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Mark Douglas-Home
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The Sea Detective Kindle Edition

by Mark Douglas-Home (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 out of 5 stars 3,224 ratings

Discover the chilling first mystery in a truly unique crime series you won't be able to put down

'There comes a time when a novel raises the bar for a particular genre, and The Sea Detective does just that for Scottish crime fiction' SCOTSMAN
______

Cal McGill is an Edinburgh-based oceanographer, environmentalist and one-of-a-kind investigator.

Using his knowledge of the waves - ocean currents, prevailing winds, shipping records - McGill can track where objects have come from, or where they've gone.

So when two severed feet wash up miles apart on two different islands off the coast of Scotland, he

Most strangely, forensic tests reveal that the feet belong to the same body.

As Cal McGill investigates, he unravels a web of corruption, exploitation and violence, which threatens many lives across the globe.

Including his own . . .
______

'Raises the bar for Scottish crime fiction . . . elegantly written and compelling' The Scotsman

'Excellent' The Literary Review, 'Top Five Crime Books of the Year'

'Promises to be a fine series of detective novels' Sunday Times 'Crime Book of the Month'

'An unusual, interesting and enthralling read' Shotsmag

'A compelling protagonist' The Times Literary Supplement

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  1. Book 1 of 4
    The Sea Detective
  2. Print length
    289 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Penguin
  5. Accessibility
    Learn more
  6. Publication date
    5 Nov. 2015
  7. File size
    2.0 MB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Shop this series

 See full series
There are 4 books in this series.

Product description

Review

An unusual, interesting and enthralling read (Shotsmag)

Excellent (The Literary Review (Top Five Crime Novels of the Year))

A compelling protagonist (The Times Literary Supplement)

Promises to be a fine series of detective novels (Sunday Times Crime Book of the Month)

Raises the bar ... elegantly written and compelling. A crime writer to watch (The Scotsman)

From the Back Cover

The First Sea Detective Mystery

Cal McGill is an Edinburgh-based oceanographer, environmentalist and one-of-a-kind investigator.

Using his knowledge of the waves - ocean currents, prevailing winds, shipping records - McGill can track where objects have come from, or where they've gone. It's a unique skill that can help solve all sorts of mysteries.

Such as when two severed feet wash up miles apart on two different islands off the coast of Scotland. Most strangely, forensic tests reveal that the feet belong to the same body.

As Cal McGill investigates, he unravels a web of corruption, exploitation and violence, which threatens many lives across the globe - very soon including his own...

'A new, thoroughly modern, hero in the crime fiction canon' The Scotsman

'Always entertaining and gripping' The Herald

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00X8ZFG7Q
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 5 Nov. 2015
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ UK ed.
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.0 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 289 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1405923576
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Book 1 of 4 ‏ : ‎ The Sea Detective
  • Customer reviews:
    4.2 out of 5 stars 3,224 ratings

About the author

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Mark Douglas-Home

Mark Douglas-Home

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Mark Douglas-Home is a newspaper editor turned author. His first novel, The Sea Detective, introduced a new kind of investigator to crime fiction - an oceanographer who tracks floating objects, including dead bodies. It was a Sunday Times crime book of the month and was followed by The Woman Who Walked Into The Sea ('simply intoxicating,' the Library Journal in America) and The Malice of Waves, ('stewing pot of intrigue and mystery,' lovereading.co.uk.) The fourth in the series, The Driftwood Girls, was published in January 2020 ('A first-class mystery . . . satisfying, intelligent and compelling, perhaps the finest, so far, of the Sea Detective series,' The Scotsman). Before writing books, Mark was editor of Scotland's leading daily newspaper, The Herald, and The Sunday Times Scotland. When he was Scottish correspondent of The Independent he reported on the Lockerbie and Piper Alpha disasters. His career in journalism began as a student in South Africa where he edited the newspaper at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. After the apartheid government banned a number of editions, he was deported from the country. He is married with two children and lives in Edinburgh.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
3,224 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find this book to be a cleverly plotted tale with intriguing twists and turns, featuring well-crafted characters that are easy to relate to. Moreover, the story rolls along at a lovely pace with three strands that come together nicely, and customers appreciate the detailed oceanography and fascinating facts about tides and weather. Additionally, the writing is well-executed, and customers say it keeps them interested from start to finish.

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Story qualityReadabilityThought provokingBelievable charactersPacingWriting qualityInterestOceanography
202 customers mention ‘Story quality’177 positive25 negative

Customers find the book's story compelling and cleverly plotted, with twists and turns that keep readers engaged.

"...There are three or four sub plots and the author, in my view, does a great job of keeping them all moving along at a good pace...." Read more

"...This is a detective story with a difference...." Read more

"...and flying a futuristic Eco flag...and you have the starter for a thrilling plot...." Read more

"...Some novel twists as one reads which adds to the interest and the conclusion is well handled...." Read more

188 customers mention ‘Readability’188 positive0 negative

Customers find the book very enjoyable and well done, with one describing it as a real page-turner.

"...and its's a great book, with its unusual hero, Cal McGill an oceanography PhD student and environmental campaigner, although disappointingly we do..." Read more

"...Anyway, after this rather inauspicious start it turned out to be a really good book!..." Read more

"...Brilliant will read again and probably more than once" Read more

"...The beginning is dramatic and tense and promises for a good read...." Read more

98 customers mention ‘Thought provoking’98 positive0 negative

Customers find the book thought-provoking, describing it as an enthralling tale with intriguing mysteries and interesting twists, with one customer noting it's more engaging than typical mill detective stories.

"...It's a really good adventure and the main protagonists are well drawn characters...." Read more

"Starts slowly but then grabs you firmly and keeps you enthralled. Brilliant will read again and probably more than once" Read more

"...The book is well paced and constantly interesting...." Read more

"...and the reader is quickly drawn into the narrative with a few intriguing mysteries that you feel might have some possible connection to each other..." Read more

89 customers mention ‘Believable characters’85 positive4 negative

Customers find the characters in the book believable and easy to relate to, particularly appreciating the interesting hero and the transformation of the main character from hero to zero.

"...and its's a great book, with its unusual hero, Cal McGill an oceanography PhD student and environmental campaigner, although disappointingly we do..." Read more

"...It's a really good adventure and the main protagonists are well drawn characters...." Read more

"...The central character is a likeable and believable individual, with a broken marriage behind him and his life ahead. An oceanographer with attitude...." Read more

"...Story line is strong and well developed. Main character is interesting and a little disfunctional as a human being and i wanted to know where he..." Read more

73 customers mention ‘Pacing’54 positive19 negative

Customers enjoy the pacing of the book, noting that the story rolls along at a lovely pace and has three strands that come together nicely.

"...put you off what is a very good first book that's well suited to a television mini-series..." Read more

"...in my view, does a great job of keeping them all moving along at a good pace...." Read more

"Starts slowly but then grabs you firmly and keeps you enthralled. Brilliant will read again and probably more than once" Read more

"...The book is well paced and constantly interesting...." Read more

58 customers mention ‘Writing quality’53 positive5 negative

Customers praise the writing quality of the book, finding it well-crafted and easy to read, with one customer noting its evocative setting.

"...The quality of the writing is very good and the reader is quickly drawn into the narrative with a few intriguing mysteries that you feel might have..." Read more

"...More. Give us more. And all written in spare, beautiful language. I think you will know I liked this one." Read more

"...written a compelling story about serious social issues in a extremely readable style. It is well plotted and suspenseful...." Read more

"...This is well written with a main character from a specialist background, with a strong if flawed moral compass...." Read more

22 customers mention ‘Interest’22 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging from the start, keeping them turning the pages throughout.

"...with more depth and range than often found in thrillers, it draws the reader in and gets a gentle grip...." Read more

"...This was one of those books that hooks you from the first page and from then on you cannot put down...." Read more

"...The story rattles along and I felt engaged from cover to cover. Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys this genre." Read more

"...running through it and it was certainly a novel that kept your attention from cover to cover." Read more

20 customers mention ‘Oceanography’20 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's oceanography content, particularly the fascinating information about ocean currents and tides, with one customer noting how these elements help solve crimes.

"...The crime part was well researched and contained just the right amount of detail to make it appallingly real - you are left in no doubt what Basanti..." Read more

"...The story is good with an interesting sub plot and interesting personal detail...." Read more

"Enjoyed this one. The subject matter was fascinating; the study of ocean currents and how they move things around the seas...." Read more

"...Thought the oceonology angle was very original and interesting, and was one of the reasons for choosing the book, that and the great cover which..." Read more

Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • Mandrek Larl
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great book with an unusual hero, it's not your average cops and robbers story ...
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 March 2021
    Verified Purchase
    I bought this book a few years ago, it was probably a daily deal and I bought it on the basis of price and not on the strength of the synopsis, but it's been sitting in my Kindle's [virtual] unread pile since then, or at least it had until a few days ago when I opened it...

    ... and its's a great book, with its unusual hero, Cal McGill an oceanography PhD student and environmental campaigner, although disappointingly we don't see a lot of the latter after the first couple of chapters, this is certainly not your average cops and robbers story and I only wish I'd read it sooner.

    But, and sorry but there's nearly always a but; to run three storylines in one book: [no spoilers ahead] the grandfather storyline, the trainers-on-the-beach storyline and the sex-slave-trade storyline seemed unnecessary; and on top of the storylines there's the backstories of the hero and main-man Cal McGill and the clever Detective Constable Helen Jamieson [I wasn't initially sure about the Jamieson character, she seemed unnecessarily overly sad but I hope she re-appears in the later books to find her self-worth and confidence]. There are though links between the stories but these are at best tenuous, perhaps even gratuitous, and fully developed any one of these storylines could have been a book in it's own right; I was particularly disappointed when the "trainers-on-the-beach" story was brought to a finish and closed down so quickly after such a good start a real opportunity lost; which left me thinking that Douglas-Home had sacrificed some good plots to make this book hum.

    Because it does hum, don't let my griping put you off what is a very good first book that's well suited to a television mini-series [think perhaps Ann Cleves' Shetland series and you won't be far off].

    Recommended, and if Douglas-Home can keep up this quality then this promises to be a series of good reads.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • nixlyn
    4.0 out of 5 stars A really good read!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 March 2016
    Verified Purchase
    I struggled with this book initially as it seemed to be a rather nasty story about prostitution in India. I do like to be entertained when reading a book and girls being forced into the sex business does not do that. It reminded me of something similar but with a Chinese background. Anyway, after this rather inauspicious start it turned out to be a really good book!

    I judge a book by its 'readability' factor and this is has in bucket loads. There are three or four sub plots and the author, in my view, does a great job of keeping them all moving along at a good pace. I noticed that some of the reviewers are really put out by this but I think that the author carries it off.

    It's a really good adventure and the main protagonists are well drawn characters. The 'hero' is by no means perfect and not all of the story lines are completed with regard to the relationships but they wouldn't be. I am one of the first people to complain if plots are not satisfactorily concluded and these were.

    So, if you would like to be pulled along by strong stories and in what turned out be 'uputdownable' fun then please buy it. I'm just off to buy the next one!
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Carol Thomas
    5.0 out of 5 stars gripping read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 14 May 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Starts slowly but then grabs you firmly and keeps you enthralled. Brilliant will read again and probably more than once
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  • Noel
    4.0 out of 5 stars A novel plot for a first novel
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 March 2016
    Verified Purchase
    The book opens with a young man trespassing during a dark night in the garden of a minister in the Scottish government. He triggers an alarm and in his rush to escape he gets injured. Nursing his wounds as he makes his getaway he kicks himself for being discovered.

    This is a detective story with a difference. The police play only a supporting or perhaps better described as an unsupporting role to the real detective. He is Cal McGill an environmental campaigner and expert in the tides and currents of the sea around the British Isles. It does not sound like fertile territory for a gripping detective story but bring in the international sex trade and body parts washing up on the shores of Scotland it quick engaged me.

    Cal is based in Edinburgh but his family roots are in an island off the north west coast of Scotland evacuated by its handful of families during the 1940s. Cal's grandfather was lost at sea at the age of 21 during WW2 while serving on the island's converted trawler working on anti-submarine activities. His body was never found. He is the inspiration for Cal's study of the currents and tides.

    The book is well paced and constantly interesting. It has encouraged me to purchase a packet of seeds which you will understand when you read the book. I hope Mr Douglas-Home's second novel is worthy successor to this one.
    5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Exciting and a Great Puzzle
    Reviewed in Canada on 24 June 2017
    Verified Purchase
    I read the 2nd of Mark Douglas-Home's trilogy first and was so intrigued that I wanted to learn how Cal McGill turned his talents as an oceanographer into detecting the answers to mysteries. This book is well written and does not reveal the solution to the puzzle until the end couple of chapters. Cal himself is not only the solver of mystery but an interesting character in this book in himself. The second and third books are not disappointing and I hope Mark Douglas-Home continues with the series.
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  • Voracious Reader
    3.0 out of 5 stars Won't buy the sequel
    Reviewed in India on 20 March 2016
    Verified Purchase
    I had such high expectations for this book, with a different type of detective. But it just goes on and on, there are too many threads; all the characters, including unfortunately, the hero and the victims, are not very likable.
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  • C. Casson
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good page-turner
    Reviewed in France on 28 October 2018
    Verified Purchase
    I’m reading the book for my Book Club. A well written detective story.
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  • frances evans
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating
    Reviewed in Spain on 1 February 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Unusual and gripping. Best detective novel I have read in ages. If I have a complaint it is that sometimes things happen that stretch your credibility a bit. I will certainly be reading the other 2 novels in this series
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  • Kassandra
    5.0 out of 5 stars eine andere Art von Ermittlung
    Reviewed in Germany on 9 October 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Ich will es kurz machen: ein sympathischer "Wellenleser", eine witzige, kluge, dicke Polizistin und minderjährige Sexsklavinnen aus Indien sind die spannenden Zutaten zu einem gelungenen, unterhaltsamen Krimi aus Schottland.
    Ich höre die Möwen kreischen und der unsanfte Inselwind pfeift mir um die Ohren, wenn ich mit im Boot bin, zur Inselbesichtigung, auf der zudem noch ein dunkles Familiengeheimnis schlummert.
    Ein tolles Debüt, das sich hervorragend zur Lektüre im Ohrensessel am Kamin eignet.
    Diesen beiden Ermittlern werde ich auch gerne ein weiteres mal bei der Arbeit zusehen.
    One person found this helpful
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