Storm Child by Michael Robotham

 

Cyrus Haven and his housemate, Evie Cormac, are enjoying a day at the beach when they witness a distressing sight. The bodies of migrants are washed ashore, and the sole survivor tells of their boat being deliberately rammed by another. Evie is deeply affected by the sight and becomes catatonic due to reminders of her own past. As Cyrus helps the police investigation, the pair uncover more about Evie’s life.

Storm Child from Michael Robotham is the fourth book in the gripping Cyrus Haven series. The series focuses on the relationship between Cyrus, a forensic psychologist, and Evie Cormac, a young woman he has worked with to help her overcome the trauma of abuse. In the previous books, we discovered that as a child Evie was trafficked to the UK, a journey on which her mother and older sister died. Once in the UK Evie was tortured and sexually abused. When she was eventually rescued Evie couldn’t settle in foster care, her rebellious nature resulted in her being placed in a secure facility where she met Cyrus. As a psychologist, Cyrus was asked to try and help Evie. A strong bond was formed between the pair, with Cyrus becoming Evie’s guardian, giving her the opportunity to leave the secure facility and begin to heal. Cyrus has his own traumatic past and it is this past that has driven him to help others overcome their trauma.

Evie is still living with her past trauma, there are parts of her experience she is still not prepared to talk about, even to Cyrus. The sight of the bodies on the beach has a devastating effect on her, bringing on a catatonic state. As she slowly recovers, she forms a bond with the only survivor of the migrant crossing, Arben, a teenage boy, who is desperate to know if his sister survived. With help from Evie and Cyrus the police discover that the boat the migrants were in was deliberately rammed by a trawler after it refused to turn back towards France. Was this a far-right group taking matters into their own hands, or something far more sinister? They learn of the legend of The Ferryman, the person who controls all Channel crossings. For years it has been assumed he was just a bogeyman, used to frighten off people considering the crossing, but now it looks as if he may be real.

As the investigation digs deeper, Evie’s memories begin to resurface, memories she has kept buried because they are so painful. The threat of these memories being disclosed means that both Cyrus and Evie’s lives are in jeopardy.

A bittersweet conclusion offers Evie, and the reader, some answers to her past. Those answers are another step along the way to giving Evie the normal life she so desperately craves but feels she doesn’t deserve.

Storm Child by Michael Robotham will be published on 26^th June 2024 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown UK for a review copy.

Author Details

Michael Robotham is a former feature writer and investigative reporter, who has worked in Britain, Australia and America. His debut thriller, The Suspect, introduced clinical psychologist Joe O’Loughlin and sold more than a million copies around the world, launching a nine-book series. It has been adapted into an ITV series starring Aidan Turner. Michael’s standalone thriller The Secrets She Keeps has also been the basis of two BBC TV series. He has twice won the prestigious UK Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger Award for best crime novel, as well as the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for When She Was Good, a Richard & Judy Book Club pick. Michael lives in Sydney.