Great story and read

I love the accents, and the daily intrigues and goings on (and not so daily ones) in an Irish small town. Capturing, just the right size detective story for me, not too brutal or gory. Personal and relational

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1 person found this helpful

Sorry, only three stars from me

This was the first time I’d “read” a book by Tana French and I was hooked by the blurb on Audible. Along with a healthy number of positive reviews, it did a good job and had me reaching for the buy button.

The story is told in the third person from Cal Hooper’s point of view. Having served 25 years in the Chicago police service and enduring a rough divorce, all Cal wants is a quiet life. A small village in rural Ireland offers him the tranquillity he desires and a run-down cottage gives him something to take his mind off what he’s left behind. In spite of being referred to as a “blow in” Cal is welcomed by a cast of characters including Mart, his nearest neighbour and Noreen the village shopkeeper, matchmaker and gossip. Befriended by a local teenager, Cal learns that life in rural Ireland isn’t quite as tranquil as he’d imagined. The kid’s older brother has gone missing under suspicious circumstances and while Cal doesn’t want to get involved, it intrigues him. Being careful not to ruffle any feathers, he makes discrete enquiries amongst the neighbours, villagers and pub-goers. It’s clear to Cal that he ought to leave it alone; easier said than done for someone who spent his career dealing with missing persons.

I love thrillers and I’ve penned a couple myself, although not to the same acclaim as Ms French. The ever helpful Audible suggested this book based on my search history and buying habits, so far so good. I subsequently note that it is listed on Amazon as number 4 in Gothic Romance, number 23 in Action and Adventure Literary Fiction and 26 in Historical Mystery, Thrillers and Suspense Fiction. Gothic Romance? I’m not sure what category it best fits into, but Thriller is stretching it a little. This book is slow to get going – very slow. It’s like a boot-sucking ramble across the Irish peat bogs that it depicts. The descriptions of the environment, flora and fauna are very very rich and if you’ve never visited rural Ireland you certainly get a great sense of the place in which the story is set. The characters arcs are more like flat lines. They don’t die but they don’t change much either. The kid’s journey is probably the better one. There’s something distinctly dodgy about Cal’s neighbour, Mart. I felt nothing for Cal himself. He seems like a nice guy but that’s about it.

I wouldn’t recommend this book, but that’s just my opinion. When it comes to social proof there are lots of readers who loved it – check out the reviews. I did wonder if it was just me, but having read some of the reviews after finishing the book, I found a couple who agreed that the book was slow to get going. From and audio perspective there is nothing wrong with the performance. Roger Clark does a great job, tackling the Irish accents with great skill. His performance as Cal is as gritty as I imagined the character to be. That said, a great performance can’t and doesn’t rescue a mediocre script.

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9 people found this helpful

Very Enjoyable Read

Good storyline, interesting characters and a good plot , had my attention throughout . Would definitely recommend.

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Draws you in

A well written story. You get drawn into the place and plot, in the same way as the main character is gradually pulled into a situation.
Narrator good - enhanced the story

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Unexpectedly touching

Thoroughly enjoyed this - beautiful writing brought the landscape to life with a good tale to go with it.

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Not one of her best

I am a huge fan of French but this meanders and goes on and on and on…

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Very slow burning

I wasn’t mad about this book,
3/4 of the way through I was bored and just finished it because I had already come so far.
I liked the characters but to me it felt like a 1 hour crime story dragged out for 15 hours.

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Picturesque Irish Noir

Grim but realistic drama set in modern rural Ireland. Very accurate portrayal of small town life and undercurrents. Well read great accents.

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Magical narration ❤️

This title was brought gorgeously to life by Roger Clark’s wonderful nuanced narration. Great ad for Audible: the audio version outshines the original! Good story and characters but Clark’s husky, mournful singing and muscular rendering of the Irish dialogue in particular stays with you.

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Great story well told

This is not your average police /mystery type novel. The pace of the book especially to start with reflects the slow rural Setting to the novel, which took me a while to get used to. But the story develops with both plot and characters and I found it very absorbing. The voices are well acted. I would happily listen again - and I don’t often say that!

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