Reviews tagging 'Police brutality'

The Searcher by Tana French

15 reviews

savvyrosereads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

Reread review (February 2024):

Rating: 5/5 stars

Cal Hooper is a retired cop seeking a quiet life in Ireland when he gets drawn into a search for a missing teenager.

Tana French is one of my all-time favorite authors and the author I credit with both getting me back into reading as an adult and getting me into mysteries and thrillers. I first read THE SEARCHER when it was released in 2020 and I really enjoyed it then, but I reread it in February in preparation for the sequel (THE HUNTER) and I absolutely LOVED IT this time around. I am obsessed with these characters and the slow burn creepiness and tension of the plot.


French has such talent as a writer, and this shines through with incredible memorable lines and small moments of heart and humor throughout the book. This is both a taut and compelling mystery and an intricate character study of a man reevaluating his purpose and a community grappling with societal change and the tension between modernity and tradition. I highly recommend this one, especially on audio, and cannot wait to dive into THE HUNTER!

CW: Violence/injury/blood/death; physical abuse; mentions of animal cruelty/death.

Original review (October 2020):

Probably closer to 3.5 stars for the actual plot, but the characters were delightful and the book was thoroughly enjoyable all the way through!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Gun violence, Death, and Murder

Minor: Police brutality

kshy's review against another edition

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Violence, Blood, Death, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Murder, Gun violence, Lesbophobia, Cursing, Alcohol, Police brutality, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Stalking and Suicide

kimberlynann's review

mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Animal death

Minor: Police brutality

sophmcgraw's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Minor: Animal death, Gun violence, and Police brutality

xkwright's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Police brutality, Child abuse, and Torture

linesiunderline's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.25

I hadn’t expected to like this one very much - in fact, quite a few meh / disappointed reviews almost had me passing it on to another reader. But it was a birthday gift, and so I felt I should give it a try. I’m so glad I did.

This is a quiet, character driven, literary style of mystery (otherwise known as my favourite kind of mystery). Yes, it’s slow paced. Yes, not a lot “happens,” and what does happen doesn’t come in any kind of rush. But somehow French creates a foreboding sense that kept me turning the pages, curious to know where things were going, and fine with the slow and steady telling.

A strong sense of place is one of the winning qualities of this read, and the relationship between Cal and Trey is quite wonderful. I was surprised to find this one really quite moving by the end. And the audiobook was excellent. Well worth the time - my review lands on the “read it” side of things.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Cursing, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence

Minor: Hate crime, Homophobia, Police brutality, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, and Transphobia

alrauna's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Death, and Violence

Minor: Police brutality and Gun violence

moon's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

while tana french's writing is definitely a strong point of this novel, i find it hard to feel as positively for the plot. the pacing was quite slow so it was a challenge for me to get through the first part and the fact that the mystery was so boring didn't help in keeping my attention either. i mostly just kept going because i hate leaving things unfinished. the fomo is strong in this one (me). the conclusion to the mystery was pretty lacklustre and disappointing too because i had the impression that more shit was gonna go down.

that said, i'm a huge fan of the way tana french moulds her characters. all of them feel so authentically human, with their flaws and individualities that set each character apart from the rest. i have my reasons for disliking the main character and others as well, which is why i answered that i didn't find the characters lovable, but trey and lena are an exception. the way i got so attached to trey like she was my own sibling...

my point is, i didn't hate this book due to the brilliant writing, but the other things could be better.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Violence, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Grief, Gun violence, and Police brutality

Minor: Hate crime

bella_cavicchi's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.75

This was atmospheric and suspenseful and showcased a distinctive cast of characters. I tore through it in a night -- a testament, I think, to how captivating French's writing is.

Related: I think often about our collective engagement with crime novels because the genre's success often relies on a binary sense of justice and the unchecked necessity of policing. What is a thriller in an abolitionist world? It's a question I don't have an immediate answer for, but I really appreciate how French doesn't shy away from it altogether.

Excited to check out her backlist of works!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Child abuse, and Cursing

Minor: Police brutality and Suicide

derschnauzbart's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Animal death

Moderate: Death and Murder

Minor: Police brutality