Kate Ellis appreciation post (updated)

At the time of publishing this post, there are 28 books in the Detective Inspector Wesley Peterson series, by Kate Ellis. The series began in 1998 and Ellis is still churning them out. I'll keep updating this post with reviews as I work my way through the catalogue.

The series follows DI Peterson's cases in a clever interweaving of the past and present, where the modern day crime draws parallels or is somehow connected to history. Wesley's archaeologist friend, Dr Neil Watson, is always on hand to dig up the past and explore the historical links to the crime Wesley is investigating. Kate Ellis produces solid and consistent stories in a quintessential British crime series set in a fictional town in Devon. Ellis is rather good at misdirection and even though the books aren't particularly suspenseful, they are cleverly written. I enjoy the journey each case takes the reader on and I like reading about the historical links to the current case.

I love the Britishness of the books and Kate Ellis's consummate writing skills. The one thing that irks me about the series, though, is the fictional town of its setting - Tradmouth - and bunch of other made up places Ellis uses. It's obvious that Tradmouth is supposed to be Dartmouth. The author tells us we're in Devon and she sets the action in other real places in England, so why not just pick a town, research it, and use it to anchor the novels? I find it jarring to see references to both real and fictional places. Buildings, castles, manors and so on, fine, but creating fictional towns in real English counties doesn't work for me.

That nitpick aside, I do enjoy the series. It's a bit like Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone alphabet series in that the books are a good read for the detective novel genre, with the bonus of an interesting and unique angle. In the alphabet series, it's the 1980s setting. In Ellis's series, it's the interconnections between past and present. There's a formula to the stories: Wesley begins to investigate a crime and Dr Watson simultaneously digs something up (literally!) that is linked to the case. There are flashbacks to the historical part of the story, often told as diary notes or other evidence from a discovered time. The series completely appeals to the history nut in me.

I'm not bothered by the formula, even though I've seen other reviews comment on it as a drawback. The formula works for me and it's what I've come to expect. I just suspend disbelief about the number of archaeological artifacts Dr Watson finds in the fictional town and their coincidental links to Wesley's current cases! Readers also need to be prepared to jump back and forth between the historical elements of the novel and the present-day action. I don't mind that but I have seen other reviewers comment that they find the time jumps distracting.

The books could not be described as fast-paced and action-packed. Like the alphabet series, they explore the solid (and sometimes mundane) process of investigating a crime, with the added interest of the historical connections. That said, the books always captivate my attention as they are well written, and they have lots of twists and turns and potential suspects. I don't usually figure out what is going on until the final pages of the books. As I noted above, Ellis is rather good at misdirection, albeit in a very understated way. Her novels are masterfully plotted, they explore dark themes past and present, and they move along at an even pace.

I like Wesley and the cast of supporting characters. It would be nice to see Ellis explore Wesley's Trinidadian background more to flesh out his character along with other aspects of his personality. There are hints at the racism Wesley has experienced as a black man, but this isn't explored and there are no examples of it in the books I've read. Wesley also lacks something unique and quirky that usually characterises fictional detectives and makes them interesting. I like Wesley because he is kind and charming and ethical and moral and stoic and practical (you get the idea), but he could do with a few flaws and foibles. The only dent in his armour is the unrequited yet ongoing attraction to his colleague, Rachel, but even that is a bit insipid.

The other detectives in Wesley's team are quite well fleshed out, but his wife, Pam, is a peripheral and undercooked player. There are snippets of Wesley's home life to show his life outside of police work, but I can't really warm to Pam. She's kind of meh, to be honest, and there isn't any "literary chemistry" between her and her husband. Their relationship is pretty tepid. That's my impression to date, anyway.

Below are my reviews of the books I have read so far. I'll keep updating this post as I read more of the books. The reviews are listed in order of publication, not in order of my reading.

The plague maiden | Book 8 | Published January 2004

The plague maiden centres around a letter that arrives at the police station claiming to have evidence that the man convicted of murdering the Reverend Shipbourne in 1991 is innocent. That case is played out along with the investigation into a series of blackmail poisoning attacks on a local supermarket. The historical link relates to The Plague, but to say anything else would be to spoil. I found novel number 8 to be a cracking crime novel and I had no idea what was going on until the very end. It's a well crafted story about secrets and lies and human weakness.

The shroud maker | Book 18 | Published January 2014

The shroud maker is set at the time of the annual medieval Palkin Festival, held to celebrate the life of John Palkin, a 14th century Mayor of Tradmouth who made his fortune from trade and piracy. The previous year's festival was marred by the mysterious disappearance of Jenny Bercival and a year later, Wesley is called in when the body of a strangled woman is found floating out to sea in a dinghy. There are a bunch of connections that Wesley discovers. The historical one links to Dr Watson's archaeological work that uncovers Palkin diaries. There's also a link in the case to a fantasy website called Shipworld which features Palkin as a supernatural hero with a sinister, faceless nemesis called the Shroud Maker. Book 18 is my least favourite of the books in the series I've read so far. The story is intriguing and complex, I just found the ending ambiguous and I'm not sure I properly understand what happened.

The house of eyes | Book 20 | Published February 2016

The house of eyes is set in a castle with a creepy history that a wealthy local family is determined to protect. They feel compelled to continue this protection when a woman goes missing from the castle, now converted into a luxury hotel. A connection is uncovered between the woman's disappearance and that of two girls in the 1950s. There are lots of interwoven threads and plenty of misdirection, as is usual for the author. It's central theme - protecting one's family no matter what they do - is an interesting one to ponder. The list of suspects isn't as long as usual so the Great Reveal isn't as suspenseful as in other novels, but I still enjoyed the story.

The mermaid's scream | Book 21 | Published February 2017

In The mermaid's scream, Wesley begins an investigation into the deaths of a man and woman in a caravan park that looks at first glance to be a suicide pact. The spotlight in the town is also on reclusive author, Wynn Staniland, whom it everyone believes stopped writing in the 1980s after his wife's bizarre suicide that mirrored a 19th century murder case. Added into the mix is promising young author, Zac Wilkinson, on Staniland's trail to complete a biography of the author. Dr Watson becomes involved when he is asked to excavate an old manor at the request of one of the descendants of the man who was accused of the aforementioned 19th century murder. The mermaid's scream is quite complex, with lots of bits going on that tie together eventually. I enjoyed this one as it kept me guessing and I didn't figure out the ending. Nice misdirection, Kate Ellis!

The burial circle | Book 24 | Published February 2020

The burial circle focusses on a cold case murder. A skeleton of a young woman is discovered after a storm blows a tree over and reveals the remains and the woman's personal effects. The links to the past come in the form of the sinister history of The Mill House where the new owners are holding a supernatural weekend run by a famous television psychic. As the story progresses, the reader learns how the cold case death is connected to the present-day events at the Mill and the reasons behind the 1882 murders. I enjoyed all the twists and turns in The burial circle, and being surprised as the ending drew near. I thought I had it figured out, but I was wrong. A great read and my second favourite of the ones I've read so far.

The stone chamber | Book 25 | Published August 2021

In The stone chamber Wesley investigates the shooting death of Robert and Greta Gardner in their home in the Devon countryside. At first it seems the deaths might be linked to Robert's past life in law enforcement until a new link is found to a tour of Darkhole Grange, a former Dartmoor asylum, for which the Gardners had been sent complimentary tickets. The historical link comes from Dr Watson's discovery of a woman's skeleton in a sealed 15th century chamber. This book was chilling and quite disturbing, largely because of what is uncovered about the asylum's history. The stone chamber is a cracking read and my favourite of the Peterson novels I've read so far.

Serpent's point | Book 26 | Published August 2022

A woman is murdered on the coastal path at Serpent's Point where a film is being shot at a creepy house on the headlands. Dr Watson is digging up Roman artifacts near the film set. In this one, the historical part of the novel is not as closely connected to the present-day crime as usual. That said, the archaeology reveals the interesting history behind Serpent's Point. The murdered woman is conducting an amateur investigation into the disappearance of her friend, having made connections between it and other women's disappearances. It's clear that someone is tricking the women into marriage and disposing of them once their money is handed over, but there's the usual list of suspects and plenty of misdirection to keep you guessing. I liked this one as I was totally behind the murdered woman's friend and her quest to find the truth.

The killing place | Book 27 | Published August 2023

Number 27 has all the usual Kate Ellis elements that I love. It is another cracking story, in the quintessential British detective style, with an even pace to the homicide case's conclusion, loads of misdirection, and an outcome I did not guess.

Wesley and his colleague, Gerry, are investigating the murder of private tutor, Patrick North, shot dead in the woodlands on the grand estate where his sole pupil, Darius Smithson, lives. There is a line of possible suspects and several people who may have wished North harm. The book takes the reader on a journey through the investigation, along the way adding another murder into the mix, a possible kidnapping and ransom, and the seedy activities of the local drug scene.

As in all Wesley Peterson novels, there is a parallel historical story that is linked to the present-day case. Wesley's friend and archaeologist, Dr Neil Watson, discovers a hidden grotto on the Smithson estate and a two-hundred-year-old skeleton. This discovery allows Ellis to weave chapters from the past into the story, using the diary of a 'wild man' living in the grotto who was eventually hanged for stabbing to death the owners of the estate at the time.

If nothing else, Ellis is consistent, and after 27 novels, she is still producing intricate stories with clever plotting and familiar characters. While the books are not dark in the Scandi noir sense, there are still quite disturbing crimes that Wesley investigates albeit in his unflappable kind of way. The historical connection, too, always adds a macabre dimension to the present-day action. There is nothing over-the-top or suspenseful about the series, but Ellis does a good job of producing a solid police procedural each time. There is comfort in knowing I will find her books satisfying and interesting.

Coffin Island | Book 28 | Published August 2024

Coffin Island of the book's title is the tiny (fictional) island of St Rumon's, joined to the mainland by a causeway that can only be crossed when the tide is low. Storm erosion reveals three bodies buried in the local churchyard. Two of the skeletons are ancient and the third is more recent.

The book takes the reader on a journey to discover the identity of all the remains and find out who killed them. The ancient bones draw Dr Neil Watson in, of course, and his archeological digging reveals a sixteenth-century journal that tells a disturbing tale of strange rituals and gruesome deaths. There are new murders on the island for Wesley to investigate and a complex story that leads to the perpetrator, involving the island's self-styled archaeology expert (a complete d**k), a bunch of eccentric church bell ringers, and a local builder.

Kate Ellis is her usual reliable self in book 28 and one has to marvel at her storytelling ability that has kept the series chugging along for so long. Wesley Peterson is absolutely a comfort read for me but always a fascinating journey to the story's conclusion, even if the pace doesn't have me on the edge of my seat. It's more like a slow but compelling stroll to the end, with a bunch of well-drawn characters in each case. Pam, Wesley's wife, is still boring, but you can always rely on Dr Watson and Gerry, Wesley's boss, to liven things up.

Wesley Peterson rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐