Broken Harbor by Tana French is the fourth of six books in the Dublin Murder Squad series. I am mixed on these books - I like the idea of setting all of these within the same world with a different main character in each book, but the execution is sometimes a bit dodgy for me.
First up, what a delightfully terrible cover. Could you imagine anything more boring that this cover? Me neither.
Mick Kennedy is paired with a rookie murder detective when they are sent to to a half-built "luxury" development that became so prevalent in the 2007-2008 recession. An entire family has been killed, including the mother, father, and two children. Kennedy is pretty sure he knows what happened, but the case gets more and more complicated.
I knew what had happened about halfway through, so all the tension from the story was gone for me. Also, the traumatic childhood b-story seemed like a copied version of the first book in this series, so this was a bit disappointing to me. Eh. Tana French is beloved to some, so I hope they enjoy her more than I do.
2.5/5 stars
UK things I looked up:
Lucozale, Alsatian, Val Doonican, "strafed hope"
Further proof that you and I are book opposites! ;-) This is one of my favorite Tana French books, and I love her SO MUCH. This book haunts me. While I agree that the whodunit part was predictable, I find the motivations behind the murders to be so heartbreaking! I think about it often and I read it years ago.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. I actually thought the setting was the most interesting part - I could picture the half-built abandoned buildings with just a handful that are finished and occupied - and the motivations/crime itself were lackluster. I love that fiction works like this and that two people can have two polar opposite reactions to the same thing! It's such a powerful medium.
DeleteOh yes, the setting was phenomenal. And I completely agree -- I marvel every time I read a five-star, enthusiastic review about a book I could not stand. There is a book out there for every reader, and a reader for every book!
DeleteI read The Likeness and liked it. Based on your review I was all ready skip this one, but then I saw Lisa's comment above. I don't like it when whodunits are predictable, but I am a little intrigued. I"ll keep an open mind and POSSIBLY read it someday!
ReplyDeleteI mean, Tana French is a very solid writer. If you don't really care about the crime plot, but you're interested in her prose and the development of the murder squad, it's probably worth the time. It's just doesn't resonate with me the way some of her other books have.
DeleteI have had mixed feelings about Tana French. I read and disliked In the Woods. But then I liked The Trespasser which was book 6 in this series. But I didn't love it enough to read more of her work! I almost never figure out who did it, so it makes me wonder if I would figure it out in this book, but I don't wonder enough to read it since you gave it a low rating!
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