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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
ein sehr spannendes Buch, es hat mir Spaß gemacht es zu lesen.
The second in the Harry Hole detective series, this has only recently been released in the U.S. I wasn't sure it would be worth it to go back to an earlier Harry, but this was great!
I like Nesbø's thrillers, and this one went very well too until the rapid finale, where the logic of the events - impeccable in itself - started to be obscured by presumable jumps in temporal sequences and hiding details that were if not essential then at least rather helpful for understanding what is going on. Happens when you try not to give too much away and end up with providing the reader with too little. The Thailand we are presented with is also a fairly touristic version of the country, but given that Hole arrived there unprepared, this would correspond to his perception.
Another wonderfully written Harry Hole. 2nd in series but final one for me to read (waited for translation). Page turner, memorable characters and as always a story you want to talk about with your friends.
A bit gruesome; a boat propeller slicing off someone's face? I really had to suspend by disbelief on this one.
Good portrayal of Bangkok and the characters there. The "reveal" was a bit of a stretch considering how bumbling Harry was for the first 90% of the book, but it was still an entertaining read.
Harry Hole is the anti-hero, a type of detective I’m drawn to. He’s competent, but that’s almost his downfall. He’s so tenacious, like a pit bull with a bone, that even when he’s sent on this sensitive case that everyone want to just go away, he digs and digs through all the muck and muddle to get to the truth. He’s not a good guy – he’s willing to bend the rules, to threaten, to hurt people. He does what he needs to find the truth, whether it kills him, or, more likely since he is the series character, someone else.
The mystery is good – complicated. There’s a lot going on in Bangkok and Harry has to figure what matters to this case and what doesn’t, but of course it all matters in one way or another.
You can find my whole review at Carol's Notebook.
The mystery is good – complicated. There’s a lot going on in Bangkok and Harry has to figure what matters to this case and what doesn’t, but of course it all matters in one way or another.
You can find my whole review at Carol's Notebook.
As other reviews have pointed out, this early effort is intriguing to longtime readers of the series because it shows us what Harry Hole was like as a younger man and sets the stage for further development of his character. The mystery is serviceable, but it's the kind of mystery that depends on reconstructing the murderer's technique. In an earlier century, train schedules would have figured in. Now, it's voicemail.
Oddly enough, although the plotting is ingenious, some of the elements stick out of the landscape far enough that even I could see them coming.
Also, I am beginning to wonder if reading books written by Europeans but set in Thailand makes me complicit in racism and sexual trafficking. I am going to have to find something written by a Thai author for a change!
Oddly enough, although the plotting is ingenious, some of the elements stick out of the landscape far enough that even I could see them coming.
Spoiler
A screwdriver. A maiden name. A man who tells Harry that he has scammed everyone he knows.Also, I am beginning to wonder if reading books written by Europeans but set in Thailand makes me complicit in racism and sexual trafficking. I am going to have to find something written by a Thai author for a change!
Trigger warning: Rape and pedophilia
Well much better than book #1, maybe because it didn't descend into outright racism at times, though there were a couple of instances of me feeling uncomfortable. The main reason why I give this 4 stars is that the ending just kind of sucks any of the momentum of the reveals and afterwatch that readers just go through. Hole trying to tie back the bad guy to something that happened in Norway made zero sense. And then of course we have Hole doing some more self sabotage and the guy is aggravating AF at this point. Yet, I will keep reading this series.
"Cockroaches" follows Hole some months after the events in Australia. Hole found and killed a serial killer, and also lost someone he was falling for/in love with. The guy has just gone full alcoholic at this point. He's also doing with the aftermath of something ugly involving his sister and Hole feels lost. When the ambassador to Norway is found murdered in a a motel in Bangkok (apparently waiting for a prostitute) Norway is told to send someone to work with the locals in Bangkok. Hole is chosen, and not for the reasons he thinks. Hole who has been seeing I think a therapist (?) sorry, can't recall right now and too tired to go back and look it up is told to finally get off the booze and try to get clean. Hole goes to Bangkok and realizes things are not what they seem with not only the investigators, but the murder of the ambassador. Hole starts unraveling the many levels at work in the case.
So Hole is much better in this one. I wanted to smother the dude in the first book. Hole is actually stupidly good at reading people, but then he always spoils it because he can't help proving how smart he is. When Hole starts to realize what was going on behind the scenes with the ambassador, he decides to not quit, because he thinks the truth matters. And when things seem to be turning to putting him in the hotspot, he does what he can to protect himself.
Hole meets some interesting characters in this one. I liked the Bangkok investigation team a lot. Hole seems to do well when he's an outsider looking into places.
The writing was brutal at times though. I put the trigger warning up above since the subject matter involved makes for tough reading at times.
The flow of the book gets going after we get back to Hole in Norway and when he finally agrees to take the case and leaves for Thailand.
The setting of Thailand feels hot and crowded. At times you feel like you are right there with Harry as he sweats and tries to make heads and tails of the case. I do think that Nesbo gives a surface level look at Thailand though. I have friends who are from the country and the country has a rich history, which a lot of people don't know about, since most seem to think of it as a country where anything goes.
The ending of the book was great though. I didn't know who did it or did what and I liked how things are revealed to the readers. As I said above though, I thought the aftermath of the explosive ending was just a bit meh. Nesbo seems to be setting up Hole to always listen to his lesser angels and it gets old to read about after a while.
Well much better than book #1, maybe because it didn't descend into outright racism at times, though there were a couple of instances of me feeling uncomfortable. The main reason why I give this 4 stars is that the ending just kind of sucks any of the momentum of the reveals and afterwatch that readers just go through. Hole trying to tie back the bad guy to something that happened in Norway made zero sense. And then of course we have Hole doing some more self sabotage and the guy is aggravating AF at this point. Yet, I will keep reading this series.
"Cockroaches" follows Hole some months after the events in Australia. Hole found and killed a serial killer, and also lost someone he was falling for/in love with. The guy has just gone full alcoholic at this point. He's also doing with the aftermath of something ugly involving his sister and Hole feels lost. When the ambassador to Norway is found murdered in a a motel in Bangkok (apparently waiting for a prostitute) Norway is told to send someone to work with the locals in Bangkok. Hole is chosen, and not for the reasons he thinks. Hole who has been seeing I think a therapist (?) sorry, can't recall right now and too tired to go back and look it up is told to finally get off the booze and try to get clean. Hole goes to Bangkok and realizes things are not what they seem with not only the investigators, but the murder of the ambassador. Hole starts unraveling the many levels at work in the case.
So Hole is much better in this one. I wanted to smother the dude in the first book. Hole is actually stupidly good at reading people, but then he always spoils it because he can't help proving how smart he is. When Hole starts to realize what was going on behind the scenes with the ambassador, he decides to not quit, because he thinks the truth matters. And when things seem to be turning to putting him in the hotspot, he does what he can to protect himself.
Hole meets some interesting characters in this one. I liked the Bangkok investigation team a lot. Hole seems to do well when he's an outsider looking into places.
The writing was brutal at times though. I put the trigger warning up above since the subject matter involved makes for tough reading at times.
The flow of the book gets going after we get back to Hole in Norway and when he finally agrees to take the case and leaves for Thailand.
The setting of Thailand feels hot and crowded. At times you feel like you are right there with Harry as he sweats and tries to make heads and tails of the case. I do think that Nesbo gives a surface level look at Thailand though. I have friends who are from the country and the country has a rich history, which a lot of people don't know about, since most seem to think of it as a country where anything goes.
The ending of the book was great though. I didn't know who did it or did what and I liked how things are revealed to the readers. As I said above though, I thought the aftermath of the explosive ending was just a bit meh. Nesbo seems to be setting up Hole to always listen to his lesser angels and it gets old to read about after a while.