Scan barcode
A review by sharonleavy
The Jigsaw Man by Nadine Matheson
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? It's complicated
4.75
This is a debut novel - but you'd never know it. The author describes this as "a macabre love letter to South East London" and it really does come across that way. London itself is a main character in this novel. The smells, the sounds, the eclectic mix of people that make up the city - they all pour off the pages. The author does such a brilliant job with the main characters that I was sure there had been a mistake and that this was at least the second book in a series - but no, it's number one. We get backstory, we get previous case history, we get relationship history, we get a complete picture of who DI Anjelica Henley is and what she has been through. That's impressive in itself but when it's also combined with a world of side characters with their own history and stories, that sets this apart from other crime novels.
The villain, Olivier, is truly disgusting. I've read a lot of crime and thriller novels and rarely does a character make me sick to my stomach. This one most definitely did. It's pretty gruesome (I almost wrote "pretty gruesome in parts" but I feel like that takes puns to another level altogether), so do bear that in mind, but for me it was worth it. It has been a very long time since I put a book down and immediately wanted to read the next one in the series (it has been confirmed!! Yay!!).
I highly recommend this if you like police procedurals or crime novels but ache for a good female lead. DI Anjelica Henley has shot (boom) right to the top of my favourite fictional investigators. I felt like I got to know her so well, she felt so real. This is, of course, in part down to the fact that this is an #ownvoices novel. The author was born and bred in London and works in the UK Judicial system. The book also highlights the myriad of BS that black women & women of colour are expected to endure (in both professional & non-professional instances), from the microaggressions and misogyny to the differences between resources available to solve (or even the amount of attention given to) missing persons cases when a white woman goes missing versus when a black woman or woman of colour goes missing.
I really enjoyed this. It was a solid crime novel and I hope the first of many for this author and for DI Anjelica Henley. I would love to see it as a TV adaptation too.
The villain, Olivier, is truly disgusting. I've read a lot of crime and thriller novels and rarely does a character make me sick to my stomach. This one most definitely did. It's pretty gruesome (I almost wrote "pretty gruesome in parts" but I feel like that takes puns to another level altogether), so do bear that in mind, but for me it was worth it. It has been a very long time since I put a book down and immediately wanted to read the next one in the series (it has been confirmed!! Yay!!).
I highly recommend this if you like police procedurals or crime novels but ache for a good female lead. DI Anjelica Henley has shot (boom) right to the top of my favourite fictional investigators. I felt like I got to know her so well, she felt so real. This is, of course, in part down to the fact that this is an #ownvoices novel. The author was born and bred in London and works in the UK Judicial system. The book also highlights the myriad of BS that black women & women of colour are expected to endure (in both professional & non-professional instances), from the microaggressions and misogyny to the differences between resources available to solve (or even the amount of attention given to) missing persons cases when a white woman goes missing versus when a black woman or woman of colour goes missing.
I really enjoyed this. It was a solid crime novel and I hope the first of many for this author and for DI Anjelica Henley. I would love to see it as a TV adaptation too.