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Shetland Sailing Mysteries
Shetland Sailing Mysteries
Series · 9 books · 2012-2021
By
Marsali Taylor
Books in series
#1
Death on a Longship
2012
When she talks her way into a job skippering a Viking longship for a Hollywood film, Cass Lynch thinks her big break has finally arrived - even though it means returning home to the Shetland Islands, a place she hasn't set foot on since she ran away as a teenager to pursue her dreams of sailing. When a dead woman turns up on the boat’s deck, Cass, her past and her family come under suspicion from the disturbingly shrewd Detective Inspector Macrae. Cass must call on all her local knowledge of Shetland, the wisdom gained from years of sailing, and her glamorous, French opera singer mother to clear herself and her family of suspicion - and to catch the killer before Cass becomes the next victim.
#2
The Trowie Mound Murders
2014
Book Two in the Cass Lynch Mysteries by Marsali Taylor. When a visiting yachting couple go missing from the Shetland oil capital of Brae, sailing skipper Cass Lynch overcomes her mistrust of the land world to ask for help from her old adversary DI Gavin Macrae. He discovers a link to international art theft, and warns Cass to steer clear – but when one of her sailing pupils goes missing, she goes alone to discover the secrets of the Neolithic tomb known locally as a ‘trowie mound’ ... Ghosts, folklore and a nail-biting finale at the local show come together to make an atmospheric, fast-moving thriller.
#3
A Handful of Ash
2014
Liveaboard skipper and amateur sleuth Cass Lynch is busy at marine college in Scalloway, until one night she finds an acquaintance dead in a doorway, whose hand is smeared with peat ash. Rumours spread of a strange ritual linked to the witches once burned in Shetland’s ancient capital, of horned figures abroad in the night, and townsfolk behaving strangely. At first Cass dismisses these as mere superstition, until there’s a second murder, and she begins to wonder if the devil really does walk in Scalloway …
#4
The Body in the Bracken
2015
The fourth instalment of Marsali Taylor's Shetland Sailing Mysteries. Cass Lynch has been persuaded to spend Christmas in the Highlands with her friend DI Gavin Macrae, but their romantic walk by the loch is cut short when they find a skeleton among the bracken. Back home in Shetland, Cass hears about Ivor Hughson, who left his wife and failed business months ago, and hasn’t been heard of since. A near-disaster aboard Cass’s yacht suggests someone wants to stop her asking questions about his disappearance. Meanwhile, there are eerie reports of sightings of a njuggle, a Shetland water-horse which drowns curious passers-by. Soon it’s taking Cass all her wits to stay alive …
#5
Ghosts of the Vikings
2016
Treasure hunters and opera stars collide in the north of Shetland in this latest of the Shetland Sailing Mysteries. Cass has embarked on a tentative relationship with DI Gavin Macrae and they are both invited to the gala opening of her mother’s new opera. The performance goes well but it is soon clear that things are not as smooth backstage. As the wind rises, and the power goes off, even Cass' much-loved yacht Khalida can't provide a refuge from a ruthless killer...
#6
Death in Shetland Waters
2017
Cass Lynch has achieved the post of third officer aboard her beloved ship, Sorlandet. They’re sailing from Norway to Ireland as part of the Tall Ship’s race when an unnerving early-morning encounter leads to suspicions that there’s a stowaway aboard – yet a police search finds nobody. Then one of the trainees goes missing ... Cass and DI Gavin Macrae find themselves up against a ruthless killer.
#7
Death on a Shetland Isle
2018
Readying her Norwegian sail-training ship, Sørlandet, 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.
#8
Death from a Shetland Cliff
2020
As summer draws to a close in Shetland, indomitable sailor Cass Lynch is preparing to look after eccentric, outspoken Tamar, who is returning from hospital following a fall. Recuperation should involve a peaceful week in Tamar's isolated cottage but, on arriving at the house, Cass finds there has been a break-in . . . curiously, only some old papers are disturbed. Then the body of a man is found in a cove close-by and while it looks to be an accident at first glance, suspicions are quickly aroused - and soon the police have a murder on their hands. At the same time, Cass begins to suspect Tamar knows more than she's letting on about her family's ties to the local laird. As the family start to gather, secrets won't stay buried for long . . . This eighth novel in the series brings Cass back to her home waters, where she becomes entangled in a family saga of greed, inheritance and hidden truths.
#9
The Shetland Sea Murders
2021
Marsali Taylor returns with the ninth gripping mystery in her Shetland Sailing Mystery series. While onboard her last chartered sailing trip of the season, Cass Lynch is awoken in the middle of the night by a Mayday call to the Shetland coastguard. A fishing vessel has become trapped on the rocks off the coast of one of the islands. In the days that follow, there's both a shocking murder and a baffling death. On the surface there's no link, but when Cass becomes involved it is soon clear that her life is also in danger. Convinced that someone sinister is at work in these Shetland waters, Cass is determined to find and stop them. But uncovering the truth could prove to be deadly . .
Author
Marsali Taylor
Author · 14 books