. Thank you NetGalley

First off I will say this wasn’t for me, usually I love police procedural but there was something lacking here, there is a feel of Val McDermid and Cara Hunter but it doesn’t follow though.

The character of Shona is extremely annoying, I couldn’t take to her at all. The way she is written as some sort of rebel with a heart makes her come across as utter pain in the bum who is far up own backside. The story while interesting and unusual for me is over shadowed by dislike of the main character I also felt there was a lot mixed message with the writing of this characters McEwan I think is trying to be “woke” but actually times comes across as bigoted and sexist.

The story is good and is fairly well paced, I did find some points of the story going off in different tangents or focused too long on one section or things that were not relevant at all but there was plenty of substance in the story and some good twists however, I felt the ending was a bit too neat as was the case in the first book also .Throughout the story, the drama built up very slowly and speeded up considerably towards the end, I like in this a novel but here I found it did get tiresome in places.

The continuing story from the first book felt drawn out and boring here, the cast of characters felt very stereotypical and there was a bit of what I like to call cut and paste writing these flaws can be common in series as they progress but to see them book 2 puts me right off.

Not for me but I liked the idea of the book, writing needs vastly improved and characters need to be developed

Won’t be reading the next instalment but thanks for the ARC

Thanks to Lynne and NetGalley for allowing me to read Dead Man Deep before the publication date.
This is the first of Lynne’s books which I have read and it won’t be the last.

The story is set in the south west of Scotland in Dumfries and Galloway which is bordered to the west by the Irish Sea and to the south by the Solway Firth.

There are long held grudges harking back to 1942 when the MOD acquired large swathes of land to create a training area prior to the D-Day landings. Activists frequent the site and the surrounding area, causing disruption.

The fishing catches have diminished and there is anger about the Cumbrian boats which enter Scottish waters to collect valuable seafood.
Tourism is a welcome source of income but can equally be resented by the locals.

It is against that backdrop that incomer DI Shona Oliver has to investigate the death of a man found on Kilcatrin Island.
She is told that Inspector Wallace of the MOD police has been assigned to work with her on the case.
The question is whether he is there to help or to hinder the investigation.
With her personal life in turmoil, the arrival of an online blogger serves to cause more problems in the community and Shona’s life.

As the tension mounts, secrets will be revealed.

Shona’s team are a real mix of characters, with 2 DCs vying for the best assignments and opportunities to shine.
There is a sense of humour which runs through the book, not least when a dog is given the well-deserved honour of being Constable of the Week.
The use of Scottish phrases is also entertaining and I learned a few new sayings.
Looking forward to the next book in the series.

Living in the area is an added bonus when reading Lynne McEwan.
Excellent storyline and characters, so what moe do you need?
Next title can’t come quickly enough.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

It's the second in a series, but I had forgotten most of the first and it didn't matter. This starts with Shona being called out as a lifeboat volunteer in response to an emergency signal and discovering the dead body of her friend's husband on what is meant to be out of limits MoD land. The man's son is near him, horribly burned by a WWII phosphorus bomb. The fact that millions of military ordinances have been dumped in (or near) a trench in the ocean between Scotland and Northern Ireland seemed so appalling to me that I knew it must be true. I looked it up, and it is...

It was refreshing to read a novel where the MoD and army were reasonably helpful and co-operative, and I liked Shona's team. Her home life was more problematic to me: there is another police procedural series I read where the officer is a woman and her husband continually drags her down and lets her down and she goes on trying to make the marriage work, saying things to herself like, 'he's a good father'. I hate Rob and think she should leave him.

My only other issue with this novel was the way the community is so small that everyone knows every one and their business, Shona is allowed to investigate her own friends and the death of a woman who has been staying in B&B accommodation in her own home, and yet it has a sizeable police department.

Good book! This book had suspense, intrigue, action, Mystery! The storyline was very interesting and kept me glued to my kindle! I will definitely recommend reading this book as it was well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!