Holy Island cover art

Holy Island

The DCI Ryan Mysteries, Book 1

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Holy Island

By: LJ Ross
Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
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About this listen

Detective Chief Inspector Ryan retreats to Holy Island seeking sanctuary when he is forced to take sabbatical leave from his duties as a homicide detective. A few days before Christmas, his peace is shattered, and he is thrust back into the murky world of murder when a young woman is found dead amongst the ancient ruins of the nearby priory.

When former local girl Dr. Anna Taylor arrives back on the island as a police consultant, old memories swim to the surface, making her confront her difficult past. She and Ryan struggle to work together to hunt a killer who hides in plain sight while pagan ritual and small-town politics muddy the waters of their investigation.

Murder and mystery are peppered with a sprinkling of romance and humour in this fast-paced crime whodunnit set on the spectacular Northumbrian island of Lindisfarne, cut off from the English mainland by a tidal causeway.

©2015 L J Ross (P)2015 Audible, Ltd Cosy Crime Mystery Romance Romantic Suspense Murder Fiction Suspense

Critic Reviews

" Holy Island is a blockbuster." ( Daily Express)
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I'm genuinely surprised by reviews that rate this as well written. The plot and pacing is fine -- but the dialogue and characterisation is infantile and cliche-ridden compared with the best of British crime writing.

Childish and cliched writing but okay story

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Really enjoyed everything about the book, I can't wait to read the next one.

Best read

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First time I have listened to one of L J R oss"s books . Thoroughly enjoy
ed it, it is also good to have a little romance in the story. Will listen to more.

Murder mystery & a touch of romance.

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Having visited Holy Island, I looked forward to reading a thriller set in this stunning location, Sadly I found the plot fairly pedestrian - e.g. handsome, ‘masterful’ (rather misogynistic) detective meets distinguished historian and they get involved. Masterful detective crosses stormy seas to rescue fair lady just in time (with the knife about to descend into her chest) and thus rescues her from a cohort of drug addled persons. He subsequently (almost single handedly) arrests those persons responsible for three brutal deaths. All in all, despite the rave reviews, I found the story sadly stereotypical.

Story competently written but lacks originality

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A strange mix of cliche romance and bloody murder, Holy Island can't make up its mind what it wants to be. DCI Ryan is a TDH (tall, dark and handsome) hero that seems to have supernatural powers of detection, as well as seduction. He just has to appear in the room to make it all come together; no matter how obnoxious he gets, he just can't do anything wrong. It's the first in a series, so maybe the character evolves, if you are willing to give him another chance it might get better. I'm not sure I will give him another chance. I don't think I could ever tolerate him. Narrator is excellent and makes it bareable, otherwise I might not have gotten through to the end.

Mills and Boon meets Shetland.

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I took a while to get into this story but once I did I had to keep reading to find out 'whodunit '
I will definitely read the next book in the series.

Mystery

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Not sure I like the allusions to sexual attraction, trotting out chauvinistic tropes like a 70's pot boiler at times! the listen is easy and amusing but a little let down by the midsomerish style.

Midsomer with Sex!

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LJ Ross creates a world of mystery and romance well worth multiple visits. The characters and the plotting are expertly crafted and in this addition brought to life vividly by Jonathan Keeble.

Masterful Storytelling

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it wasn't a terrible story, but quite misogynistic, which was annoying. The little woman had to be protected, which annoyed me.

the mystery kept me listening to the end.

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I was surprised to find out this was published in 2014 and that LJ Ross is female. What begins as an interesting premise is often spoiled by a borderline abusive detective ‘hero’ perpetuating outdated notions of women. Any female under 40 is described regularly by their attractiveness to male characters and the promised expertise of sidekick Anna Taylor is all but ignored for her real role as love interest and victim who needs saving. Some of the secondary characters are interesting and the narration is excellent. I kept listening until the end but won’t be continuing with the series.

Fairly gripping but disappointing representation of women

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