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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
dark
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Vargas comes through again with a winner. Adamsberg reappears in this one, dealing with a spectre from his past, the Trident. A chance glimpse brings this figure back to his life and gets him on the track that he abandoned years ago. Others are sceptical of his theories. His group at work makes a trek to Quebec and the spectre appears to be tracking him there as well. Does Adamsberg obsession lead him to commit a similar crime. Who is on his side? There are lots of twists and turns and interesting characters.
This was my first encounter with commissaire Adamsberg and definitely one of the best books I've read in the last few months: The Parisian policeman faces a case, that is intertwined with Adamsberg's whole life, about a dead judge who seems to be the devil himself, Adamsberg's brother, who lives with guilt everyday and many murders that seem to be sprinkled randomly over whole France. When the commissaire reads about another murder that has all the same characteristics as the others before the judge's death 16 years ago he feels like being drawn back to his own history, being chased by a dead man - and the judge can still fight him, so that it's Adamsberg at last who has to run.
What I liked best about this book was the extraordinary characters. Clémentine and Josette, two surprising and very adorable, old Parisian ladies, could have their own crime series - and I'd definitely read it. They're great figures with a big potential. And from now on I will think of Clémentine every time I peel potatoes. I also liked very much how little coincidences, pictures or a random thought that doesn't seem to be connected to the case in any way mentioned by other people startet Adamsberg's creative thought process and led to another part of the puzzle. Even though he didn't seem to me to be too sympathetic he fit perfectly in the role of the Parisian commissaire, I want to read about.
The story is a bit mysterious and thrilling, but at the same time not too violent (actually the murders are quite violent but you don't read about every bloody detail) and the focus of the story was rather on solving the puzzle of the "dead judge" and on the question about innocence or guilt of the Adamsberg brothers than on the act of murdering. The book wasn't slow but it also didn't try to shock the reader on every other page. I enjoyed it a lot and will definitely look out for other cases to be solved by commissaire Adamsberg.
What I liked best about this book was the extraordinary characters. Clémentine and Josette, two surprising and very adorable, old Parisian ladies, could have their own crime series - and I'd definitely read it. They're great figures with a big potential. And from now on I will think of Clémentine every time I peel potatoes. I also liked very much how little coincidences, pictures or a random thought that doesn't seem to be connected to the case in any way mentioned by other people startet Adamsberg's creative thought process and led to another part of the puzzle. Even though he didn't seem to me to be too sympathetic he fit perfectly in the role of the Parisian commissaire, I want to read about.
The story is a bit mysterious and thrilling, but at the same time not too violent (actually the murders are quite violent but you don't read about every bloody detail) and the focus of the story was rather on solving the puzzle of the "dead judge" and on the question about innocence or guilt of the Adamsberg brothers than on the act of murdering. The book wasn't slow but it also didn't try to shock the reader on every other page. I enjoyed it a lot and will definitely look out for other cases to be solved by commissaire Adamsberg.
Really enjoyed this mystery. Well written, good pacing, clues very slowly emerge, complex, interesting characters.
Un trident, des crapauds qui explosent, un vieux dragon blanc, une hackeuse ("aqueuse") sexagénaire en tennis et du savon au lait d'amande, ce sont quelques-uns des ingrédients qui ont fait de Sous les vents de Neptune mon Adamsberg préféré jusqu'ici.
Inventif, enlevé et addictif, un peu dépaysant grâce à la mission Québec, drôle (la scène de la salle de bain avec Retancourt !) et émouvant, je le conseille sans la moindre hésitation.
Inventif, enlevé et addictif, un peu dépaysant grâce à la mission Québec, drôle (la scène de la salle de bain avec Retancourt !) et émouvant, je le conseille sans la moindre hésitation.
It took me a while to get back into the flow of Vargas's very individual style of crime writing. Once I had taken off the arm-bands and let the water take me, I was carried weightlessly.
always enjoy vargas for the touch of the supernatural and the quirky characters. Enjoyed the bits of Canada in this one, and thought her explanation for what happened to Adamsberg the night on the trail was quite clever. The psychlogy of the whole set of murders , a bit ver the top, but the crew is always a pleasure
There's something about Fred Varga's Adamsberg novels that just isn't _right_ for English readers. They look right. They have all the characteristics of a police procedural. They have an enigmatic lead detective with an uncanny intuition. There is a gentle long running soap opera arc through them all. There is a little light relief at the station. Perfect.
And yet. They are surreal. Whimsical, even. Adamsberg inhabits a world where magic and ghosts might just exist and where coincidence is assumed, not avoided. Add to that the deliberate transliteration of idiomatic French into strange and fractured English and you're left with a strange but compelling read.
I love them.
And yet. They are surreal. Whimsical, even. Adamsberg inhabits a world where magic and ghosts might just exist and where coincidence is assumed, not avoided. Add to that the deliberate transliteration of idiomatic French into strange and fractured English and you're left with a strange but compelling read.
I love them.
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A book translated from French but still beautifully written. It is a mystery, but one that transcends the usual mystery tropes.
Fascinating, flawed, well-developed characters, intricate plotting, settings that come to life--it's fabulous.
Fascinating, flawed, well-developed characters, intricate plotting, settings that come to life--it's fabulous.
I'm a huge fan of Fred Vargas' work. And this book is no exception. The star, once more, is Commissaire Adamsberg. The plot revolves around a series of murders, the first in 1943, the latest takes place in the present of the book. Adamsberg has a special interest in this case, and the judge he believes to have committed these crimes. In each case the murder victim is killed by three stab wounds. And in each case an assailant has been found, always suffering from amnesia but also having a murder weapon in his possession. In each case the police decide that this individual is responsible and, there you go, case closed. Adamsberg is not so sure.
Full review: http://www.susanhatedliterature.net/2008/02/18/wash-this-blood-clean-from-my-hand/
Full review: http://www.susanhatedliterature.net/2008/02/18/wash-this-blood-clean-from-my-hand/