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paulineg's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-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
paulinakw's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Ce roman est plein de références historiques, c'est un plaisir à lire. Lecture rapide.
emergencia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
mudep's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
howjessicareads's review against another edition
4.0
Another superb novel from Fred Vargas. Not an Inspector Adamsberg novel this time, but rather the story of four roommates: Mathias, Marc, Lucien, and Vandoosler. Mathias, Marc, and Lucien (the "three evangelists") are all historians, but in vastly different fields. Vandoosler is Marc's uncle/godfather. All three historians are broke, so they move into a rundown old house on a nice street in Paris, coincidentally next door to a former opera singer who is alarmed by the sudden appearance of a tree in her backyard. She asks the three evangelists to investigate the tree for her, and then she turns up missing--leading them to a much more mysterious case than they first anticipated. The characters are quirky and charming, the mystery interesting, and the ending unexpected.
haukka's review against another edition
3.0
Modern day Parisien murder mystery. Good plot twists, diverse characters, lots to chew on. Made complete sense and I understood way more of this than my last atttempt at reading a French novel. Next time I read French I'll consider this author.
smcleish's review against another edition
4.0
Originally published on my blog here in August 2009.
Fred Vargas' only standalone novel so far is an intriguingly different detective story. This is clear from the bizarre opening, in which retired opera singer Sophia Siméonidis wakes one morning to find a new tree has been planted in her garden overnight. After worrying in silence for a month, she approaches her next door neighbours, three effectively unemployed historians (known as the Evangelists because their names are Matthias, Marc and Lucien) and a senior policeman forced into disgraced retirement. She asks them to pose as council workers and dig up the tree, once they suggest that it would be a good way for someone to hide a body.
When nothing is found, it seems as though the whole thing was just a fuss over nothing, until Sophia goes missing. Then the Evangelists begin looking into the mystery in earnest, feeling that their research skills and the fact that they are not policemen might make it possible to discover things that the official investigation cannot. While this latter reason is commonly used in crime fiction to justify amateur investigations, it is not one that would be recommended by police forces around the world!
The Three Evangelists is a character led detective story, with quirky touches like the tree lending extra interest. (I have been told that this sort of whimsy is typical of Vargas, and that to some it might become tiresome after two or three novels.) It has a brilliantly put together ending, where the pace suddenly picks up for the last few chapters and the solution is revealed.
Vargas has now won three of the last four International Crime Daggers, despite other writers translated into English having a higher profile. The Three Evangelists was the first of her winners, and clearly deserved to do so. This is not just a well written detective story, it is different from the usual run of things in the genre and so stands out all the more.
Fred Vargas' only standalone novel so far is an intriguingly different detective story. This is clear from the bizarre opening, in which retired opera singer Sophia Siméonidis wakes one morning to find a new tree has been planted in her garden overnight. After worrying in silence for a month, she approaches her next door neighbours, three effectively unemployed historians (known as the Evangelists because their names are Matthias, Marc and Lucien) and a senior policeman forced into disgraced retirement. She asks them to pose as council workers and dig up the tree, once they suggest that it would be a good way for someone to hide a body.
When nothing is found, it seems as though the whole thing was just a fuss over nothing, until Sophia goes missing. Then the Evangelists begin looking into the mystery in earnest, feeling that their research skills and the fact that they are not policemen might make it possible to discover things that the official investigation cannot. While this latter reason is commonly used in crime fiction to justify amateur investigations, it is not one that would be recommended by police forces around the world!
The Three Evangelists is a character led detective story, with quirky touches like the tree lending extra interest. (I have been told that this sort of whimsy is typical of Vargas, and that to some it might become tiresome after two or three novels.) It has a brilliantly put together ending, where the pace suddenly picks up for the last few chapters and the solution is revealed.
Vargas has now won three of the last four International Crime Daggers, despite other writers translated into English having a higher profile. The Three Evangelists was the first of her winners, and clearly deserved to do so. This is not just a well written detective story, it is different from the usual run of things in the genre and so stands out all the more.
canadianbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
So very different from her usual Adamsberg series.
Lots of twists and turns, but lots of humour too.
Really enjoyed it.
Lots of twists and turns, but lots of humour too.
Really enjoyed it.
moncoinlecture's review against another edition
3.0
3,5
Beaucoup aimé, j'avais vu venir, j'adore les personnages des évangélistes.
Mon contexte de lecture (boulot, très lent) a fait que je n'ai pas embarqué dans l'histoire comme je l'aurais voulu. Je lirais les autres avec les évangélistes!
Beaucoup aimé, j'avais vu venir, j'adore les personnages des évangélistes.
Mon contexte de lecture (boulot, très lent) a fait que je n'ai pas embarqué dans l'histoire comme je l'aurais voulu. Je lirais les autres avec les évangélistes!