Review: The Dark Tide by Josh Lanyon

It's finally here: The long awaited fifth and final book in the Adrien English Mysteries series.  But does it live up to all the anticipation and hype?  Read on to find out!

Before I begin, for those who have been living under a rock, I feel I ought to mention that The Dark Tide is part of a series and cannot be read as a stand-a-lone.  If you haven't read this series yet you need to go HERE to Loose Id and buy the first book in the series: The Adrien English Mysteries: Fatal Shadows and A Dangerous Thing.  Then clear your schedule for a few days because once you read those you'll have to buy and read the rest all at once.  I'm not joking.

The Dark Tide picks up a few weeks after the end of The Death of a Pirate King.  Adrien is recovering from a combined bullet removal/heart surgery and is pleased to get back to some normalcy, whilst also frustrated at the weakness he still feels.  When a fifty year old skeleton is discovered during the renovations to his bookshop, Adrien becomes convinced it is linked to a series of recent attempted break-ins.  He calls on Jake, who now runs a PI business to find out who is trying to get into his shop and why, and to see whether there is a link to the dead musician discovered under the floorboards.

There are two plots which run through the book.  Firstly there is the mystery plot which was complex enough that I didn't guess whodunnit but also simple enough that it didn't detract from the main drama of the book: That of the relationship between Adrien and Jake.  The mystery was low-key and quiet without any of the urgency or drama of the previous books.  This was partly because it was a cold-case and, for once, Adrien is not under suspicion, and partly because of the change in Adrien.  In previous books Adrien has a tendency to hair off at a moment's notice into situations which could be potentially dangerous.  He asks difficult questions to murder suspects and has a devil-may-care attitude about his own safety.  In TDT Adrien has lost that attitude as he comes to the realisation that the surgery has made him well enough to live a long life - something he has never before expected to happen.  With this comes a fear for his own safety and a change in his previously reckless attitude.  He is also still recovering from major surgery, leading to a lack of stamina which puts the brakes on Adrien being able to go off on his own.  The upshot of this is that, for the first time, this is more Jake's mystery than Adrien's and it is Adrien who tags along with Jake rather than the other way around.  Jake is the one to put together the clues, to take the risks and I found Adrien's reaction to Jake putting himself in danger a mixture of amusing and ironic as he definitely didn't like it when the shoe was on the other foot!

For most of us readers though, the main attraction to this book is to see the closure of the story arc between Jake and Adrien.  This part of the book is all about Adrien as he spends a lot of the time reflecting on his past, especially the last three years since he met Jake.  To further complicate matters, a previous lover of Adrien's, Mel, appears back on the scene, interested in picking up where they left off a few years ago now that Adrien is going to be well.  Guy is also still about and still interested too.  As the book progresses, Adrien's thoughts are a tumble of confused feelings about his past with Mel, his friendship with Guy and his love for Jake.  Overarching all these thoughts is a sense of fear, mainly the fear of getting hurt again by Jake. This fear causes Adrien to think about the 'good times' he had with Jake - especially during the period in the book A Dangerous Thing - and then onto the 'bad times' - especially during the time towards the end of The Hell You Say and into DOAPK.  I felt sorry for Adrien and his obvious confusion and fear especially as he has always been such a strong man in terms of what he wants.  The fact that everything he has ever wanted for the last 3 years is now within his grasp and yet he is afraid to reach out and grasp it shows just how deeply Jake has hurt him by his actions in the past.

I've always liked Jake as a character.  Not as a person, but as a flawed and troubled character.  One of the things which I've always found frustrating and yet also admired about Jake is his determination to see his dreams though, no matter the cost to anyone else.  All those dreams have now backfired, or perhaps they have just changed as he sets aside the ideal (in his head) of a wife and family and finally, finally listens to his heart.  That same determination is still there but there's also fear as Jake calmly waits for Adrien to make up his mind about what he wants.  It's a very different Jake in this book to that in THYS: He's no longer leading a double life, he's more open and willing to talk about his feelings, but he's also making plans for the future should everything not go to plan.  I admired Jake greatly in this book and felt that, this time, it was Adrien who was the cruel one who plays with Jake's emotions - not deliberately, just as Jake didn't deliberately hurt Adrien in the past.  Again the irony of the situation was not lost on me.

I'm obviously not going to tell you what happens at the end of this marvellous book but I will say that it was a fitting end, a satisfying end.  Many of Josh Lanyon's fans are bemoaning the fact that this is the last book but after reading The Dark Tide I can honestly say I don't need to read any more.  The story is complete and I am quite happy to say goodbye to Jake and Adrien at the point I left them at the end of this book.

All that's left for me to say is that for fans of the AE books this is a must:  A fantastic book containing Josh Lanyon's stark, lean prose but crammed full of emotion and wit.  I can't recommend it highly enough with a grade of 'Excellent'.

Buy this book HERE.