Reviews

The Killing Hills by Chris Offutt

nigellicus's review

dark emotional mysterious tense

5.0

Cool, elegant, country noir, with shades of Daniel Woodrell as a an army investigator home on leave is asked by his sister the sherrif to look into a woman's death. He navigates the countryside and the people and their ways with skill and insight, trying to stave off more revenge killings

rcars10's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

3.5

beefmaster's review

4.0

Pretty much ideal regional crime writing. The prose is a bit more commercial than in his previous work and thus only the four stars. But there are flashes of the Kentucky poetry he's known for. Recommended!

criminallygood_heer's review

2.0

Did’nt enjoy it. I mean, there literally was nothing to. A cheating wife, a not-so-good husband and a wannabe sheriff? The whole “novel” was a mess. 

csanta's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

randomhero19's review

mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

heatherv_89's review

4.0

Great read- the Kentucky back hills setting is perfection and one which I don’t read often. Chris Offut’s writing is engaging but in a sparse, almost noir like way that fits the crime subject but still manages ti be introspective. Really enjoyed the main character, Mick, and would read more in this series!

itsonmytbr's review

4.0

Mick Hardin is AWOL from his job as a military investigator overseas. His wife, Peggy, is pregnant after having an affair. His sister, Linda, is the sheriff. Mike splits his time between avoiding Peggy and helping Linda track down a killer. Linda knows surprisingly not much at all about investigating murders. Mick knows surprisingly everything about interrogation. Like honestly I'm over here taking notes on how to get dirt out of people.

Full disclosure: I'm not a fan of this Jack Reacher type hero, this better-than-other-guys hero, this too humble to announce that he can kill you with his pinkie hero. This wronged by a woman but too good to hate her for it hero. However, we're eased so slowly into Mick's talents that it's hard to be annoyed by him. Sure, in Germany he's the pinnacle of masculinity, but in the hills he's just a kid who grew up in the woods and can't deal with what happens outside of them.

The atmosphere of this book is both thrilling and claustrophobic. A small Kentucky town set in the Appalachian hills, populated by the descendants of the original residents. Everyone is polite and careful but they've all got loyalties that an outsider couldn't understand. I really enjoyed being in this world, dark and close as it is. It makes me want to read more.

rocketiza's review

2.0

One of those my detective is on the edge of the law and he's the smartest, toughest guy ever and let me make sure I over explain every single reason why, but with the added bonus of he's also from the south and they do things differently down there and let me smack you over the head with that till you feel brain dead at the end of this book. I couldn't tell if it was not respecting the intelligence of the reader or the author just was so proud of himself he had to make sure to explicitly be including all the explanation in the book.

debfreemantx's review

5.0

Author has a deep understanding and appreciation for the Kentucky hill culture. Appreciated the humor in an investigation story.