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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
Boring and predictable. The fear of the banlieues is a bit more pronounced than in similar French cop tv shows, with all kinds of wacky horrors coming from them (a dealer is said to have been forced to suck off a dog at one point). Was interested in the mention of the SALVAC system which the cops said they got from Canada and is used here to disappear overdose deaths from official statistics. I forget what the IRL Canadian index system is called, but in his journalism on the wrongful conviction of Glenn Assoun, Tim Bousquet reported that the RCMP created the system as a revenue generator, selling it to foreign police forces, and for that reason keeps the database's information from the court system for fear of losing their stranglehold on valuable IP. Really wanted to learn more about SALVAC, but not enough to stick it through to the end of this one.
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Great story and wonderful translation. Corruption, politics, revenge and a sharp police procedural in one of the most dangerous Paris precincts. Norek has created a protagonist who is absent most of the quirks and faults of the typical cop anti-hero, yet he's able to make him noble and real. Can't wait for the translations to come.
This starts off with a bang & never really lets up! It's gruesome, gritty & shocking, and I kept turning the pages because I had to know what was going on. I enjoyed the dynamics between Capitaine Victor Coste & his team, and am looking forward to reading the rest of this hard hitting trilogy. Olivier Norek is a new author for me, and I will definately be reading more of his work. This was superbly translated by Nick Caistor.
Thanks to Quercus Books & NetGalley for the DRC in exchange for an honest review.
Thanks to Quercus Books & NetGalley for the DRC in exchange for an honest review.
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Cliche-ridden crime with about the most wooden dialogue imaginable.
First published in his native France as Code 93 in 2013, The Lost and the Damned by Olivier Norek is the first book of the Banlieues Trilogy to be translated into English (by Nick Caistor). Introducing homicide police Capitaine Victor Coste, Norek draws on his twenty five years of experience as a lieutenant in the investigations department in one of the toughest precincts in Paris in this gritty police procedural.
During the early hours of the morning in a derelict warehouse on the banks of the Canal de L'Ourcq, the body of a large black man is found. To Capitaine Victor Coste it appears he has been shot three times in the chest, but not before he was tortured and his testicles were crudely removed. The body is transferred to the forensic morgue, but as Dr Lea Marquant makes her first cuts, the man lurches from her autopsy table. Quickly identified as a local drug dealer, Bébé Coulibaly, the bloody, bullet pierced sweater he was wearing indicates that there is likely another victim to be found, and tests suggest it’s Franck Samoy, a drug addict. Tracing his mobile phone leads Coste and his team, Ronan, Sam and rookie Johanna, to a vacant villa where they find the badly burned body of Samoy on a folding plastic chair. It’s clear the two unusual cases are linked, and Coste suspects they may have something to do with the anonymous notes he has received directing him to the files of two murdered woman. As Coste investigates the possibilities, a troubling connection to his recently departed lieutenant and an irregularity in police records develops, and he finds himself caught in a web of conspiracy, corruption, and murder.
The Lost and the Damned is a well plotted crime novel that leads the reader through the seedy outskirts of Paris and into the enclaves of the wealthy and powerful, exposing the devious machinations of authority that has triggered the rage of a serial killer. Though it’s a little dark and brutal, with a touch of cynicism, it’s offset by sly humour, and Coste’s earnest search for answers. Though I’m not familiar with the procedures of the French gendarme, the actions of Coste and his team during the investigation seem authentic, as does the motivation and behaviour of the killer.
Coste is an interesting character, principled but not uncompromising, he is a dedicated detective who believes in the integrity of policing. He has a somewhat tortured back story, and as such lives alone, though Dr Lea Marquant piques his interest. Coste’s colleagues generally admire him, and his team are as determined to have his back, as he is to protect theirs. Norek provides a basic sketch of the Groupe 1 members, enough to make sense of their role, though perhaps not quite enough yet to determine who they are.
Nick Caistor deserves praise for his translation which never feels stilted or clumsy, it’s always a concern that nuance or tone will be affected, but I noticed none of that here. I sincerely hope that the second and third books in the trilogy will also be made available in English.
I found The Lost and Damned to be an engrossing and satisfying police procedural I’d definitely recommend to fans of the genre.
During the early hours of the morning in a derelict warehouse on the banks of the Canal de L'Ourcq, the body of a large black man is found. To Capitaine Victor Coste it appears he has been shot three times in the chest, but not before he was tortured and his testicles were crudely removed. The body is transferred to the forensic morgue, but as Dr Lea Marquant makes her first cuts, the man lurches from her autopsy table. Quickly identified as a local drug dealer, Bébé Coulibaly, the bloody, bullet pierced sweater he was wearing indicates that there is likely another victim to be found, and tests suggest it’s Franck Samoy, a drug addict. Tracing his mobile phone leads Coste and his team, Ronan, Sam and rookie Johanna, to a vacant villa where they find the badly burned body of Samoy on a folding plastic chair. It’s clear the two unusual cases are linked, and Coste suspects they may have something to do with the anonymous notes he has received directing him to the files of two murdered woman. As Coste investigates the possibilities, a troubling connection to his recently departed lieutenant and an irregularity in police records develops, and he finds himself caught in a web of conspiracy, corruption, and murder.
The Lost and the Damned is a well plotted crime novel that leads the reader through the seedy outskirts of Paris and into the enclaves of the wealthy and powerful, exposing the devious machinations of authority that has triggered the rage of a serial killer. Though it’s a little dark and brutal, with a touch of cynicism, it’s offset by sly humour, and Coste’s earnest search for answers. Though I’m not familiar with the procedures of the French gendarme, the actions of Coste and his team during the investigation seem authentic, as does the motivation and behaviour of the killer.
Coste is an interesting character, principled but not uncompromising, he is a dedicated detective who believes in the integrity of policing. He has a somewhat tortured back story, and as such lives alone, though Dr Lea Marquant piques his interest. Coste’s colleagues generally admire him, and his team are as determined to have his back, as he is to protect theirs. Norek provides a basic sketch of the Groupe 1 members, enough to make sense of their role, though perhaps not quite enough yet to determine who they are.
Nick Caistor deserves praise for his translation which never feels stilted or clumsy, it’s always a concern that nuance or tone will be affected, but I noticed none of that here. I sincerely hope that the second and third books in the trilogy will also be made available in English.
I found The Lost and Damned to be an engrossing and satisfying police procedural I’d definitely recommend to fans of the genre.
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It is very clear that Olivier Norek used his experience asa police officer to make this feel authentic. The camaraderie within Coste's team was clear pretty early on, Coste and his team are well described so you can imagine them easily as plot progresses.
Although a slower pace to begin with, the last third of the book was pacier as the story came to it's dramatic conclusion.
This had initially several seemingly unconnected cases which soon combined to make things very interesting for Coste and the use of multiple viewpoints, not just of Coste & team but of the victims and perpetrator helped me put the story together and work out who was responsible and why.
Will definitely be reading the other books in the series.
Although a slower pace to begin with, the last third of the book was pacier as the story came to it's dramatic conclusion.
This had initially several seemingly unconnected cases which soon combined to make things very interesting for Coste and the use of multiple viewpoints, not just of Coste & team but of the victims and perpetrator helped me put the story together and work out who was responsible and why.
Will definitely be reading the other books in the series.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'm quite proud that we have a lot of good thriller authors in France, and Olivier Norek is one of them. After I loved his book <i>Entre deux mondes</i> (which wasn't a thriller), I was eager to read him again, this time in his preferred genre - thrillers.
<i>The Lost and the Damned</i> is set in France, in a suburb of Paris called "Seine-Saint-Denis". This place is known all over the country for being the part of France where povery and crime rates go through the roof. There, we are following police captain Victor Coste who's trying to solve a complex case: a man had his balls cut off, and he was found wearing the pullover of a young drug addict who seems to have spontaneously burned down in an abandoned house. Sounds completely twisted, right?
Although there are two corpses within the first few pages, this thriller isn't one I'd say is scary. By this I mean that I didn't feel this tense atmosphere where you expect a charcters to get killed anytime, or a murderer to appear at every corner. There is actually no feeling of emergency to catch the murderer. It doesn't mean it was boring though! Olivier Norek was a policeman in Seine-Saint-Denis in the past so he knows what he's writing about. There are interesting scenes showing how police services work, and he also introduces a discussion about corruption within the police.
I also really like captain Coste and his team. This book is the first in a series about these characters and I look forward to reading the other books, I hope they will focus a bit more on Coste's team members, there are some I'd love to know more about.
I really enjoyed Norek's writing style, with touches of dark humor that ease the overall very dark atmosphere. His books are only beginning to be translated into English but I definitely recommend you to give them a try if you're into thrillers!
<i>The Lost and the Damned</i> is set in France, in a suburb of Paris called "Seine-Saint-Denis". This place is known all over the country for being the part of France where povery and crime rates go through the roof. There, we are following police captain Victor Coste who's trying to solve a complex case: a man had his balls cut off, and he was found wearing the pullover of a young drug addict who seems to have spontaneously burned down in an abandoned house. Sounds completely twisted, right?
Although there are two corpses within the first few pages, this thriller isn't one I'd say is scary. By this I mean that I didn't feel this tense atmosphere where you expect a charcters to get killed anytime, or a murderer to appear at every corner. There is actually no feeling of emergency to catch the murderer. It doesn't mean it was boring though! Olivier Norek was a policeman in Seine-Saint-Denis in the past so he knows what he's writing about. There are interesting scenes showing how police services work, and he also introduces a discussion about corruption within the police.
I also really like captain Coste and his team. This book is the first in a series about these characters and I look forward to reading the other books, I hope they will focus a bit more on Coste's team members, there are some I'd love to know more about.
I really enjoyed Norek's writing style, with touches of dark humor that ease the overall very dark atmosphere. His books are only beginning to be translated into English but I definitely recommend you to give them a try if you're into thrillers!
It's hard to believe (and also very exciting) that this was the debut of Mr. Norek. This was a police thriller that had a bit of everything and the execution left me more than satisfied.
The characters were for me the strongest part of this book. Well developed, believable and the police team's chemistry worked like a charm.
The plot kept the story going in a quick enough pace and it was very interesting from start to finish.
Also the humour in this book was clever andjust the right amount. Never distracting from the plot but keeping it from getting overly dark.
Finally the atmosphere of Paris's not so fancy suburbs, was well described and I liked that the writer touched on some political corruption issues.
Of course not everything was perfect and my biggest complain would be that some of the smaller side-plots were not nearly enough explored and as a result in the end they felt a bit needless. Of course those side plots could be further developed in the next installments of the series.
Speaking of next instalments, I'm totally sold on this series and can't wait for them to be translated.
Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
The characters were for me the strongest part of this book. Well developed, believable and the police team's chemistry worked like a charm.
The plot kept the story going in a quick enough pace and it was very interesting from start to finish.
Also the humour in this book was clever andjust the right amount. Never distracting from the plot but keeping it from getting overly dark.
Finally the atmosphere of Paris's not so fancy suburbs, was well described and I liked that the writer touched on some political corruption issues.
Of course not everything was perfect and my biggest complain would be that some of the smaller side-plots were not nearly enough explored and as a result in the end they felt a bit needless. Of course those side plots could be further developed in the next installments of the series.
Speaking of next instalments, I'm totally sold on this series and can't wait for them to be translated.
Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.