‘The Long Water’ by Stef Penney

Published by Quercus
4 July 2024.
ISBN: 978-152942567-3

It’s May in Nordland, the land-locked north of Norway within the Arctic Circle, at the town of Fauske by the long water within a former mining valley. The oldest pupils in the school are high with expectation of freedom at last. The pranks are mostly harmless, but four boys known as the Hellraisers are pushing to see just how much they can get away with. Until one of them goes missing in the mountains...

This complex, atmospheric thriller is a wonderful read. The small-town feel is created by a large cast of characters, all interconnected, and the narration moves between them. After a prologue introducing us to the area, the oldest of them takes over. Svea, who’s the only first-person narrator, lives alone with her dog, going only occasionally into town to meet up with an old schoolfellow, Odd Emil. It’s clear she has baggage from her past: a Nazi father, a bad relationship with her mother, a sister who went missing, an estranged daughter. Svea and Odd Emil’s grandchildren go to school together: Svea’s grand-daughter Elin is another key character, living with her pastor father, Eskil, and negotiating the difficulties of today’s teenage world by declaring herself gender-fluid, a state which Penney treats with subtlety and understanding. Another third-person narrator is Elin’s best friend, Benny, also in a single-parent family; his mother teaches yoga and runs a walking-centre up in the mountains. The children’s teacher, Marylen, is Eskil’s love-interest, and Elfin’s mother also reappears, once the valley is news-worthy enough to interest her journalist boyfriend. It’s a slow-burn novel: the boy going missing is announced in the prologue, and then Penney takes us back to meet all the characters and find out about their lives. Once the boy disappears, we’re plunged right into what it means to the whole community, and the cast is joined by Hanne Duli, the local police inspector charged with running the investigation. The landscape is beautifully described, and the Norwegian way of life brought out. The pace picks up once the boy goes missing, and we gradually realise nothing is as simple as it seems. The book ends in a surprising double-twist.

This is an unusual crime story, more like a novel, with a vividly-described setting and interesting characters, particularly the young people – we were taken right into the heart of their complicated lives in today’s world. The plotting was clever, and the ending satisfying. Highly recommended.
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Reviewer: Marsali Taylor

Stef Penney is a film-maker and writer. She grew up in the Scottish capital and turned to film-making after a degree in Philosophy and Theology from Bristol University. She made three short films before studying Film and TV at Bournemouth College of Art, and on graduation was selected for the Carlton Television New Writers Scheme. She has also written  and directed two short films; a BBC 10 x 10 starring Anna Friel and a Film Council Digital Short in 2002 starring Lucy Russell. Also writes Historical Mystery & General fiction, 

Marsali Taylor grew up near Edinburgh, and came to Shetland as a newly-qualified teacher. She is currently a part-time teacher on Shetland's scenic west side, living with her husband and two Shetland ponies. Marsali is a qualified STGA tourist-guide who is fascinated by history, and has published plays in Shetland's distinctive dialect, as well as a history of women's suffrage in Shetland. She's also a keen sailor who enjoys exploring in her own 8m yacht, and an active member of her local drama group.  Marsali also does a regular monthly column for the Mystery People e-zine.

 Click on the title to read a review of her recent book Death At A Shetland Festival

www.marsalitaylor.co.uk