In the Woods (2007)

Let's see. There's murdered children; blood, poison, and a gang rape; a psychopath; some political corruption, two ruined souls (as I count them); and a love story. How did French make these into poetry? When I finished her book, I was left "blinking and dazzled", as she says; and it will take me a long while to "...stop thinking in [her] cool, polished, crystalline rhythms." This book has left me aching in the most beautiful way.
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I started this over a week ago and was so busy I was only able to peck away at it a few pages at a time, which was killing me. Right away in the first few pages, the writing style struck me as almost lyrical and mysterious. The premise was intriguing - Adam Ryan went missing with two of his friends when they were 12. He was the only one to return, with blood in his shoes and without his memory. Many years and one name change later, he's a detective assigned to a murdered child case in the same town he went missing in.

When a book sucks me in and makes me forget that I'm not really in that world like this one did, I consider it a success. One of the novel's biggest joys is the relationship between the main character and his partner and best friend, Cassie Maddox. The evolution of their relationship avoids the cliches and goes in the exact opposite direction I figured the author would take it. This is Tana French's debut, but she's already mastered the art of deciding what to resolve, what to hold back, and what to leave painfully raw.

I have the sequel from the library, and while I plan on reading it, I'm not sure I want a second book. Some stories just end themselves in the perfect place, and In the Woods would have made a very good stand-alone story. ( )

Wow. I want to like this book, but I don't. At every turn, I'm being told who to look at, how to feel, and which smarmy cop I'm supposed to love. I finish a page and get the feeling that I just want the author to leave me alone and let me figure it out. This is not a good way to feel about a book.

I miss you, Donna Tartt. I miss you. ( )

Wow. I want to like this book, but I don't. At every turn, I'm being told who to look at, how to feel, and which smarmy cop I'm supposed to love. I finish a page and get the feeling that I just want the author to leave me alone and let me figure it out. This is not a good way to feel about a book.

I miss you, Donna Tartt. I miss you. ( )

Like Mystic River and Lovely Bones, this book will stay with me for a long time. Not every question was answered and nothing about the case or the characters was tidy. Perhaps that’s why I liked it. It was more in sync with reality than is the case for most books. I picked it up because a reader’s review was selected for Powell’s Daily Dose and as such, the review landed in my inbox. It was compared to Mystic River and Lovely Bones, two favorites of mine. The comparison proved accurate. And, as I said, my reaction to this book is much like my reaction to those. The story is of an Irish detective assigned to solve the case of a murdered girl. This particular murder proves haunting to him because his two best friends from childhood disappeared in the same wood. He was with them at the time, but has no memory of what happened to him or his friends. He shares this connection with his partner/best friend, but fails to tell his boss because he doesn’t want to be taken off the case. Not surprisingly, he loses perspective and his secret is eventually found out. What disturbs and intrigues me is that this detective narrates the story and points out in the beginning and in the end that he is a liar. This acknowledgement puts everything he says into question. He can’t even trust his own memories. I like that this book takes place in Ireland. It gives it a different flavor. The main characters are supremely well drawn and complex. The mysteries that play out in the woods are fascinating, and the answers are elusive. If cozy mysteries are your taste, this is not the book for you. It also contains a considerable amount of blue language. This also isn’t a serial killer type book with gory descriptions. This is a dark and edgy mystery with complex characters and no easy answers. It leaves you unsettled long after you have turned the final page. What isn’t a mystery is why it was a finalist for the Edgar Award (named for Edgar Allan Poe). ( )