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duparker's review against another edition
4.0
A bit slow to start, but very engaging once I get going it was a great mystery with thriller elements. The twists and turns were solid and realistic. The main change up at the end was quite enjoyable.
taytergoose's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Harry Hole is 12 books deep and I think he’s been a vigilante for most of them. I’m joking but his career path from “well meaning but sometimes risky police detective” to “honestly just a menace to society with too many police connections” has been something to behold. I’m hoping that the upshot of this chapter in his story is that he can have somewhat of a reset because Harry is about two-minutes-to-midnight on becoming a serial killer himself.
The story picks up somewhat where Knife left off as the events of that book have an indirect influence on this one. Harry and Rakel are happily married, ex-cop-ex-teacher Harry is now the co-owner of a bar that is doing okay? maybe? Everything is great! Until.. A MURDER. But no ordinary murder. This one is closer to Harry than ever before. It’s almost definitely personal.
Even early on in the book it’s evident that Occam’s Razor falls in support of Harry being the most likely culprit. He has barely any recollection of the night of the crime on account of his recurring alcohol problem, all of his alibis are vague at best and it’s getting harder and harder to place anyone else at the scene. Surely our lovable rogue Harry Hole couldn’t do a murder? Well aside from the constant murdering of “bad guys” for which he has yet to really be held accountable.
We follow Harry on a desperate quest down a list of anyone-and-everyone who might have a bone to pick with either himself or the victim (naturally a very long list on his side) as he tries to exonerate himself; more to his own conscience than the actual police.
I found Knife (and its prequel, The Thirst) to be far more focussed and enjoyable than the sort of muddy, convoluted experiences I had with Phantom (9) and Police (10). The narrative of those two felt a little scrambled with too much going on other than the main thread whereas this book definitely tapped into the bread-and-butter whodunnit-and-why that sometimes gets forgotten as crime series’ ramp up.
The story picks up somewhat where Knife left off as the events of that book have an indirect influence on this one. Harry and Rakel are happily married, ex-cop-ex-teacher Harry is now the co-owner of a bar that is doing okay? maybe? Everything is great! Until.. A MURDER. But no ordinary murder. This one is closer to Harry than ever before. It’s almost definitely personal.
Even early on in the book it’s evident that Occam’s Razor falls in support of Harry being the most likely culprit. He has barely any recollection of the night of the crime on account of his recurring alcohol problem, all of his alibis are vague at best and it’s getting harder and harder to place anyone else at the scene. Surely our lovable rogue Harry Hole couldn’t do a murder? Well aside from the constant murdering of “bad guys” for which he has yet to really be held accountable.
We follow Harry on a desperate quest down a list of anyone-and-everyone who might have a bone to pick with either himself or the victim (naturally a very long list on his side) as he tries to exonerate himself; more to his own conscience than the actual police.
I found Knife (and its prequel, The Thirst) to be far more focussed and enjoyable than the sort of muddy, convoluted experiences I had with Phantom (9) and Police (10). The narrative of those two felt a little scrambled with too much going on other than the main thread whereas this book definitely tapped into the bread-and-butter whodunnit-and-why that sometimes gets forgotten as crime series’ ramp up.
njw13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
dosivlke's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
nikki_in_niagara's review against another edition
3.0
A series of rapes and Harry is positive he knows who it is. He's become a drunk again due to personal problems then a major character is killed and Harry is put on suspension. The rest of the book is Harry going rogue, again, moping around and getting drunk. This entire book is based on previous books and the series cannot be read out of order.
This book was so slow. I was disappointed with this entry in the series. While I like police procedurals to get into the character's personal lives this book was more about that than any specific case. The ending was fast and wrapped up the crimes startingly but it was;t a good enough pay-off for the rest of the book. I usually read a Hole book in 2-3 days but I felt like I was in molasses as it took me an unbelievable 7 days to read.
This book was so slow. I was disappointed with this entry in the series. While I like police procedurals to get into the character's personal lives this book was more about that than any specific case. The ending was fast and wrapped up the crimes startingly but it was;t a good enough pay-off for the rest of the book. I usually read a Hole book in 2-3 days but I felt like I was in molasses as it took me an unbelievable 7 days to read.
gracerogersreads's review against another edition
3.0
Um, wtf happened to Rita???
The waitress whose been in the last 9/11 books randomly got renamed to Nina or something. Confused.
To be honest this was probably my least favourite. Maybe because it was spoiled for me but then the spoiler was revealed about 20% in.
It just fell a bit flat, I think I got a bit frustrated with this one. I appreciate his life being the main plot but I just didn’t get the reveal at all. It could have been so many other people. It also took me the longest to read by an absolute landslide. I usually average about 5 days for Nesbo books and one 300 pages longer than Knife took me half the time. Wasn’t my favourite.
Please let there be one female killer, begging at this point. I’ve got one book left in the series so far and if it’s not a woman I’m done lol.
The waitress whose been in the last 9/11 books randomly got renamed to Nina or something. Confused.
To be honest this was probably my least favourite. Maybe because it was spoiled for me but then the spoiler was revealed about 20% in.
It just fell a bit flat, I think I got a bit frustrated with this one. I appreciate his life being the main plot but I just didn’t get the reveal at all. It could have been so many other people. It also took me the longest to read by an absolute landslide. I usually average about 5 days for Nesbo books and one 300 pages longer than Knife took me half the time. Wasn’t my favourite.
Please let there be one female killer, begging at this point. I’ve got one book left in the series so far and if it’s not a woman I’m done lol.
eliskarusova's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
melissamcelroy23's review against another edition
3.0
stop killing off my favourite characters @ jo nesbø!! 3.5 rounded down.
cathodg's review against another edition
4.0
Wow, I’d forgotten how dark Nesbø’s books get. Harry Hole remains a troubled alcoholic but charming nonetheless - I definitely have a type when it comes to fictional police inspectors! The tension and plot twists were absolutely fantastic and in the latter chapters I just couldn’t put it down.
If you’re not familiar with Nesbø and his main character Harry Hole then start at the beginning of the series with The Bat. If you like murder mysteries, thrilling plot twists and dark disturbed characters then you won’t be disappointed.
If you’re not familiar with Nesbø and his main character Harry Hole then start at the beginning of the series with The Bat. If you like murder mysteries, thrilling plot twists and dark disturbed characters then you won’t be disappointed.