In the Woods | 
panI probably would have quite liked it if I hadn‘t already read and loved The Likeness. It‘s impossible not to compare them, and The Likeness comes out streets ahead. So, contrary to popular wisdom of other French fans, I wouldn‘t recommend starting with In The Woods. Full review: https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/in-the-woods-tana-french/
pickMuch darker than the Cal Hooper books of hers I read. I liked this better - it was more gritty and I appreciated that things weren‘t neatly resolved. I‘m definitely going to read the next one, which I think focuses on Cassie and I want more of her. This audio wasn‘t great on this one but it was an entertaining listen in the car.
My nephew is obsessed with making things on their 3D printer. He gifted me yesterday with a book page holder he made.
so-soI had been looking forward to reading this for so long! It is set in Ireland, and the story centers on an archeological dig and the woods next to it. The woods, which really described vividly, were my favorite part.
It was disappointing to realize that I wanted to bail around a third of the way in, but I thought certainly this thriller would develop more tension and excitement. Nope!
What I warn you to remember is that I am a detective.
#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl
bailedI have listened to 27% of this library book and I feel like something‘s missing. Maybe I‘m in the wrong frame of mind or maybe it‘s not for me. This was for #AuthorAMonth. I hope that others enjoy Tana French.
pickThis mystery by Tana French seemed a bit too long. There were parts I felt dragged. I still found the novel quite intriguing. The death of a young girl has the detectives drawn into murder of an unthinkable victim, a 12 year old girl. Crimes of 20 years ago seem to be wound up in the current murder. The challenges of the victim‘s family are drawn into the investigation. 4/5
so-so3✨
I think I was expecting more.
I've heard so many great things about this series, and it was compared to authors such as Gillian Flynn, Stieg Larson, AJ Finn, Lisa Jewel (whom I love) and Ruth Ware (whom I tolerate)
So I thought, why not give it a go.
I was in need of a good Mystery / Thriller as it always gets me out of a reading slump, and I coul definitely feel one approaching.
👇🏼 continue 👇🏼
My reading has been dismal this year...
At the end of July I've only read 10 books
But then at the beginning of this week I just got the urge to sit down and read.
So far I've finished 2 half-read books, and started 2 more.
Looks like I'm back! 🎉
Enjoyed The Trespasser so much that I decided to read more Dublin Murder Squad #serieslove
Forgot to take a photo, but my lovely husband brought me a fresh strawberry pie for Mothers Day, which we all enjoyed after dinner. Now I‘m stretched out on the bed with my murder mystery #HyggeHourReadalong #HyggeHour
pickI enjoyed this one, and although I found it compulsively readable, I also found it predictable. The author telegraphed the "bad guy" and made it obvious from the first time we meet them, even if it's not clear exactly how they are involved. Also, I found the ending really unsatisfying for reasons I can't share without giving spoilers. A soft pick.
pickWow. Read this on recommendation of a friend who said bk 2 after this in the series changed her life. I loved this. So atmospheric & riveting. With an unreliable narrator—that snuck up on me! She delves into detectives‘ psyches/history as much as the suspects while investigating current crime possibly connected to a historical case. The characters feel REAL. French‘s writing shows where others just tell.
I am SO part of the #TanaFrench cult now.
#12Booksof2023 @Andrew65
June: IN THE WOODS by Tana French. I had never heard of this author, but my retired English teachers' book club picked it for June, and boy, it did not disappoint! I'd like to read the others, too, but I have to stop joining so many other buddy reads because I can only read so much in a day! What a wonderful problem to have, huh? 🤩😂🤩
panIt‘s not a bad book. It‘s a bad fit for me. I don‘t often like mysteries, so it was already a bad start. It was fine until all the narrative winks and nudges started, which threw me and then irritated me. I had most of the twists pegged early, then couldn‘t figure why it was supposed to be surprising. I really disliked the (lack of) resolution to both stories and it frustrated me greatly. Sorry, French fans, but I just didn‘t like it.
I think this could be said of many places, except maybe for the Thatcher bit.
Diving into this one, finally, seeing as I‘ve had it from the library for almost a month.
I don't know why I'm surprised by enjoying French's book the most for the first half of the year, but I am. Seeing that it was published way back in 2007, I'm rather late to the show. #betterlatethannever 🤩
Read this for my book club. One of the best books I've read to show a police procedural for a local murder in the woods of a small town in Ireland. Also one of the best books I've read to show an unreliable narrator. He tells us right at the beginning: “I crave truth. And I lie.“ And finally ... one of the best books I've read with a duo investigative team. French exhibits beautiful prose within a horrific murder case. I'll have to read more!
If you‘re going to mention TWO mysteries on the back blurb, you better solve both!!!
Honestly MC sucks, I know he went through something as a kid (that we don‘t know bc they won‘t solve that mystery!!) but that does not explain him treating his female partner the way he does or being dog walked by a 17 yr old psychopath. Seek help dude. Also officially done reading books where girls are the victims to drive the plot. BYE.
Here are some options for #LMPBC #GroupH. Y‘all let me know what you think! @robinb @Laughterhp @BookwormAHN @suvata
pick#SeriesLove2023 @TheSpineView @Andrew65 This is a very long book and a bit of a slog, but I still really liked it. If you want to put in the time, I think it‘s well worth reading.
pickBest book I have read all year. Haunting mystery about detectives investigating the murder of a young girl, which may or may not be related to the disappearance of two children in the same area 20 years ago. This novel is elevated from genre fiction by fresh, arresting imagery and descriptions and depth of the characters. It follows the development, and later gut wrenching dissolution, of the friendship between detectives Rob and Cassie. ⬇️
“In 1984, in a small Dublin suburb, 3 children do not return home. Police arrive and find only one of the children, unable to recall anything. Twenty years later, the found boy, Rob Ryan, is a detective on the Dublin Murder Squad and keeps his past a secret. A 12 year old girl is found murdered in the same woods, he and Detective Cassie Maddox—his partner and closest friend—find themselves investigating a case chillingly similar to Rob Ryan‘s.”
This author has such a way with words. I love the description of a little kid who has an adult face as "bansai adult" with a voice like a heavy smoker. So funny! Loving the descriptive language in this book.
I can't remember if we are supposed to post when we receive our package, but I got mine on the 13th and can't wait to open it!!! #jolabokaflodswap @MaleficentBookDragon @julieclair
pickDefinitely a page turner. French is a good writer. I didn‘t care much for the friendship story between the detectives. Disappointing ending: I didn‘t guess who did it, but was expecting that the cold case would be solved too.
#BookCoverChallenge
Day 183.
Here I will note 365 books (or as many as I will have before I get tired) that have shaped my taste in literature. No explanations, no reviews. Just the cover of the book.
I do not challenge anyone. You are all welcome to take part.
pickThis was a hard story for me to get through, as it hits every button in terms of things I have a hard time reading about. I probably wouldn't have made it through at all if French hadn't set up such an intriguing story. It's complex, wrapped w/secrets & misunderstandings and of course amnesia. I struggled w/the pacing a few times, Ryan is an immature (& icky) jerk, and I did want a SLIGHTLY neater ending. For the most part though, interesting.
pickI liked this a lot….until the end. It left me wanting more. This was my first read by Tana French, and I have to say I‘m now definitely going to be sucked into the Dublin Murder Squad series. As far as contemporary fiction crime writers go, I feel like French is probably one of the better ones out there. Good plot, but also good character development.
#FallTreasures #Day22 #FallEquinox
I‘ve still not yet read this one, but I‘ve heard nothing but good things about this series. I‘m just not a big thriller reader, so books like this take awhile for me to get to. I thought the cover gives off fall vibes, though.
pickI can‘t believe I hadn‘t read this one yet! I liked it a lot & it kept me guessing most of the way through. French is a beautiful writer, & her descriptions of childhood are evocative, but I agree with the reviews that note she could use a more ruthless editor - it does drag a bit in the middle.
On reflection, I think I enjoyed The Likeness more, even though it‘s wildly implausible, but then I‘m a sucker for anything in the dark academia genre!
First book from this author. Anyone read?! Looks good! ☺️
After giving up on two books in a row, I'm now nicely settling into this, my third Tana French read.
pickIn between a pick and so so mainly because it was so long winded and I just wanted the plot to move along!
so-so⭐️⭐️⭐️ A child disappears and her body is found. The hunt is on for her killer. One of the investigators has his own secret...
so-soI wanted to love it but found it a little long in the tooth. Found myself skimming forward over descriptions of how the main character was feeling to the conversations to push the plot along. I would recommend it though to anyone who likes police procedurals. The interviews were very well done.
so-so#unpopular opinion. Way too wordy and I predicted almost everything. I wouldve bailed but everyone said it was a great book. To be honest, the beginning story of the missing kids was more interesting than the murder that was the plot.
Kindle died so I got the paperback out. Fitting in some time while dinner cooks.
Book 47
pick#LitsySpringBreak Day 17: Naturally, I had to read a book from #Ireland while I was in #Ireland (Dublin, specifically) back in 2018. Wrote about it here: https://gatheringbooks.org/2019/01/22/photo-journal-84/
so-soFinally finished In The Woods, by Tana French after a week. (And I usually finish a book in a day or two)
⭐⭐⭐
For me, this book lost a star because it seemed to go on much longer than necessary and I was left with questions. Plus another because I'm a sucker for a happy ending and this didn't give me even a smidgen of that. But the writing was beautiful and I was intrigued enough to finish it.
Reading this for my #IRL #bookclub #everythingbutselfhelp before our meeting next week! I had no idea it was a series.
“. . . I described my classmates as “a herd of mouth-breathing fucktard yokels who wade around in a miasma of cliché so thick you can practically smell the bacon and cabbage and cow shite and altar candles.” Even assuming I was having a bad day, I think this shows a certain lack of respect for cultural differences.”
This is my first Tana French. So far, so good!
