Tag: Murder

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The Secret History by Donna Tartt

Rating: 4 Stars

The Secret History by Donna Tartt is a curveball that comes and hits out of nowhere! I was not ready for the impact of this story at all. This book is considered a classic, and it is rare to find a bad review for this book. All the reviews that I have ever read of Donna Tartt’s books have cemented her as a critic’s darling in my eyes. This to me, means that her books are difficult to read and full of verbose philosophy. The Secret History is exactly that, and so much more.

The book starts off with a vibe similar to that of Dead Poet’s Society. You are tricked into thinking that this is a story about a teacher’s influence on his students. It’s not. Maybe there’s some shade of Lord of The Flies here. No, not really. As I read on (with much difficulty in the beginning), I thought maybe later books like We Were Liars were based on this book. Again, there’s no similarity except in the most superficial sense. It is useless to compare it to any book. It is original and shocking in its coldness and lack of feeling. This is Dark Academia at its best.

From the beginning, the characters cause conflict within the reader. They are odd, unemotional, and leave you feeling cold. None of these people elicit any sympathy in the the heart of the reader; not even the murder victim whose murder is the central theme of the book.

Richard Papen is nineteen years old when he comes to Hampden College in Vermont. He is from a small town in California, and all he wants in life is to get away from his roots. He becomes obsessed with a teacher and his exclusive group of students studying ancient Greek, and wants to join the class by any means.

However, once inside the clique, he realizes that these four boys and one girl are not as golden as he thought. Instead of becoming disillusioned, Richard becomes even more enamored of his new friends. Finally, he starts to feel like he belongs. Still, he cannot shake the feeling that his new friends are hiding something from him.

The truth, when it hits him, is wild and gruesome. Yet, Richard is by no means repelled or disgusted by it all. He is ready to do whatever is needed to get rid of all irritants and threats to his friends. What follows is something bound to end in disaster.

For a debut novel, this has to be one of the greatest that I have read. No wonder this book inspired a whole new genre of Dark Academia. Donna Tartt draws such a vivid picture of Vermont in fall and winter, that you cannot help but give a real shudder. The cold feels real, the darkness feels menacing, and at times, you can even smell the cigarette smoke! The mood is oppressive and heavy on the heart. There are no comic reprieves, just more coldness and cruelty.

It is no mean feat to write a book where you feel no sympathy for any of the characters, yet are unable to stop reading. You feel the need to read what happens next because something like this can never end well. And it doesn’t, but not in the way you expect it to. The climax is sudden and unexpected; it comes out of nowhere. But once you read it, you realize that it makes a twisted sort of sense. However, there were a couple of things that I was uncomfortable with. The hint of racism and Islamophobia was one. The other was the fact that Henry emerges as a hero when he was anything but!

It is definitely not easy to read The Secret History. It requires concentration and attention; and a little bit of heartlessness. But if you’re capable of all this, the book will not disappoint. I love the way Donna Tartt writes, and have become a fan. Still, I don’t think I will recommend this book to everyone. Certainly not for the sensitive and easily offended audience.

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Review: The Whisper Man

Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Whisper Man by Alex North is a good thriller, but not as terrifying as everyone claims on the back cover. The story and the setting are chilling enough, and anything that involves children is always uncomfortable to read, but calling it thriller of the year is going a bit far.

After the death of his wife, Tom Kennedy is looking for a fresh start with his son, Jake. They move to Featherbank on Jake’s insistence, into a house considered scary by the local kids. Jake is a sensitive child who has difficulty making friends and his imaginary friends don’t help the situation either. In addition to this, Tom finds it hard to communicate with Jake.

The village looks sleepy and safe, but twenty years ago it was the scene of horrific serial killings. The killer dubbed as The Whisper Man abducted and killed five little boys before he was caught and sentenced to life imprisonment. This isn’t a cause of concern for Jake and Tom since it was all a long time back. But just before they move, another boy goes missing, and the police find startling similarities with the old case.

Then Jake starts acting weirdly, and claims that he hears whispers at his window. Tom is concerned about the mental health of his son. There are also other suspicious things happening around him making him rethink about moving to this sleepy little village.

The Whisper Man is a good thriller that also has a heart. The struggles of a father to understand his son, and of a man to overcome the loss of his wife are beautifully penned, and create real sympathy for both Tom and Jake. There is also the character of Pete who is a very lonely man, living in his past. It is easy to feel bad for this police detective too.

The only things I found lacking in this book were unpredictability and a feeling of fear and dread which generally comes with the way an author writes about the uncomfortable things. It sounds quite macabre, but it is hard for readers to feel actual fear unless they see the extent of a killer’s depravity. After reading Nordic crime fiction, it feels like British authors are a bit squeamish going into gory details. But reading a book is like watching a movie in your mind; you want a clear picture that you can understand. Some books need to be more graphic because of their plotlines.

Still, The Whisper Man manages to keep the reader interested. A good one-time read.

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Review: One By One

Rating: 2.75 Stars

So, so disappointed with this book by Ruth Ware. One by One goes into the forgettable category of The Lying Game by the same author. It reminded me of so many books that I have read previously, I thought I had read it before!

The theme of stranded-in-a-house-with-a-murderer-on-loose has been done to death in books and movies. It has become a fixed formula for suceess. One can still do it if one knows how to keep readers interested. However here, this is not the case.

The book starts off with a corporate retreat in an exclusive ski resort located in the Swiss Alps. The agenda on the table is a billion dollar buyout offer. An offer that can change the lives of some of the people. It promises to be week full of high tensions, since the group seems to be split in their views. As a result, sparks start flying from the first moment.

The resort, owned by a chain, has two employees who manage the resort between themselves. They have become good friends during their time together.

Things become dangerous as an avalanche cuts off the chalet from the rest of the world. And then, one person goes missing. With everyone worried about the missing person, no one thinks of foul play until another body turns up. Now, everyone is sure that they have a murderer in their midst, and that anyone could be their next victim.

What follows is too long winded, and not very thrilling. It is not that hard to figure most of it out. Needless suspense like Erin’s background is not really necessary. The narrative alternates between Erin and Liz, who are both colourless characters.

There are too many coincidences, as there are in this type of books, and not one of the characters is memorable enough to redeem this very lacklustre book. I had such high hopes from Ruth Ware.

Not recommended for fans of murder mysteries and thrillers.

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Review: Troubled Blood (Strike And Robin #5)

Rating: 4 Stars

This book confused the hell out of me! So many characters, so much information, and Strike and Robin going round in circles! I had to go back and forth to keep everything straight, which, with a book this size, is sheer madness!

But oh the mystery, and the action! Robert Galbraith is like P.D James in my opinion. The descriptions are long, the characters have a habit of sprouting rubbish meant to be deep and profound, and important things get lost in the meandrings of the author’s mind. Yet, the story is so powerful that you don’t want to give up.

I would like to make it clear that I couldn’t care less what the writer is like in real life. If I started caring about authors and their real life problems, I’d have no books to read! I like reviewing books, not the personal lives of other human beings.

Troubled Blood starts off with Strike back in Cornwall to see his sick aunt. He meets a woman who wants to hire him to find out what happened to her mother who vanished 40 years ago. Strike and Robin agree to take the case. They set a limit of a year to get a breakthrough or give up. There are a few other cases, and both Strike and Robin are going through their own personal struggles, like always. On top of this, the initial investigations in the missing woman case are a mess.

The police detective originally investigating the crime was having a mental breakdown, and his notes reflect that deterioration of mind. But of course, all this happens after you have read so many pages that you might as well have read a whole book!

It is always fun to go on an adventure with Strike and Robin, but it is becoming harder with every new book. Galbraith needs to tighten the writing or no one is going to read these never-ending stories! I feel that a lot of focus is lost because of so many other cases on the side. A detective agency can take on multiple cases at one time, but it is not necessary to go into the details of each and every one of them.

Then there is the personal angle that bothers me so much! I have said it before, and I say it again, there is no need for Strike and Robin to be involved romantically. Their personal lives are like train wrecks, you can only feel sorry for them. It is one of the things that I dislike the most about this series.

Troubled Blood is a really good book, but I hesitate in recommending it. Because it is too long and confusing, only real fans of Strike and Robin can truly enjoy this one.

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Review: The Chestnut Man

Rating: 4 Stars

The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup reminds me of why I love crime thrillers more than psychological or domestic thrillers. The adrenaline rush of going after a serial killer, and learning about their motivation, is something else altogether. Police procedurals are so much more intriguing than any other kind of fiction, and Nordic thrillers are the best.

The press has given the name The Chestnut Man to a killer who is terrorizing the suburbs of Copenhagen. This killer leaves behind a chestnut doll near the victims. Theses victims have been severely tortured and have had their hands sawed off.

The police discovers a fingerprint on the chestnuts; that of a girl kidnapped and presumed dead a year ago. Her abductor is in custody, having confessed to the crime.

Naia Thulin is investigating the murders and doesn’t care much for the partner assigned to her. Europol sent mark Hess back to Copenhagen as a punishment, and he doesn’t want to stick around for too long. He is happy to let Thulin handle the case without getting too involved himself.

As dead bodies increase, so does Hess’s interest and Thulin’s determination to solve the case. However, not everyone is happy with what the two are uncovering. With little support from their own department, Thulin and Hess are in a race against time and a serial killer to save the next victim, and figure out the killer’s connection to the missing girl, the daughter of the Minister for Social Affairs, Rosa Hartung.

The story is so fast paced and interesting. Pages just fly by and before you know it, you have finished the 500 page book. There is of course, the blood and gore that has become a trademark for this genre, and it only makes things more sinister, and the odds stacked against the protagonists. The overall atmosphere is dark and gloomy, and the setting is late October and autumn, which ties in with the theme of chestnuts and dark nights.

The identity of the killer is a real surprise, and so much more satisfying than who I was thinking it was! Saying anything more would give away the story and take away all the fun. Overall, I would say that this is one book that all fans of crime and Nordic Noir should definitely read.

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Review: The Guest List

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Finally, a good book after so many mediocre ones! I didn’t have many expectations from The Guest List by Lucy Foley. I hadread The Hunting Party and didn’t find it too impressive. My opinion was reinforced when I realised that this book followed the same format, going back and forth in time, and with multiple perspectives. However, it hooked me from the start. I managed to finish it in two sittings, even with all the interruptions.

The story is nothing new. We have all read murder mysteries where the characters are all stuck in a place and the killer is one of them. Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None and Murder On The Orient Express, Shari Lapena’s An Unwanted Guest, and Lucy Foley’s own The Hunting Party are all based on this same premise. Still The Guest List manages to hold its own and tells a pretty engagung tale.

A remote Irish island is the site for a high-profile wedding. People say that this island brings bad luck. The bride is a force of nature who doesn’t let anything come in her way; the groom is a handsome heartthrob who has never set a foot wrong. As their friends and families gather to celebrate their nuptials, it becomes apparent that some of them are not as happy for them as they seem.

It turns out that everyone is harbouring secrets that can have explosive consequences. Yet, the bride is in no mood to let anything come in the way of her perfect wedding. The groom, while not too keen on gathering everyone together, goes along with the flow to keep the peace. As the story progresses, it is evident that it really wasn’t a good idea to invite some of the guests!

The identity of the deceased is not revealed till the last quarter of the book. As you read on, every single person seems to have a motive to kill the other. The setting is bleak and gloomy, with a bog and a cemetery thrown in for effect. There are so many similarities to The Hunting Party here that you can’t help but think of this book as a better version of the previous one.

The climax is satisfying, and for once, not dragged unnecessarily. Sometimes it is best to leave things be and not spoil them with epilogues. The only thing that bothers me about the book is all the coincidences that seem to have been written so that the reader will have no sympathy with the dead person. Even a couple of instances were enough to let us know that the deceased was no angel, there was hardly any need to make them into a movie villian!

Over all, The Guest List is a good thriller that keeps you glued till the end.

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Review: The Girl From Widow Hills

Rating: 3 Stars

The Girl From Widow Hills is a spine tingling, dark thriller from Megan Miranda about a girl who survived. Twenty years ago, six year old Arden Olivia (Liv) Maynor became a household name. One night, she sleepwalked into a rainstorm, and got swept away into a storm drain. They found her after 3 days, hurt but still alive. It was hailed as a miracle, and a triumph for the community spirit of Widow Hills, and eventually the rest of the country.

Now known as Olivia Meyer, living in Central Valley, Liv thinks that she has left it all behind. She has no recollection of the her time in the sewer system. All her memories are based on news stories and the book written by her mother. As the twentieth anniversary of her rescue approaches, Liv receives news of her mother’s death, and has a sleepwalking episode again. As if this isn’t enough to make her unbalanced, she stumbles upon a dead body at her neighbor’s property. It turns out to be someone she knows from her past.

From there on, things seem to get out of control. Now, she is a person of interest in a murder case, her friends are acting strange around her, and her new life is unravelling in front of her eyes. On top of all this, she is not sure if she is innocent or not. The past she is running away from has caught up to her and she can’t do anything to stop it.

The story is unpredictable and dark. Everyone is a suspect, even Liv, because we don’t know what secrets remain hidden in her sub-conscience. There are all the classic suspects; the elderly neighbour with many firearms, the older ex-boyfriend, the quiet best friend, and the vivacious new friend. Even Liv is not sure about who to trust and who to stay away from.

The thing I liked about this book was that there was no romantic angle. There was no man waiting for Liv at the end of it all. It is the story of a girl, and it remains the story of a girl. A girl who is strong enough on her own, and there is no need for a romance on the side.

The most thought provoking point in this book is how we think of incidents as stories. Something that is terrible for one person becomes a news story for the rest of the world. People begin to think that they have a right to know about that person’s life, a right to know personal details about them. Some people even start thinking that this unfortunate person owes them something. This obsession with news “stories” is too real, and has caused grief to many families all over the wolrd, and continues to do so.

Now for what I didn’t like about this book. The story became a bit hard to swallow as it progressed. There are too many coincidences, too many secrets, quite a few things that remain unresolved, and the climax was a bit of a let down, not because of the twist; it was a good twist, one of the better ones that I have read recently, but it was just too easy in the end, for the culprit as well as the one who got them.

Even with the unbelievability, I enjoyed reading The Girl From Widow Hills. It is a good one time read for fans of dark thrillers.

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Review: The Girls Weekend

Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Girls Weekend by Jody Gehrman starts off with the usual story that you expect from a book with this title. Some old friends get together for a weekend. One of them is reluctant because of the tension with another, yet things conspire to make her go last minute. So far, so average. Things don’t become much better story wise, since there is nothing new about this trope. However, the reader does get a bit more invested in the story after a while when things start happening.

A weekend reunion with her college friends doesn’t interest June Moody. Even though the five of them were inseparable during their college years, the intervening years have made her drift apart from all except one of them. She has always had a difficult friendship with the hostess of this get together, Sadie MacTavish. It doesn’t help that Sadie married June’s ex-boyfriend, and seems to be living a charmed life.

As soon as June arrives at the MacTavish estate with her friend Em, she starts feeling uncomfortable. Soon she realizes that Sadie’s relationship with the other three women is also tense and troubled. On top of that, Sadie and her husband are facing problems in their marriage. He even tries to make a pass at June.

All this changes when the women wake up one morning with no recollection of the night before. There are some clear signs of violence, and Sadie missing from the house. Everyone knows it is not long before a body turns up. No one knows what actually happened. As things heat up, friendships start crumbling, and everyone becomes a suspect, no one more so than June. It is only a matter of time till she gets arrested for a crime that even she is not sure she is innocent of.

When I started reading The Girls Weekend, I was sure that June was another one of those typical heroines. The ones who are flawed and psychotic, and who keep making poor choices throughout the book. Thankfully, June was better behaved than most such characters. Despite making a few questionable decisions, she acted like a woman her age. I fail to understand how writers can create successful women with stellar careers and make them behave like imbeciles where men are concerned.

The murder itself was not that much of a mystery, but everything leading up to the climax was gripping and the suspense held for a long time. I don’t know if people like Sadie exist in the world, but if they do, then there couldn’t have been a better victim for this murder. Not one of the best books that I have read but a good one nonetheless.

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Review: Someone We Know

Rating: 4 Stars

Shari Lapena is an author I can always rely on to deliver the goods. Her book, The Couple Next Door, is one that I recommend to anyone who wants to read thrillers. While her other books are not as highly recommended, Someone We Know comes quite close. The twists and turns leave the reader breathless, and the ending makes them gasp. Just the way it always does with good thrillers.

The story starts with a teenager who has been breaking and entering into several homes in his suburban neighborhood in upstate New York. His intention is not of stealing or causing harm. All he wants is to hack a few computers and boast about it to one of his friends. However, things start to go downhill once his parents find out what he has been up to.

At the same time, a woman down his street is murdered quite gruesomely. The ensuing investigation is causing all sorts of problems in the neighborhood. When a couple of homeowners receive anonymous letters telling them that their houses have been broken into, the whole neighborhood becomes a hotbed of intrigue and secrets. Now the police is having trouble trying to separate facts from lies and omissions.

Lapena weaves a complicated web of truths, half-truths and outright lies, that make it difficult to guess who is guilty of what. It seems that in this neighborhood, no one is innocent.

I will also admit that having a teenager and a tween myself, I couldn’t help but empathize with Olivia Sharpe. There really is no manual on how to raise kids. Once they enter their teens, you can only hope that what you have given them is enough for them to come out unscathed on the other side.

I can also sympathize with Raleigh. It’s not easy to walk the boring path when everyone around you is having fun falling off it. Peer pressure has made kids do worse in real life. Also, you have to give the poor kid some leeway. After all, he has to live with that name all his life!

Overall, Someone We Know is a good thriller that made me glad I took out the time to read it.

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Review: The Family Next Door

Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Family Next Door by Fiona Cummins is an above average thriller which takes some time to establish itself, but redeems itself as it proceeds. It tells the story of a dilapidated, quiet neighborhood shaken by a string of killings that have been baffling the police. The serial killer behind these murders has been named The Doll Maker by the press. No one has any clue about the killer or his motives.

The first 20% of the book was almost painful to read, and it looked like the book will be impossible to finish. Things get interesting, however, when the identity of the latest victim is revealed. At this point, the story starts to move forward at a better pace.

A new family moves to 25 The Avenue on the day that another body is discovered in the nearby woods. The Lockwoods are caught up in their own family drama and don’t have the luxury of passing up the opportunity to move to The Avenue. They have no choice but to ignore it’s poor upkeep and the horror surrounding it. They are ready to start afresh, willing to overlook the matter of the serial killings going on in the neighbourhood. However, they will soon realize that not all is as it seems on this street. Everyone has a secret that they are willing to protect at all cost.

Wildeve Stanton is a Detective Sergeant with the Essex Police, a part of the team trying to solve the murders. Then, one morning the whole case takes a turn that makes it very personal for Wildeve. Now, she will stop at nothing to find out who The Doll Maker is, and what is the motivation behind all these senseless and gory murders.

Suddenly, everyone is in everyone else’s way, and things start getting out of hand. It is just a matter of time before the killer strikes again. The police look like they will be too late to do anything about it, as usual.

I managed to figure it all out at the 77% mark, and had to see how it all pans out, but I think avid thriller fans will be able to figure this one out earlier than I did. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t read the book. The Family Next Door is enjoyable, if a bit explicit and gory, and quite interesting once you get past the 20% mark.

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