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megan_by_force's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
thona's review against another edition
5.0
this book is not meant for he faint of heart. you’ve been warned.
this book from page 1 to page 866...this book has you by its hooks and it refuses to let go. from the horrors of the pedophilic underground ran by the richest of the rich of sweden to the dance of revenge and retribution to the perpetuation of the cycle of abuse held by victims of before. Between the tango of protagonist jeanette and duo-antagonist sofia...this book refuses to let you go if you know deep down you’re gonna keep reading. this book is genuinely not meant for the faint of heart at all. it’s more than just a page turner it’s a page thinker truly
this book from page 1 to page 866...this book has you by its hooks and it refuses to let go. from the horrors of the pedophilic underground ran by the richest of the rich of sweden to the dance of revenge and retribution to the perpetuation of the cycle of abuse held by victims of before. Between the tango of protagonist jeanette and duo-antagonist sofia...this book refuses to let you go if you know deep down you’re gonna keep reading. this book is genuinely not meant for the faint of heart at all. it’s more than just a page turner it’s a page thinker truly
amisoccassiopeia's review against another edition
5.0
Die Krähenmädchen-Reihe sollte man nur anfangen, wenn man die nächsten 2-3 Tage (je nach Lesetempo) keine anderen Verpflichtungen hat ;-) die Reihe zieht einen direkt in ihren Bann und umspannt sich um Victoria Bergmann (Protagonistin) und Sofia Zetterlund (Psychologin), die die Polizei bei der Suche nach dem Täter unterstützt. Der erste Band als solcher ist beeindruckend und schafft es das komplexe Netzwerk der Akteure mit einer Leichtigkeit aufzubauen, dass man erst am Ende des dritten Bandes merkt, was das für eine Leistung war. Die Verbrechen drehen sich um (teils sehr bildlichen) Kindesmissbrauch (auch im Bürgerkriegs-Setting) und ist daher definitiv keine leichte Kost.
laurelinwonder's review against another edition
5.0
This is not a series for the faint of heart, but it very much is a series for fans of Stieg Larsson. While not as mesmerizing (at least for me) as Lizbeth Salander, this complex character "Crow Girl" is one that will keep you on your toes. Though, I find myself asking, how much does Sweden hate women? Because every book I read that is translated from Swedish, has the most brutal violence against women. I won't make that a sweeping, stereotypical statement, but gee whiz, I do wonder. This is a dark and deep mystery, that will keep you up at night, and keep you guessing at why, and who the heck does such things. Well worth slogging through this very long text.
shareyourgeekness's review against another edition
5.0
Completamente viciante. É para começar já o segundo.
inkstained's review against another edition
4.0
This book was incredible in the sense that I needed and wanted to keep reading to find out how the book ends but terrible in the sense that I think I need to bleach my brain and go watch videos of kittens now. Or for the rest of my life.
leic01's review against another edition
4.0
This is a really good fast-paced psychological thriller. Recommended for readers that liked [b:The Silent Patient|40097951|The Silent Patient|Alex Michaelides|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1582759969l/40097951._SX50_.jpg|59752778] and [a:Nicci French|183956|Nicci French|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] series about Frieda Klein as it revolves around psychotherapist, and in my opinion, is better than both works. Being in that profession I mostly cringe at some descriptions of mental illness or psychotherapeutic process in trillers, but the authors did a decent job in this book. The content is highly disturbing and there are scenes of sexual and physical abuse of children and incest that are not over-done, and explicit, and I would say an accurate description of the long-standing aftermath of abuse. This is not literary fiction nor classic but the characterization is decent compared to much more hyped books in the genre. Books follow several timelines and perspectives of different characters, all of them equally engaging. I also appreciate that the authors touched on a variety of topics such as the position of women in society and rights of children, discrimination toward the immigrants that are never seen as equally human as other citizens, class diversion and even the geopolitical situation of war in Siera Leone and, very scarcely, Bosnia. That is not usual, and not an easy task for authors of such high-tempo thriller. Quality wise I would compare it to [a:Patricia Cornwell|1025097|Patricia Cornwell|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1608833403p2/1025097.jpg]'s writing, even though I haven't read Cornwell in years. This book gave me an old-school thriller feeling when you don't want to put the book down. The book ends with a cliffhanger so I was immediately onto the next book in the series. I've read this book in a day and already finished the second book and will start the third and final book of the series tonight.
Recommended for lovers of psychological thrillers for sure! (Even though I'm not sure there is English translation yet out there)
3.5
Recommended for lovers of psychological thrillers for sure! (Even though I'm not sure there is English translation yet out there)
3.5
gareindeedreads's review against another edition
4.0
This is one hefty Nordic Noir novel that I was pleased to have gotten through in two days...and it was NOT easy. Not only is this novel deeply disturbing, it is complex and claustrophobic. Our novel takes us on a wild and terrifying journey told through the perspectives of not only our three main leads, but gives us some insights into some other, dare I even say "smaller" characters who's perspectives and storylines give us a deeper look into I would say the darkest novel I have ever read in my life. The novel is mainly told from the characters of Jeanette (our fearless detective), Sofia (the brilliant psychologist assisting Jeanette), and Victoria (the deeply disturbed client of Sofia). While the perspectives are very well done, our authors do a fantastic job of getting into the psyche of the reader through these characters and really use them as a tool to give a heartbreaking look into the plot.
This novel is translated into English from a Swedish trilogy (explaining the length) and I really found this to be a rather interesting collection of these three tales. Our first part not only opens the plot really well, diving right into the violence and introducing us rather quickly to our three leads, but it also has a slower pace that is more or less a "first date" with the characters that we will need to get to the bottom of the heinous crimes committed in this intricate plot. Towards the end of part one, I was left with a shocking revelation that not only chilled me to the core, but made me question what was going to happen in the next 500+ pages.
Part two is not only my favorite part, but it gives us a deeper look into not only what our three main leads are dealing with as the plot continues, but it does a fantastic job of turning this novel from a crime fiction to also dipping its wounded toes into a psychological thriller as we also get to get a deeper look into what the villain(s) are dealing with as well. The tension really mounts in part two as the reader is given some insights that our characters aren't aware of and we find them all putting themselves in some rather dangerous positions...we are also introduced to the tip of the iceberg that is known as The Crow Girl.
Part three has the violence and the action really cranked up as we conclude this fascinating and complex plot...and complex it is. Throughout the novel, it took me a while to get used to some of the writing with this one as like most psychological crime novels, it's hard to get a grasp on what is reality and fantasy as our authors really waste no time getting into the gritty details as to what is really happening and the reader is literally taken on a journey around the world. I particularly loved how this played out like a tragic Nordic action/crime movie throughout the novel and part three was not only devastating, but ended on such a bittersweet note that I am still confused as to if I am feeling lighter after some of the darkness of this novel has gone away or if I'm just ultimately saddened with how it ended.
While the writing is fantastic, the characters are superbly written, and the plot is unlike anything I've ever read, by the end of the novel I was happy I got to the bottom of the story and had a good grasp as to what was going on, but I ultimately felt like there was going to be a lengthy epilogue to really wrap up everything. While I know with real life, that's not always the case, I just felt that I got the answers I was looking for, but I was expecting that big bow on the top to really tie everything in together and I was left somewhat confused by a lot of things. Nevertheless, I would definitely recommend this one to fans of Nordic Noir and crime fiction as it really gets into the underbelly of the crime world and how disturbing and disastrous it can be.
This novel is translated into English from a Swedish trilogy (explaining the length) and I really found this to be a rather interesting collection of these three tales. Our first part not only opens the plot really well, diving right into the violence and introducing us rather quickly to our three leads, but it also has a slower pace that is more or less a "first date" with the characters that we will need to get to the bottom of the heinous crimes committed in this intricate plot. Towards the end of part one, I was left with a shocking revelation that not only chilled me to the core, but made me question what was going to happen in the next 500+ pages.
Part two is not only my favorite part, but it gives us a deeper look into not only what our three main leads are dealing with as the plot continues, but it does a fantastic job of turning this novel from a crime fiction to also dipping its wounded toes into a psychological thriller as we also get to get a deeper look into what the villain(s) are dealing with as well. The tension really mounts in part two as the reader is given some insights that our characters aren't aware of and we find them all putting themselves in some rather dangerous positions...we are also introduced to the tip of the iceberg that is known as The Crow Girl.
Part three has the violence and the action really cranked up as we conclude this fascinating and complex plot...and complex it is. Throughout the novel, it took me a while to get used to some of the writing with this one as like most psychological crime novels, it's hard to get a grasp on what is reality and fantasy as our authors really waste no time getting into the gritty details as to what is really happening and the reader is literally taken on a journey around the world. I particularly loved how this played out like a tragic Nordic action/crime movie throughout the novel and part three was not only devastating, but ended on such a bittersweet note that I am still confused as to if I am feeling lighter after some of the darkness of this novel has gone away or if I'm just ultimately saddened with how it ended.
While the writing is fantastic, the characters are superbly written, and the plot is unlike anything I've ever read, by the end of the novel I was happy I got to the bottom of the story and had a good grasp as to what was going on, but I ultimately felt like there was going to be a lengthy epilogue to really wrap up everything. While I know with real life, that's not always the case, I just felt that I got the answers I was looking for, but I was expecting that big bow on the top to really tie everything in together and I was left somewhat confused by a lot of things. Nevertheless, I would definitely recommend this one to fans of Nordic Noir and crime fiction as it really gets into the underbelly of the crime world and how disturbing and disastrous it can be.
veelaughtland's review against another edition
3.0
I requested this book from Harvill Secker in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to the publisher for sending me this copy.
The Crow Girl is one of those books, much like A Little Life, that I have mixed feelings about. I enjoyed the reading experience for the most part: it was definitely a page turner, and I never felt the urge to put the book down. I was interested in the characters, and wanted to know how to story would resolve. However, there were a lot of issues that I had with this book, that really need to be taken into account.
The Crow Girl is a Swedish crime novel that focuses on a detective, Jeanette Kihlberg, who is trying to find the killer of numerous immigrant boys who have wound up dead around Sweden. Their bodies appear to have been mummified, and their genitals have been removed. To help her, she enlists the help of psychologist Sofia Zetterlund, to try and profile the killer.
This book has a fantastic premise that is right up my street. I love the whole Scandinavian-crime thing, with the surroundings and atmosphere being something that I love in a crime story. I also really liked the fact that this book was heavily focused on the psychological state of people, and how someone's past can affect their life in the future and their future actions. However, of course the portrayal of mental illness in this book was problematic in its portrayal.
Things I didn't like:
- Mental illness felt like a very black and white issue, which is misleading for those of us reading who may not have a full understanding of the conditions presented in this book. To me, with my limited knowledge of the subject, I still felt that the portrayal was too simplistic, and that we were being provided with a very negative view on those who suffer from the illness.
- The story was very disjointed. As far as I know, this was originally a trilogy, and it seems as though a great deal of content has been cut out from this particular translation, in an attempt to fit it into one volume. This was a massive mistake, as characters appear all over the place but don't feel like they have a real function, and plot points get thrown about without any real follow-through. It was both too long, and rushed. Three volume translation please.
- The characters were a little one-dimensional at times, and there was a great deal of repetition with the authors info-dumping information about the characters' feelings, rather than showing them.
I probably had more issues than this, but for a full review, please check out my video review on youtube at www.youtube.com/chboskyy
Overall, I'm glad I picked up this book, because there was a lot that I enjoyed about it. However, I can't ignore the fact that there were problems with it, and as this book was sent to me for review, I need to be honest in my review.
The Crow Girl is one of those books, much like A Little Life, that I have mixed feelings about. I enjoyed the reading experience for the most part: it was definitely a page turner, and I never felt the urge to put the book down. I was interested in the characters, and wanted to know how to story would resolve. However, there were a lot of issues that I had with this book, that really need to be taken into account.
The Crow Girl is a Swedish crime novel that focuses on a detective, Jeanette Kihlberg, who is trying to find the killer of numerous immigrant boys who have wound up dead around Sweden. Their bodies appear to have been mummified, and their genitals have been removed. To help her, she enlists the help of psychologist Sofia Zetterlund, to try and profile the killer.
This book has a fantastic premise that is right up my street. I love the whole Scandinavian-crime thing, with the surroundings and atmosphere being something that I love in a crime story. I also really liked the fact that this book was heavily focused on the psychological state of people, and how someone's past can affect their life in the future and their future actions. However, of course the portrayal of mental illness in this book was problematic in its portrayal.
Things I didn't like:
- Mental illness felt like a very black and white issue, which is misleading for those of us reading who may not have a full understanding of the conditions presented in this book. To me, with my limited knowledge of the subject, I still felt that the portrayal was too simplistic, and that we were being provided with a very negative view on those who suffer from the illness.
- The story was very disjointed. As far as I know, this was originally a trilogy, and it seems as though a great deal of content has been cut out from this particular translation, in an attempt to fit it into one volume. This was a massive mistake, as characters appear all over the place but don't feel like they have a real function, and plot points get thrown about without any real follow-through. It was both too long, and rushed. Three volume translation please.
- The characters were a little one-dimensional at times, and there was a great deal of repetition with the authors info-dumping information about the characters' feelings, rather than showing them.
I probably had more issues than this, but for a full review, please check out my video review on youtube at www.youtube.com/chboskyy
Overall, I'm glad I picked up this book, because there was a lot that I enjoyed about it. However, I can't ignore the fact that there were problems with it, and as this book was sent to me for review, I need to be honest in my review.