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Shetland Sailing Mysteries #7
Death on a Shetland Isle
Readying her Norwegian sail-training ship, Sorlandet, for a fresh voyage through the Shetland Islands, Cass Lynch has the shock of her life when the new third officer is a ghost from her past - the man she thought she'd left to drown in the Atlantic eleven years before.
Cass has an odd feeling about some of the new trainees: a slick city-boy, and a brother and sister. As her distrust of the newcomers deepens, two people go missing and a third is found dead. Struggling to confront the ghosts of her past, the deceased of her present, and the man of her future, Cass must out-manoeuvre the killer before she too becomes one of the victims.
Cass has an odd feeling about some of the new trainees: a slick city-boy, and a brother and sister. As her distrust of the newcomers deepens, two people go missing and a third is found dead. Struggling to confront the ghosts of her past, the deceased of her present, and the man of her future, Cass must out-manoeuvre the killer before she too becomes one of the victims.
352 pages, Hardcover
Published November 22, 2018
52 people are currently reading
107 people want to read
About the author
Marsali Taylor
39 books174 followersMarsali Taylor grew up near Edinburgh, and came to Shetland as a newly-qualified teacher. She is currently a part-time teacher on Shetland’s scenic west side, living with her husband and two Shetland ponies. Marsali is a qualified STGA tourist-guide who is fascinated by history, and has published plays in Shetland’s distinctive dialect, as well as a history of women's suffrage in Shetland. She's also a keen sailor who enjoys exploring in her own 8m yacht, and an active member of her local drama group.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
November 25, 2018
In August, I purchased Death on a Longship, the first book in this series, for all of 99p. However, due to a chaotic schedule, it wound up lingering in my Kindle unread until October half term when I finally allowed myself some time to relax and read for fun, not for work. After devouring the first book, I purchased the second, practically inhaling it and successive books in the series, happy to see that the series continued. Then I came to a sudden standstill. Book seven, Death on a Shetland Isle, wasn't yet published! I would have to wait a couple of weeks to see how Cass and Gavin's relationship was developing.
Yes, I started reading the first book because it featured a strong, independent female protagonist in what appeared to be a rather unique setting in the crime genre, but I've wound up becoming hooked due not only to Taylor's excellent plotting (she has managed to thwart me when I think I've solved the crime early on, so major kudos to her); her resplendent descriptions of her settings, including the accurate details regarding ships and sailing; and Cass's overall realistic character development. Although the crime plots are intricate and convincing, and the scenery makes me feel that I've been to these sites (although I've only been as far north in Scotland as Aberdeen, more's the pity), the human element has drawn out the hidden romantic in me. Whilst the more critical part of me is glad that Taylor is developing Cass and Gavin’s personal relationship slowly, which is natural considering their characterisations, especially Cass’s, another part of me is dying to know where it will go next and how it will happen.
In this instalment, Cass Lynch is now second mate on her beloved Sorlandet. With their team of new trainees, they are sailing from Norway to Shetland, where off-duty DI Gavin Macrae is using his holiday leave to meet up with her and serve as a trainee himself on their departure back to Norway. Of course, it couldn’t be Death on a Shetland Isle without an actual death, and Cass and Gavin are soon back in form to solve the crime. However, this time around, there’s a further complication when the ship’s new third mate turns out to be Alain, the man whose apparent death in the Atlantic she’d obsessed over, blaming herself for years. How does she come to grips with his sudden reappearance under a different name? Can she trust him? Is he who and what he claims to be? Could he be responsible for someone else’s death? How does she balance Alain being alive with her already seemingly delicate balancing act between her career and the sea with Gavin and the land?
Although the murder plots and the setting certainly aren’t easy to write, it’s how well Taylor draws her characters with words and makes them real people that confirms that Taylor has spent years teaching English. Years of compelling students to write in a believable manner themselves can have only helped hone her own style. It’s clear that she knows how to use language to birth her ideas in print and convince her readers of their legitimacy – that they are real. Her inclusion of Shetland dialect is authentic and wholly natural. After years of living far away from water, I’ve spent the past few years residing along the Solent, walking to my town’s quay and looking at all of the boats of myriad sizes coming and going with envy, and trying to find the means to get on any boat, even a ferry to the Isle of Wight, simply to feel that “sea air”. Although it’s only a microcosm of Cass’s need to be at sea, I can understand her yearning, thanks to Taylor’s well-composed prose. And also thanks to Taylor, although I’ve wanted to visit both the Orkneys and Shetland Isles for years to see their Viking ruins, I now yearn to make that hope true one day.
Yes, I started reading the first book because it featured a strong, independent female protagonist in what appeared to be a rather unique setting in the crime genre, but I've wound up becoming hooked due not only to Taylor's excellent plotting (she has managed to thwart me when I think I've solved the crime early on, so major kudos to her); her resplendent descriptions of her settings, including the accurate details regarding ships and sailing; and Cass's overall realistic character development. Although the crime plots are intricate and convincing, and the scenery makes me feel that I've been to these sites (although I've only been as far north in Scotland as Aberdeen, more's the pity), the human element has drawn out the hidden romantic in me. Whilst the more critical part of me is glad that Taylor is developing Cass and Gavin’s personal relationship slowly, which is natural considering their characterisations, especially Cass’s, another part of me is dying to know where it will go next and how it will happen.
In this instalment, Cass Lynch is now second mate on her beloved Sorlandet. With their team of new trainees, they are sailing from Norway to Shetland, where off-duty DI Gavin Macrae is using his holiday leave to meet up with her and serve as a trainee himself on their departure back to Norway. Of course, it couldn’t be Death on a Shetland Isle without an actual death, and Cass and Gavin are soon back in form to solve the crime. However, this time around, there’s a further complication when the ship’s new third mate turns out to be Alain, the man whose apparent death in the Atlantic she’d obsessed over, blaming herself for years. How does she come to grips with his sudden reappearance under a different name? Can she trust him? Is he who and what he claims to be? Could he be responsible for someone else’s death? How does she balance Alain being alive with her already seemingly delicate balancing act between her career and the sea with Gavin and the land?
Although the murder plots and the setting certainly aren’t easy to write, it’s how well Taylor draws her characters with words and makes them real people that confirms that Taylor has spent years teaching English. Years of compelling students to write in a believable manner themselves can have only helped hone her own style. It’s clear that she knows how to use language to birth her ideas in print and convince her readers of their legitimacy – that they are real. Her inclusion of Shetland dialect is authentic and wholly natural. After years of living far away from water, I’ve spent the past few years residing along the Solent, walking to my town’s quay and looking at all of the boats of myriad sizes coming and going with envy, and trying to find the means to get on any boat, even a ferry to the Isle of Wight, simply to feel that “sea air”. Although it’s only a microcosm of Cass’s need to be at sea, I can understand her yearning, thanks to Taylor’s well-composed prose. And also thanks to Taylor, although I’ve wanted to visit both the Orkneys and Shetland Isles for years to see their Viking ruins, I now yearn to make that hope true one day.
December 30, 2025
In terms of a crime story, this was fine. No gore, not much blood and no psychopath running around, but the plot was solid. The personal angle in the plot was also good . However, the real enjoyment in reading this was the description of Shetland and it's surroundings. Although I know nothing about ships or sailing, I could still appreciate the descriptions of life at sea and the work involved in being at sea.
The narrative was full of atmosphere and history which was really fascinating. The writing itself is relaxing to read and it's good to have emphasised the changes to islanders' lives which most people call 'progress' , but clearly are not - more like a threat of finality on a way of life.
The narrative was full of atmosphere and history which was really fascinating. The writing itself is relaxing to read and it's good to have emphasised the changes to islanders' lives which most people call 'progress' , but clearly are not - more like a threat of finality on a way of life.
May 24, 2025
Cass Lynch is sailing from Norway to Shetland where she will meet up with DI Gavin Macrae who will join the ship for the trip back while on holiday. Following the rather traumatic events of the previous trip, Cass isn't sure whether she is being paranoid when some of the new trainees act furtively. More worrying is the reappearance as third mate of a man she thought was lost overboard more than a decade ago, but her former lover now has a new name and show no signs of recognising her. I thoroughly enjoyed this instalment, the author's deep love for the Shetland isles and the ocean shine through and the slow development of the relationship between Cass and Gavin continues to draw me back. Highly recommend.
March 28, 2024
Slow to start but I good story line and a few twists
May 1, 2019
Love Shetland and loved this book
October 31, 2023
I've read a another of Ms Taylor's books about Cass Lynch, the betrothed (well she isn't quite yet in this book) of DI Gavin Macrae and I quite liked her. Ms Taylor is obviously a sailor because the descriptions of boats and the taking up and down of sails and lists of both high and low waters in the chapter headings are spot on (presumably to the tides in this book!). Cass is on a voyage with paying passengers learning to sail tall ships from Scandavia to the Shetland isles. One of the crew looks familiar, that's because she thought she had killed him some 11yrs ago (accidentally), so what was he doing on that ship with a different name and a different accent?
I enjoyed the storyline but not too much about the various ways you sail and berth a tall ship, or indeed any ship. The one character I have a problem with though is the second lead in this series Gavin her police officer boyfriend, they really just don't seem to be right for each other, she comes across as a bold woman who is very good at thinking on her feet, someone who has just entered her 20s and he comes across as a divorcee (not sure if he is!) in his 40s, every so slightly boring, he seems to be more of a dad-like figure. She is a much more interesting character, which is probably just as well as she's the leading one!
I enjoyed the storyline but not too much about the various ways you sail and berth a tall ship, or indeed any ship. The one character I have a problem with though is the second lead in this series Gavin her police officer boyfriend, they really just don't seem to be right for each other, she comes across as a bold woman who is very good at thinking on her feet, someone who has just entered her 20s and he comes across as a divorcee (not sure if he is!) in his 40s, every so slightly boring, he seems to be more of a dad-like figure. She is a much more interesting character, which is probably just as well as she's the leading one!
December 29, 2018
The 7th in the series. It's not unlike some of the others in plot and events, but none the worse for that. This voyage on the tall ship begins in Kristiansand in Norway and is mostly set in Shetland after that. There's quite a didactic element - you will learn a lot about Shetland history, customs and folk traditions, some of it handily conveyed by tour guides (including Cass). A mystery from her past is resolved. Probably better read in chronological order (for which you will need to track down the five which were published by a different publisher, not mentioned by the new one, which is a little bit naughty of them). Although everyone in Shetland seems to be well-informed about everyone else's business, there's still a sort of secret, or private, feel to the relationship with Gavin, perhaps because they often meet in remote places, including Cass's own boat. A few hints about how they might move on (although it's hard to see how the adventures can continue once some of their plans come to fruition!)
October 23, 2024
Happy to have found Marsali Taylor and I'll be going to read more of her books. Lots to like here in characters, scenery and its clear the author is a sailor as those scenes feel vibrantly real.
I have a bit of a but. The reader is asked to suspend reality a bit too often. 1. If your long believed dead former (amnesiac) boyfriend turns up do you immediately want to talk to him and alert his family to the fact that he isn't dead or do you keep that to yourself for a week. 2. You are being chased by a killer with a gun into a derelict house where you successfully hide. Your phone is dead so when the builders arrive do you a. use their phone to call the police, or b. run outside into the wilderness and try to make it back to town to evade the killer. It gets a little silly which is frustrating as the plotting is good and doesn't need to rely on these utterly weird character decisions.
Hard day of viewing corpses, running away from killers and lack of sleep? I know, take your friends toddler out dinghy sailing that's the obvious thing to do.....
I have a bit of a but. The reader is asked to suspend reality a bit too often. 1. If your long believed dead former (amnesiac) boyfriend turns up do you immediately want to talk to him and alert his family to the fact that he isn't dead or do you keep that to yourself for a week. 2. You are being chased by a killer with a gun into a derelict house where you successfully hide. Your phone is dead so when the builders arrive do you a. use their phone to call the police, or b. run outside into the wilderness and try to make it back to town to evade the killer. It gets a little silly which is frustrating as the plotting is good and doesn't need to rely on these utterly weird character decisions.
Hard day of viewing corpses, running away from killers and lack of sleep? I know, take your friends toddler out dinghy sailing that's the obvious thing to do.....
October 24, 2024
Okay, so I know that starting a series with the 7th book is usually not a good idea. But that's just the way it is. I'm conscious that my reading of any book set in Shetland must inevitably be influenced by Ann Cleeves' Shetland series, both books and TV adaptation.
We know, from the title, that somebody is going to die when the ship reaches Shetland. There is a rather slow set-up, which gives us several possible victims and several possible suspects. There was a little too much of the sailing technicalities, as well as Shetland history and tourist guide for my taste. But I expect plenty of readers of this series enjoy all that stuff. Strip it away and the story becomes quite simple. The book is divided into sections based on a Viking board game, with some similarities to chess. A game that requires strategy, attack, defence. All of which is displayed by the characters.
I managed to work out some of what was going on; but there were still twists I didn't see coming.
We know, from the title, that somebody is going to die when the ship reaches Shetland. There is a rather slow set-up, which gives us several possible victims and several possible suspects. There was a little too much of the sailing technicalities, as well as Shetland history and tourist guide for my taste. But I expect plenty of readers of this series enjoy all that stuff. Strip it away and the story becomes quite simple. The book is divided into sections based on a Viking board game, with some similarities to chess. A game that requires strategy, attack, defence. All of which is displayed by the characters.
I managed to work out some of what was going on; but there were still twists I didn't see coming.
January 30, 2019
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the other books in Taylor’s Shetland Sailing mystery series, but several of the elements of this one—particularly the resurrection of Cass’s former lover/sailing partner Alain were just lame. It makes Cass a less interesting person, makes her burgeoning relationship with DI Gavin McRae a more pedestrian romance, and detracts from an otherwise great plot twist. The description of Shetland and several of the subsidiary characters—especially the return of Peerie Charlie—remain delightful.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 29, 2021
This is a slow moving story featuring Cass Lynch (an officer on a Norwegian tall ship) and her lover who is a Detective Inspector with Police Scotland. I quite liked Cass and I enjoyed the descriptions of sailing and the Shetland Isles. There are a couple of murders but given that I have been reading detective stories for over fifty five years I had worked out who the murderer must be long before the reveal. There is a bit of excitement near the end but this is more of a cosy than a thriller. I plan to read some more of the author's books.
April 10, 2025
'Death on a Shetland Island' is the 7th book in the series by Marsali Taylor. The murder mysteries star sailing fanatic Cass who seems to have a habit of finding dead bodies. This one has only just come out and I downloaded it to my Kindle straight away. I started reading it yesterday and couldn't put it down until I finished it. I think it's the best in the series so far, though if you haven't read any of the books yet, I think it's better to read them in order as the backstories will make more sense.
December 18, 2019
This one veers partially from mystery into soap opera. The main mystery is about a brother and a sister who come aboard the Sorlandet, the ship Cass officers on, and have problems. The soap opera is the nonsense of Alain, the guy who died before the first novel is suddenly not dead. The mystery was good, the soap opera was an annoying waste. The first is a five, the second a one, so the book gets a three.
September 30, 2019
Cass Lynch is a mate on a sail training ship boarded in Kristiansand by some odd trainees and a new 3rd Officers who is an old lover she thought died 11 years ago. We follow the journey to Shetland and meet her new boyfriend DI Gavin Mcrae. Murder ensues and Cass once again finds herself at the heart of the investigation.
May 2, 2020
I treasure the Cass Lynch stories because they dare to be different. To be frank, I find the murders that lie at the heart of them rather lacklustre, but the glories of Shetland and the sailing – especially aboard the ship (in its precise sense) Sørlandet – are refreshing and engaging. Worth reading.
November 24, 2023
This is the second book I have read in this series. It takes place in a part of the UK that I love. Taylor’s descriptions of the beautiful scenery with the tall ship and the Shetland landscape are a joy to read. The murder plot gets a little complex as Cass finds herself embroiled in the plot which over stretches the imagination just a little. But nevertheless an enjoyable read.
February 5, 2019
Took me a little while too get into this book. It is about a sailor, Cass on a sail training ship. Parts of the plot are a bit far fetched. Like her ex lover she thought was dead coming back with no memory.
I might try another in the series to see if I can get a bit more into the characters
I might try another in the series to see if I can get a bit more into the characters
February 24, 2020
Loved this book as I did all the others, hopefully this is not the end of Cass and Gavin’s story ? If you love a crime story with a wee bit of romance thrown in, Shetland and sailing then these are the books for you.
June 12, 2023
still good if formulaic
These books are best read with some distance in between each one. But the richness of the detail and the fun and description of relationships make them worthwhile. You get a traveler’s view of Shetland and its environs thrown in.
These books are best read with some distance in between each one. But the richness of the detail and the fun and description of relationships make them worthwhile. You get a traveler’s view of Shetland and its environs thrown in.
July 21, 2024
Another great read in this series. The novel intertwines the mystery with seamanship terms and the personal lives and problems of the regular characters, an ongoing love story with murder thrown in, can’t wait to see where Cass and Gavin go next.
May 10, 2019
loved it ,and the location was a character in itself! One day I will get to
shetland.
shetland.
July 12, 2020
Too much technical sailing details Lots of Shetland description
June 14, 2021
Good twist, despite a few niggly inconsistencies.
Read
May 2, 2023Generally enjoyed it, a good plot with twists. Thought the sailing bits were realistic but got a bit bored by the tourist spiels.
May 8, 2023
I really tried to read this but I couldn't get into the story at all.
Just one of those books that wasn't my cup of tea.
Just one of those books that wasn't my cup of tea.
September 2, 2023
Gripping and enjoyable, with the well-loved characters.
April 21, 2025
Great series
I love this series of books. Love the characters and the descriptions of the islands and the history of them. Looking forward to the next one.
I love this series of books. Love the characters and the descriptions of the islands and the history of them. Looking forward to the next one.
June 6, 2025
There is a nice balance of challenges in Cass's life both personal and professional. The description of the characters have been done very nicely.
October 28, 2024
An unusual murder mystery, in that death doesn't appear until almost half way through, so the intrigue and tension are unlike anything I remember reading before.
Filled with vivid descriptions of the beauty of the Shetlands; plants, birds, wildlife and historical sites so clear you feel you are there.
I know nothing about sailing yet didn't feel left out by the seafaring elements of this story and I enjoyed being transported onto a tall ship that I could hear, feel and almost smell.
A satisfyingly twisty ride to untangle the guilty from the innocent and I LOVED the afterword and glossary. The author's love of the islands really comes through.
Filled with vivid descriptions of the beauty of the Shetlands; plants, birds, wildlife and historical sites so clear you feel you are there.
I know nothing about sailing yet didn't feel left out by the seafaring elements of this story and I enjoyed being transported onto a tall ship that I could hear, feel and almost smell.
A satisfyingly twisty ride to untangle the guilty from the innocent and I LOVED the afterword and glossary. The author's love of the islands really comes through.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews