The Shifting Tide by Anne Perry

  
   
  ★★★★½
 
GENRE:    Mystery
SUBJECT:    Black death, piracy
Setting:    London, England USA
CHARACTERS:    William Monk, Hester Monk, Clemen Louvain, Mercy Louvain, Margaret Ballinger, Squeaky Robinson, Inspector Durban
DATE READ:    March 8 - March 12
NO. OF PAGES:    336, 12 hours
Off the Shelf (pre-2013)? Source?:      Yes, AUDIO STOCKPILE
   
PLOT:...................................................................4.50
CHARACTERIZATION:........................................5.00
TOPICS:...............................................................4.50
STYLE:.................................................................4.50
ORIGINALITY:......................................................4.50
ADDICTIVENESS:................................................4.50
OWNERSHIP:.......................................................4.50
THRESHOLD QUALITY:.......................................4.50
Average...........................................................................................4.56
   
   
    William and Hester Monk continue to struggle financially - Monk trying to earn enough for their living expenses while Hester donates her talents and efforts to a women's clinic for sick prostitutes.  As the story opens, Monk is accepting a job, unlike his normal inquiries into murder but instead trying to recover a stole cargo.  Meantime, Hester and her fellow volunteers are put into a precarious position by non-other than the same man as Monk is working for.
   
The plot twists and intricacies along side the moral issues of the evets unfolding take the reader on a emotional roller coaster, first with Monk in trouble, then Hester, then the entire clinic.
   
The story was fantastic!