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jimbowen0306's review against another edition
4.0
For the uninitiated, Harry Hole is a sort of Norwegian John Rebus, with way more back story, and faults (you could argue), than his Scottish counterpart. The first 2 books in the series were daft. They introduce Hole, but stretched credibility. The series got better from book 3, even if some of the endings... were a bit daft.
This book follows on from the last book in the series. Hole is married, but because he's had so much grief in his life, he's worried about it. He's still lecturing at the police college, and keeping a paternal eye on his step-son, who is a trainee policeman now, Because of events going on in Oslo, he's dragged back into a high profile murder case.
The case itself is pretty much standard Hole fair. There are the initial screw ups, before the eventual denouement, as he chases a killer he might have come across before. If you've read any of the previous Hole books, you'll enjoy this one.
I read a lot of crime fiction, and can usually guess the eventual criminal based on my experiences, but this was one of the few occasions where an author managed to slip one by me, so I personally enjoyed the book because of that.
If I were to make a suggestion, however, it would be to read the books in order. If you start here, it might feel like you're walking into a conversation part way through. It might also give away some of the things had happened in previous books.
This book follows on from the last book in the series. Hole is married, but because he's had so much grief in his life, he's worried about it. He's still lecturing at the police college, and keeping a paternal eye on his step-son, who is a trainee policeman now, Because of events going on in Oslo, he's dragged back into a high profile murder case.
The case itself is pretty much standard Hole fair. There are the initial screw ups, before the eventual denouement, as he chases a killer he might have come across before. If you've read any of the previous Hole books, you'll enjoy this one.
I read a lot of crime fiction, and can usually guess the eventual criminal based on my experiences, but this was one of the few occasions where an author managed to slip one by me, so I personally enjoyed the book because of that.
If I were to make a suggestion, however, it would be to read the books in order. If you start here, it might feel like you're walking into a conversation part way through. It might also give away some of the things had happened in previous books.
mezzoir's review against another edition
2.0
Too many plot holes and about 100 pages too long for this to be enjoyable.
remixofyourguts's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.75
dawn1117's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
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
4.0
litwithleigh's review against another edition
3.0
Writing: translation was good | Plot: entertaining | Ending: find out on the next episode of Dragon Ball Z vibes
SYNOPSIS
When two women die in similar circumstances, Harry Hole climbs out of his hole (sorry, I had to) to chase a demon from his past.
MY OPINION
I've had this book on my physical TBR forever but the length always scared me. But since I've gotten through a few miss thiccums in June and July I dove right in. I'm glad I started at #11 in the series (LOL) because I could NOT handle Harry Hole being drunk on the job and hailed as this super detective. Absolutely not. Apparently this is his first book where he's sober? 10 books of wilding? No thanks. Also it felt like Nesbo watched Pirates of the Carribean and thought: "What if Jack Sparrow was a Norwegian detective?" And then Harry Hole was born.
I was drawn to this book because I 'love' (for lack of better word) the concept of social media or dating apps being used by the baddie to find victims. We talked about this on Novels & Nonsense Podcast, but I think it's because it could really happen IRL. Anyways, this 'trope' wasn't an important part of the story, but nonetheless I found this an interesting and engaging read despite being LONG. The vampirism aspect was certainly unique.
Where I struggled was the unnecessary (and unchecked) racism. Yes, the racist character was was intentionally unlikeable, but we're not gonna smack tf outta someone who uses racial slurs in a police briefing??? Another aspect was the random political ramblings that felt more like Nesbo wanted to get something off his chest. For example, the whole abortion 'discussion' between Dr. Steffens and Hole, where Steffens crudely describes abortion and says he 'sides with the liberal heathens' (but not really). This had no correlation to the outcome of the case, yet we had to endure two pages of this?? For what???
Oh and if 'male gazey' writing drives you bonkers, skip this. The first time Katrine Bratt is introduced in this book, Nesbo writes: She had often wondered if she was fundamentally different from other women. They had a testosterone level somewhere between five and ten percent of their male colleagues, whereas hers was closer to twenty-five percent. ... As far back as she could remember it had made her far hornier then any of her female friends had ever admitted to being. .....Ok???? Did you want a cookie or something? Why are you telling us this right before you brief your team about a woman being bitten to death??? Katrine really reminded me of Baxter from the Ragdoll series by Daniel Cole. I hated her too. A bad ass, strong women doesn't need to be unnecessarily rude and a sex addict.
Ok now it's time for some spoilies.
SPOILERS ALERT. SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM.
The baddie seemed blatantly obvious to me, but I did appreciate Anders and Dr. Steffens being red herrings. I mean c'mon, the psychologist who has dedicated his life to his proving vampirism is legitimate is behind the murders that have lended legitimacy to his previously dismissed work ??? SHOCKING
SYNOPSIS
When two women die in similar circumstances, Harry Hole climbs out of his hole (sorry, I had to) to chase a demon from his past.
MY OPINION
I've had this book on my physical TBR forever but the length always scared me. But since I've gotten through a few miss thiccums in June and July I dove right in. I'm glad I started at #11 in the series (LOL) because I could NOT handle Harry Hole being drunk on the job and hailed as this super detective. Absolutely not. Apparently this is his first book where he's sober? 10 books of wilding? No thanks. Also it felt like Nesbo watched Pirates of the Carribean and thought: "What if Jack Sparrow was a Norwegian detective?" And then Harry Hole was born.
I was drawn to this book because I 'love' (for lack of better word) the concept of social media or dating apps being used by the baddie to find victims. We talked about this on Novels & Nonsense Podcast, but I think it's because it could really happen IRL. Anyways, this 'trope' wasn't an important part of the story, but nonetheless I found this an interesting and engaging read despite being LONG. The vampirism aspect was certainly unique.
Where I struggled was the unnecessary (and unchecked) racism. Yes, the racist character was was intentionally unlikeable, but we're not gonna smack tf outta someone who uses racial slurs in a police briefing??? Another aspect was the random political ramblings that felt more like Nesbo wanted to get something off his chest. For example, the whole abortion 'discussion' between Dr. Steffens and Hole, where Steffens crudely describes abortion and says he 'sides with the liberal heathens' (but not really). This had no correlation to the outcome of the case, yet we had to endure two pages of this?? For what???
Oh and if 'male gazey' writing drives you bonkers, skip this. The first time Katrine Bratt is introduced in this book, Nesbo writes: She had often wondered if she was fundamentally different from other women. They had a testosterone level somewhere between five and ten percent of their male colleagues, whereas hers was closer to twenty-five percent. ... As far back as she could remember it had made her far hornier then any of her female friends had ever admitted to being. .....Ok???? Did you want a cookie or something? Why are you telling us this right before you brief your team about a woman being bitten to death??? Katrine really reminded me of Baxter from the Ragdoll series by Daniel Cole. I hated her too. A bad ass, strong women doesn't need to be unnecessarily rude and a sex addict.
Ok now it's time for some spoilies.
SPOILERS ALERT. SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM.
The baddie seemed blatantly obvious to me, but I did appreciate Anders and Dr. Steffens being red herrings. I mean c'mon, the psychologist who has dedicated his life to his proving vampirism is legitimate is behind the murders that have lended legitimacy to his previously dismissed work ??? SHOCKING
dwilson's review
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Slow for the first 200 pages. Guessed the "twist"
Female characters written by a man
Female characters written by a man
ida_s's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Bra plot twists
jeany_babes's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0