The Shifting Tide

Even more than usual in this book, Ms. Perry creates deep, intense relationships among unlikely characters as they fight a variety of battles. Her writing is so descriptive one can smell the river with Monk, and feel the despair Hester feels as people die and she can do nothing to prevent it. Just as one part of the story has wrapped up, and the reader feels that things are wrapped up, another avenue opens up. The end was totally unexpected. Definitely one of her very best to date.

I found Anne Perry almost 20 years ago (to the best of my memory), when her Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series was just beginning and the Monk series didn't exist yet. I have read them all, thoroughly enjoyed them all, but let's face it -- after more than 30 books set in roughly the same time period, some of them tend to feel a bit repetitive (to the point that I get confused when I go to buy the latest paperbacks). Not so "The Shifting Tide." I don't care what other reviewers here have said about unbelievable characters and historical inaccuracies; this is FICTION, and brilliantly drawn. You see the sights, feel the emotions, believe in the characters. In addition, you experience the concerns and perspectives of an entirely different era as if you were there (when was the last time you seriously tried to envision a plague epidemic?). Finally, the sweet parts are genuinely sweet, but when it's time to visit the dark side, it's a dark and nasty vision that sticks in your head after you close the book. In my opinion, this is by far Perry's best novel yet. I LOVED it and can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

This is an exceptional book. The relationship between Monk and Hester has deepened and Ms. Perry enables the reader to feel that relationship. There is a sense of place that makes part of Victorian London, excellent plotting and wonderful characters including strong secondary characters. But most of all, you feel the threat and courage of the characters when placed in an overwhelming situation. I've been a fan of Ms. Perry since her first book but had to warm up to the Monk series. This book not only convinced me about the series but I believe this is the best book she's written to date.

Gather your cats/dogs/children and spouse/significant other, and firmly let them know that for the next 3 to 5 hours, YOU ARE NOT TO BE DISTURBED. And then, unplug the 'phone, pour yourself a thimble full of good port, make for your comfy chair and make your comfortable. For Anne Perry has written another gem that you simply cannot miss!! True, where the mystery subplot is concerned, things may be a little lacking; however if you look at the novel as an examination of human nature, at the unexpected strengths and hidden frailities of the characters involved, "The Shifting Tide" then becomes the compelling must read novel that it rightly is, whether or not you are a mystery buff.William Monk has been hired by shipping magnate Clement Louvain to recover a shipment of ivory tusks stolen from his schooner, the Maude Idris. Normally, Monk would stay away from a case in which he is at such a disadvantage (Monk may know the streets of London very well, but he knows next to nothing about the river, the docks or the wharfs), but money is low and the need dire, so that in spite of his reservations, Monk agrees to take on the case. Louvain wants the stolen shipment found quickly and without the involvement of the River Police -- an especially tricky combination when murder is thrown into the mix, for the thieves had bashed in the head of one of the sailors keeping watch aboard the Maude Idris. Even stranger, Louvain is not at all interested in seeing that the murderer is apprehended and goes so far as to forbid Monk from wasting his time going down that road. Now why would he do this? Surely the murderer was one of the thieves? Monk senses that Louvain is keeping a great many things from him. A suspicion that grows when he learns that Louvain has taken a desperately ill woman (whom he claims is a friend's ex-mistress) to Hester's free clinic. But what neither Monk nor Hester anticipated was the nightmare that would soon unfold, and that would threaten their lives and happiness...Mystery-wise, "The Shifting Tide" while intorguing was a little touch and go -- not too many cunning plot twists or sinister red herring culprits for Monk to track down. Even the usually tense courtroom scenes where Sir Oliver Rathbone is centerstage is absent; this time a healthy chunk of the novel is devoted to what Hester and her helpers go through as they battle illness, fatigue and their own inner demons. And yet what a suspenseful read "The Shifting Tide" was! The sense of time ticking away and of lives hanging in the balance was always there; and that together with the colourful and vivid characters that the authour created made this a very compelling read indeed. But most of all it was her portrayals of the unexpected inner strengths and nobility that the unlikeliest of characters exhibited, and her portrayal of human frailities, that made "The Shifing Tide" a memorable and worthwhile read.

I thought this was one of the best in what I have always felt was the author's best series. The action in this book is non-stop, and the emotion, which has always been a high point in this series, is palpable. I also feel, like another reviewer, that this was the best portrayal of the Hester/Monk relationship, and I really liked the payoff for the Rathbone character. The way this book tied up loose ends and resolved stories, it could actually be a fitting end for this series, although I certainly hope the author has many more Monk books in her.

I have shamelessly enjoyed every single Monk story that Ms. Perry has written. The Monk series has always been my favourite of her two long-running series, but this book is the best Monk story that I've read. The craftsmanship that Ms. Perry puts into each of her books is so very apparent in this one. She shows pure genius in her character and plot development. In this book we see Monk and his Hester working separately on what appears to be too separate catastrophic events, but as the story goes on, it is apparent that both are connected. Hester is fighting the battle of her life against a very real foe of disease in her clinic, and Monk is out on the River trying to solve a theft and trying to piece together what actually happened on the Maude Idris. We see some real growth in some of the regular characters, but we also meet some very strong minor characters in this book - for example - the cold and ruthless Clement Louvain; the very likeable Durban (a member of the infamous River police that Monk really feels an affinity for); and Sutton the Ratter - one of the best characters in the book. This book held me spellbound from beginning to end. The pace in the book is relentless, and when I finished it, it left me feeling strangely empty. I can't wait for another Monk book!