The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

From Goodreads

A murder on the high seas. A detective duo. A demon who may or may not exist.

It's 1634 and Samuel Pipps, the world's greatest detective, is being transported to Amsterdam to be executed for a crime he may, or may not, have committed. Travelling with him is his loyal bodyguard, Arent Hayes, who is determined to prove his friend innocent.

But no sooner are they out to sea than devilry begins to blight the voyage. A twice-dead leper stalks the decks. Strange symbols appear on the sails. Livestock is slaughtered.

And then three passengers are marked for death, including Samuel.

With Pipps imprisoned, only Arent can solve a mystery that connects every passenger onboard. A mystery that stretches back into their past and now threatens to sink the ship, killing everybody on board.

The breathtaking new novel from Stuart Turton, author of the The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, winner of the Costa Best First Novel Award.

My thoughts

My thanks to the Publishers via NetGalley for a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book that I have read by this Author.  I will be reading others by him in due course.

I gave this a 4 stars or 8/10.

This was an atmospheric tale of life at sea on a voyage to another land.  As the journey progresses, it becomes apparent to the people on board that life at sea not only holds danger from the water, but also from the other people on board.  At the heart of this story is a mystery and the passengers on board are all connected in some way, so it would seem.  Can the mystery be solved and will they survive the journey?

I found this a claustrophobic read at times, as everyone had nowhere to go during the journey they were stuck on a ship that was at the mercy of the sea and it's inhabitants.  It was a well written story that kept me guessing and took me on a journey of discovery.