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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
I have revised this review deciding after the fact it was full of implausible events and plot holes and way way too long.
Nov. 2017 - After reading [a:Conor O'Callaghan|163609|Conor O'Callaghan|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s brilliant [b:Nothing On Earth|27245637|Nothing On Earth|Conor O'Callaghan|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1466278348s/27245637.jpg|47294122] and rating it 5 stars, I had no choice but to downgrade this rating. Both books are about ghost estates in Ireland.
October 2018 - revising again to explain my 1 star. The book is far too long, and full of very implausible events. A thriller should provide explanations, but this one doesn't. Worse of all is French's disdain and utter contempt for working class people. A friend of mine who grew up in the Liberties neighborhood in Dublin was furious over this portrayal. This book put me off French forever. I also dislike that she, an American, masquerades as Irish and even speaks in an affected accent (shades of Madonna during her London days).
I am also adding to this after a suggestion by one reader of French who thought Goodreads should delete 1 star reviews.
Nov. 2017 - After reading [a:Conor O'Callaghan|163609|Conor O'Callaghan|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s brilliant [b:Nothing On Earth|27245637|Nothing On Earth|Conor O'Callaghan|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1466278348s/27245637.jpg|47294122] and rating it 5 stars, I had no choice but to downgrade this rating. Both books are about ghost estates in Ireland.
October 2018 - revising again to explain my 1 star. The book is far too long, and full of very implausible events. A thriller should provide explanations, but this one doesn't. Worse of all is French's disdain and utter contempt for working class people. A friend of mine who grew up in the Liberties neighborhood in Dublin was furious over this portrayal. This book put me off French forever. I also dislike that she, an American, masquerades as Irish and even speaks in an affected accent (shades of Madonna during her London days).
I am also adding to this after a suggestion by one reader of French who thought Goodreads should delete 1 star reviews.
[b:Broken Harbor|16171207|Broken Harbor (Dublin Murder Squad, #4)|Tana French|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1356090188s/16171207.jpg|15718578] follows Detective Kennedy aka “Scorcher” who was introduced in [b:Faithful Place|7093952|Faithful Place (Dublin Murder Squad, #3)|Tana French|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1538063243s/7093952.jpg|7350661]. I didn’t really like Scorcher in Faithful Place because he seemed way too obsessed with maintaining a high solve rate. He didn’t seem very empathetic either. His obsession with solving crime nice and quickly is apparent in this book too - this is a result of his rule-abiding habits and seeing every in strictly black and white.
But things aren’t always black and white.
Despite the fact that Scorcher is probably the least likable character in this series (next to Quigley), I have to admit that this might actually be my favourite volume so far. I liked the amount of detail that went into showing the readers how to conduct a by-the-book investigation from the crime scene to when the case has been solved (although the amount of details included in this book can be a downside too... some scenes dragged on for a bit too long). The fact that Scorcher’s partner is a trainee, gives readers a nice glimpse into the entire investigative procedure. I also really liked the new detective/trainee, Richie. He’s far more likable and very empathetic.
Personally, I didn’t think the ‘mystery’ was that hard to solve - I kind of guessed who did it right off the bat (so it didn’t really come to a surprise for me). Even so, I loved all the weird and kind of disturbing curve balls that [a:Tana French|138825|Tana French|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1535655031p2/138825.jpg] kept throwing at the readers. Also, the execution of the story and the philosophical questions that were raised on the topic of ‘justice’ was thought-provoking.
“That right there, that’s why I didn’t tell you. I knew that was what you’d say. I knew it. With you, man, everything’s black and white. No questions; just stick to the rules and go home.”
But things aren’t always black and white.
Despite the fact that Scorcher is probably the least likable character in this series (next to Quigley), I have to admit that this might actually be my favourite volume so far. I liked the amount of detail that went into showing the readers how to conduct a by-the-book investigation from the crime scene to when the case has been solved (although the amount of details included in this book can be a downside too... some scenes dragged on for a bit too long). The fact that Scorcher’s partner is a trainee, gives readers a nice glimpse into the entire investigative procedure. I also really liked the new detective/trainee, Richie. He’s far more likable and very empathetic.
Personally, I didn’t think the ‘mystery’ was that hard to solve - I kind of guessed who did it right off the bat (so it didn’t really come to a surprise for me). Even so, I loved all the weird and kind of disturbing curve balls that [a:Tana French|138825|Tana French|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1535655031p2/138825.jpg] kept throwing at the readers. Also, the execution of the story and the philosophical questions that were raised on the topic of ‘justice’ was thought-provoking.
I cheated on this one. I cared about the characters and wanted to know what happened, but I didn’t want to follow the characters through the grisly and sad story. So I read the first third and the last two chapters and called it good.
Longer than necessary. The mist imperfect character is the main character. Hmmmmmm....
I'm a sucker for murder mysteries to begin with, but Tana French novels are always well-rounded in that they combine whodunit plots with interesting character development. I also have noticed that her narrators speak in the past tense with a hint of regret that evokes a sense of longing that, as a reader, I love.
Excellent for reading after we just decided not to buy an overpriced bay area townhouse.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is my fave Tana French novels so far. She's a beautiful writer, but I find it easier to follow when I use an audiobook.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide
Satisfying read. Tana French does a wonderful job fleshing out believable characters. I do think she might be unusually prejudiced toward fat people though. Her mean characters often have negative comments about their bodies, and her likeable/agreeable characters are always thin. It's not a big deal in the book, but it was a bit distracting.
This was fabulous. Intriguing, detailed, and I loved the changing relationship between the two detectives.