This wasn't as good as the first in the series. Apart from anything else, John Madden isn't a police officer any more (it's now 1932) and has to keep escaping from his controlling wife to get involved in the case of a serial killer of young girls. Helen, who was his saviour in the first novel seems to have transformed into a cross between his jailor and his mother.

I also thought the way the police found out the murderer's identity was too easy and took a lot of the mystery out of the plot. ( )

The Blood-Dimmed Tide. (John Madden, Book 2). Rennie Airth. 2006. Some years have passed. John has married Dr. Helen Blackwell and retired from Scotland Yard. They have two lovely children and he is a “gentleman’ farmer. Much to Helen’s dismay, he is drawn into a sickening case involving the murder-rape of young girls. Suspense builds as the psychotic murderer remains elusive, but eventually they identify a possible suspect and are able to find him. In addition to being a fine suspenseful story, the book is filled with information about British life between the two world wars and it provides a beautiful picture of a loving family. What I liked is the picture of family friends developing healthy relationships with the Madden children. These books are much more than mysteries. There are only 5 in the series, and I have to force myself to “save” them and not read the next 3 all at once. ( )

I enjoyed the first volume in this series but not this one. Both were a bit slow paced and overly detailed for my liking, especially about the sensitivities around Scotland Yard taking over a crime investigation from the local, rural police, but I wasn't too bothered by that in the first volume as it was quite suspenseful and the character of the detective, John Madden, was interesting. Now, in The Blood-Dimmed Tide it is 11 years later (1932). Why let a good detective sit on the shelf for 11 years?? Anyway, he is married now with two kids and has taken up farming, having resigned from Scotland Yard. What is the point of side-lining him like this?? His wife does not want him anywhere near crime investigations. So, as a result, he is only on the periphery until near the end. This means we are stuck with a few quite boring Scotland Yard fuddie-duddies and a young local police man for the bulk of the book. For me, the plot was too convoluted and slow paced. Also, I have to confess that I find it hard to enjoy a crime novel involving the rape and murder of children, but this is more about me than the book. On the positive side, this author really knows how to create suspense as he did late in this one. Too bad there was so little suspense until about 80% through the book. ( )

Good book, well written. The subject matter was too creepy for my tastes. Will not get any others from this author. ( )

This is the second in Airth’s series of John Madden mysteries. "The Blood-Dimmed Tide" takes place a decade later than the first book in the series. Madden is no longer in the police force and is now a farmer. The search for a girl in which Madden discovers the body brings him in on the periphery of the case. And he keeps getting deeper and deeper into it although he and the police, who are relying on him, try to keep his involvement from his wife. Sussing out killers seems to be his calling in spite of trying to deny that side of himself.

As I was once again pulled into the suspense of the hunt for a killer, I realized what makes these mysteries so compelling. The author makes even the people who die well rounded characters with hopes and aspirations and ties to the people around. You just don’t know who will survive because the people that are written so you care about them, will not all make it to the end of the story. I hope that the Madden series continues for a long run