"The Crew" by J.M. Hewitt

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cruises, secrets at sea, and murder? Count me in! I love books that are set on Cruise Ships, so I was happy to receive this ARC. "The Crew" by J.M. Hewitt takes place in Greece after the epidemic hit the world, revolving around a few protagonists.

The book begins with a bang - a murder, no less - and then moves forward a year to the present time. Ella, the chief stewardess on the superyacht Ananke, and the rest of the gang come back to the superyacht after the death of a crew member a year earlier rocked their world. When Ella finds the diary of the dead deckhand, where it states she believes to be stalked, Ella suspects the deckhand was murdered by one of the crew or even the guests.  The plot thickens when Ella finds out the dead girl wasn't what she seemed to be, nor is Ashley her real name.

We then move backward into the past, following the story of two orphaned girls, Robyn and Annie, who came to Greece for a new beginning. The middle section details the events that led to the murder in the first act. The book is written in the third person POV and split into six sections, in alternating timelines. The middle part of the book develops slowly and, very methodically, creates an increasing sense of paranoia one can almost feel. The story comes full circle in the last section, tying together all the threads.

The plot was gripping, and I definitely felt emotionally invested in what was going on.
The author has done a fine job of interweaving the various storylines. The book explores several themes, such as revenge, loyalty and friendship, crime and its consequences. While my suspicions about the guilty party were correct, despite the red herring the author threw our way, I didn't guess the motive and the ending left me agog.

My favorite sections were those that took place on the yacht. I enjoyed reading the descriptions of life on the yacht and all it contained.  I liked Ella and her backstory added another layer to the plot. While I liked Annie, I did think she was too naive for her own good, letting herself dance to her friend's tone. Also, their illegal entry into Greece made me raise my eyebrow. Their reasons for doing so were unconvincing, but then it was a necessary part of the arch of the story to explain their desperate circumstances and their following actions.

I enjoyed the book and will be glad to read more books by this author. I thought to rate the book 4 out of 5 stars due to the slow-paced middle section, but the brilliant last section changed my mind. I found this a unique and original concept and rate it 5 out of 5 stars. I recommend the book to those who are looking for something different in their books and love mysteries at high seas.

* Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc.  All opinions are my own.


* For more info about the book: "The Crew" by J.M. Hewitt