Publication: 3rd July 2025 – Hemlock Press
Met detective Eden Driscoll never wanted a child, but when his estranged sister vanishes from her sailboat, he is asked to look after her son Finn – the nephew he hadn’t even known existed.
Resettled in the seaside town of Teignmouth, Eden adjusts to his newfound parenthood. Then Finn disappears from school, and Eden knows something is dreadfully wrong.
When Eden’s sister’s body is finally found, floating in the sea, local police rule her death an accident, but Eden isn’t convinced. She was an experienced sailor and would never sail without a life jacket. Eden starts searching his sister’s life for answers, and what he discovers changes everything.
The Red Shore is my first novel by William Shaw and it will not be my last. I read it in two days (unfortunately, work got in the way) and I loved it so much. The atmospheric setting, the complex and authentic characters, the twisty and suspenseful story, and the addictive writing kept me glued to the pages.
The protagonist of the novel is Police DS Eden Driscoll whose childhood and upbringing was as intriguing and intense as the mystery he must solve. At the beginning, he is a bit of a mystery, but slowly his past and his own character are revealed as he is called to the Devon seaside village of Teignmouth to take care of Finn, the nine-year-old nephew he didn’t know he had, following his estranged sister’s sudden disappearance. Eden hasn’t seen his sister, Apple, in more than 12 years, but when she disappears in the middle of the night while out in the sea with her boat, leaving behind her son, Eden not only must figure out what happened to her, but also take care of Finn, which is not an easy feat when Eden doesn’t want to be a parent and the only thing that Finn wants is his own mother.
The mystery of Apple’s disappearance kept me completely intrigued and the fact that almost every chapter ended with some kind of surprise or twist didn’t make it easy to stop reading it. I also loved the relationship between Eden and Finn: it’s difficult from the start, but I loved how Eden makes an effort to be there for Finn, even when Finn keeps pushing him away, and how their relationship develops.
I am hoping The Red Shore is going to be the first of a series featuring Eden Driscoll, and hopefully even Finn, and I am looking forward to reading more books by this author!
A huge thank you to Hemlock Press and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this fantastic novel.
William Shaw has been a journalist, writing for the Observer, New York Times and Wired, among others. He has written over 10 crime novels and has been shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger, longlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year and nominated for a Barry Award. His new series features DI Eden Driscoll, and is set in Devon
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