A review by chaosisafriend
The Son by Jo Nesbø

5.0

Jo NesbØ is a Norwegian author best known for his Harry Hole crime novels. However, The Son is a stand-alone novel and the first of his I've read. I became aware of NesbØ because one of my friends has been a huge fan of his for a long time. After reading this book, I can see why.

The Son is different from a typical mystery or crime novel in that the killer is known from the beginning and his motives are as well. That doesn't mean there isn't plenty of suspense. As Sonny takes revenge on those who have wronged him, a greater mystery having to do with a mole in the police department unravels with plenty of twists and turns.

Another thing that made this different from the crime novels I've read is that Sonny, ostensibly the villain, is such a likeable guy. I was actually rooting for him most of the time. His personality was so unique. All of the characters in The Son are well-drawn. I also really liked the relationship between Simon Kefas, the detective pursuing Sonny, and Simon's wife, Else.

Now that I've had a taste of NesbØ , I want to read the Harry Hole novels as well. I highly recommend this book to not just fans of Nordic crime novels but fans of any type of crime novel.