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3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
Beautifully written, but half baked. Nesbø's concern in this book seems to be primarily poetic, despite a story that is also unflinchingly violent. Olav is a contract killer whose interior life is actually more interesting than the bullets flying around him, but the violence still takes center stage. The slow, meditative parts of the book are its best moments, but they are overtaken by the action, which is predictable, even plodding. Faulkner said that most novelists are failed short story writers, or in any case that novels are easier to write than short stories or poetry. I'm not sure why that is, but I get the feeling that if Blood on Snow were more fully developed it would be a better book.
Снег как главный герой.
Осторожно, сейчас будет самый главный спойлер!
Я вот как-то не поняла, как так автор умудрился в первой книге убить главного героя и позже написать про него вторую книгу? Мне всегда казалось, что с убийством главного героя книжки должны заканчиваться, но вот для Ю Несбе - это не проблема:)
Я возьмусь читать вторую книгу про Улава хотя бы для того чтобы узнать, что придумал автор и как он все объяснил. В принципе автор и его язык (хотя тут, наверное, надо отдать должное переводчику) мне понравились и то как он крутит вертит тоже. Но я не могу сказать, что вот прям кинусь его книжки скупать и все подряд у него читать. Нет, такого желания во мне не возникает. Просто добротный, интересный, наверченный детектив... хотя не уверенна, что это так называется, тут уж все ближе к драме или трагедии.
Но как же красиво описан снег. Он представлен удивительным героем-наблюдателем.
Осторожно, сейчас будет самый главный спойлер!
Я вот как-то не поняла, как так автор умудрился в первой книге убить главного героя и позже написать про него вторую книгу? Мне всегда казалось, что с убийством главного героя книжки должны заканчиваться, но вот для Ю Несбе - это не проблема:)
Я возьмусь читать вторую книгу про Улава хотя бы для того чтобы узнать, что придумал автор и как он все объяснил. В принципе автор и его язык (хотя тут, наверное, надо отдать должное переводчику) мне понравились и то как он крутит вертит тоже. Но я не могу сказать, что вот прям кинусь его книжки скупать и все подряд у него читать. Нет, такого желания во мне не возникает. Просто добротный, интересный, наверченный детектив... хотя не уверенна, что это так называется, тут уж все ближе к драме или трагедии.
Но как же красиво описан снег. Он представлен удивительным героем-наблюдателем.
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'm sure this is a wonderful book in Norwegian but I feel like it was so hard to follow once it was translated.
This was a serviceable entry in the Jo Nesbo canon, but I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend it. I read it on my Kindle and wasn't paying attention to how far I'd read, so when the end came I kept trying to click forward. It seemed to me to be a hurried ending and anticlimactic. Left me saying "Huh?"
Kjempe spennende bok. Eneste som var synd var at jeg synes han burde stoppet før det siste kapitlet... Vil ikke avsløre noe.
Haiku
...
A Norwegian noir
A sentimental killer
With dames in distress
.
.
Cutthroat marketplace
Detaching oneself from work
Tricky maneuver
.
.
A bloody business
People among the fishes
Zero innocence
...
A Norwegian noir
A sentimental killer
With dames in distress
.
.
Cutthroat marketplace
Detaching oneself from work
Tricky maneuver
.
.
A bloody business
People among the fishes
Zero innocence
Up front: this isn't my genre. I don't really know what to expect from a crime thriller type book. But, a friend mentioned reading a lot of Jo Nesbø so I thought I'd give him a try. I went to the library and grabbed the first audio version I saw. Books on CD still work in my 2008 Corolla. And the windows still roll down with a crank. A little window into something about me right there. A window! Anyhoo...
Also up front: the last couple of tracks were kind of skippy, so I may have missed something important. Nesbø didn't really make me care, though.
Olav is a Norwegian hit-man and he thinks he is dumb, or at least says he is. He IS dyslexic. We're supposed to be shocked and amazed when he turns out to be just as thoughtful and poetic as the author who created him, which is to say, a smidge. Olav has a soft spot for, wait for it... pretty girls. This gets him into trouble and he and the girlfriend of the son of the guy he was supposed to hit (I think I got that right) have to plan a way to hit the hitters before the hitters hit them.
Nesbø's writing is tight and terse. It makes the story go quickly and kept me mostly engaged. I think the murder thriller demands this and Nesbø delivers. That is, until the last quarter, or, as I prefer to think of it, the long, cold dying in the long cold dark Norwegian winter. You see, Olav makes a mistake that will surely lead to his death. But, what's this? He escapes! And, then he is caught and shot point-blank. But, what's this? He doesn't die! And then he is betrayed. But, what's this? Well, you get the idea.
Blood on Snow somehow brings to mind Cormac McCarthy's The Road and No Country for Old Men. Which is too bad for Nesbø as the comparison is unflattering. (See, Senator Collins, that's an appropriate use for the word unflattering!)
Also up front: the last couple of tracks were kind of skippy, so I may have missed something important. Nesbø didn't really make me care, though.
Olav is a Norwegian hit-man and he thinks he is dumb, or at least says he is. He IS dyslexic. We're supposed to be shocked and amazed when he turns out to be just as thoughtful and poetic as the author who created him, which is to say, a smidge. Olav has a soft spot for, wait for it... pretty girls. This gets him into trouble and he and the girlfriend of the son of the guy he was supposed to hit (I think I got that right) have to plan a way to hit the hitters before the hitters hit them.
Nesbø's writing is tight and terse. It makes the story go quickly and kept me mostly engaged. I think the murder thriller demands this and Nesbø delivers. That is, until the last quarter, or, as I prefer to think of it, the long, cold dying in the long cold dark Norwegian winter. You see, Olav makes a mistake that will surely lead to his death. But, what's this? He escapes! And, then he is caught and shot point-blank. But, what's this? He doesn't die! And then he is betrayed. But, what's this? Well, you get the idea.
Blood on Snow somehow brings to mind Cormac McCarthy's The Road and No Country for Old Men. Which is too bad for Nesbø as the comparison is unflattering. (See, Senator Collins, that's an appropriate use for the word unflattering!)
This is definitely noir. My first Norwegian book this go round (& my first book of his). I’m not sure how I felt about this book but I did find the main character intriguing. I’ll be interested to watch the movie when it releases, as it feels written for a screenplay adaption.
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was my first Nesbø book so I can't compare it to his Harry Hole series like so many others have. I enjoyed the fast pace and thought it great for a quick summer read.