Deadly Tides by Mary Keliikoa - Book Review

Misty Pines Mystery #2

Publication Date: 24th Oct 2023

Genre: Small Town Mystery, Police Procedural 

3.7 Stars 

One Liner: Better than book one but slower too 

Misty Pines’ Sheriff Jax Turner is slowly getting his life on track. Of course, he is still struggling, and his ex-wife, Abby, doesn’t seem to be as interested in him. However, when the local surfing legend goes missing, Jax is busy gathering evidence and digging deeper. 

Abby isn’t having it easy, either. A severed foot washes ashore, which seems connected to another missing case. Since it falls in Jax’s jurisdiction, she hands it over to him but takes up the investigation at the FBI level as more clues turn up. 

As the waters get murky, Jax will have to find a way out and expose the layers of lies and agendas without risking precious lives in the process. 

The story comes in the third-person POV of Jax and Abby. 

My Thoughts: 

Reading books one and two together sure helped. This one is better and doesn’t try to bring ‘surprise twists’. Though there’s a sort of curveball, the killer and clues are pretty much aligned. 

Having Abby’s POV helped to an extent. We get to see both their perspectives about their personal lives. I also like that they are a work-in-progress, irrespective of the result. 

Jax is much better in this book. He is more in control, assured, and capable. True that he is still coming to terms and makes some mistakes, but I like his arc (possibly more than Abby’s). 

The mysteries go in parallel, and as new evidence comes to light, some things become clear, while some get murkier. The resolution is decent and not unexpected. A little more focus on the reason would have helped. 

Apart from recurring characters like Trudy, Troy, Dylan, and Jax’s team, we have two new entries- Olek (Abby’s FBI partner) and Rachel. It will be interesting to see how they contribute to the future books. 

Compared to book one, this one heavily leans on Jax and Abby’s past and present lives. There’s a reason for this. Nurse Margot, with her Maggi noodles curls, does her bit to keep the plot going. 

While the setting and descriptions are nice to read, this is a slow-burn mystery mixed with some police procedural. Unlike book one, it takes a long time for the plot to pick up pace. The urgency of the storyline is not replicated in the narrative style. This contrast makes it a little hard to stay interested.

The book does work as a standalone, but I am not sure how much readers can connect with Jax and Abby’s strained relationship. Though we get the basic information, some important snippets are not repeated, which could make the characters feel distant (depends, though). 

To summarize, Deadly Tides is an engaging slow-burn mystery with introspective themes like grief, healing, abandonment, family, relationships, etc. I like it better and will read book #3 next year (or whenever it is available). 

Thank you, NetGalley and Level Best Books, for the eARC. 

#NetGalley #DeadlyTides