Last weekend I was utterly and delightfully alone...an extremely rare occurence for a Mom of teens. I celebrated my solitude by treating myself to the pleasure of reading a book...on the couch...in the middle of the day! As much as I read, most of it is done just before sleep as my eyelids flutter toward closed. The whole experience felt decadent and was made even better by the fact that I was reading In the Woods by Tana French, a book I described as "CSI Ireland!"...and I mean that in a good way.
As the years have gone by, I've lost interest in the crime-solving genre of books. I no longer seek out the latest Kay Scarpetta book. I'm sure James Patterson is a great writer, but I feel kind of "been there, done that" about his books. Tana French, however, had me at: "Picture a summer stolen whole from some coming-of-age film set in small-town 1950s.", the first line of the book. Our story starts with the disappearance of three kids in 1980's Dublin. One of the children is found with his shoes soaked in blood and his memory completely void of information about the other kids and what they experienced. The surviving boy ends up becoming a detective, investigating a murder that took place in the same wooded area on the distant outskirts of Dublin.
What makes this book so engrossing? It could have been a mundane accounting of the who, what and where of the crime. It could have thrown in a twist or two. And with the basis of a good plot, it could have been a fine book. But Tana French doesn't take the easy way! The characters are developed three-dimensionally, warts and all. The detective is not simply the central casting version of "former child victim, now fighting to solve the murder of a child." He's got quirks and foibles that cause him to make mistakes, question his own actions and motivations and keep us interested. He has a female, best-friend, partner who is working on the case with him, aware of his link with the past and willing to allow him to continue despite the possible conflicts. I kept waiting for their relationship to go the way of the typical "man-and-woman-solving-a-murder-together" cliche. But it didn't!!!
There is nothing predictable about In the Woods. And it's not unpredictable in a manipulative way, purposefully teasing you down a path only to have the path abruptly cut off. It is unpredictable in the way that life is. People don't always behave consistently. They don't always behave the way you expect them to. Reading about humans and events that unfold organically and tell a great story is what keeps me coming back for more books by any author.
After my horrible experience with that other book (I'm not even going to link to the review because I don't want that author to get any more publicity, good or bad, from me) I found myself reading with a pencil in my hand looking for the inevitable errors. I am pleased to report that, with only minor exceptions, I didn't find any!
French has a way with an adverb. I think I have a tendency to adjectivize words and like seeing others do the same. I will compliment someone's outfit saying, "You look all golfy today!" So French's tendency to adverbize words was a delight to me!
"Our grapevine is ridiculously, old-ladyishly efficient."
"...it tends to develop a tinge of cabin-fevery hysteria..."
Sometimes it was just the unexpected turn of a phrase that captured my attention and enhanced my immersion in the story:
" Few people would have considered her beautiful, but my tastes have always leaned toward bespoke rather than brand name."
There's just something about that. True. Well-put. Unique.
In the Woods by Tana French is probably the best book I have read since Fieldwork. It even edges out What the Dead Know, which I really raved about. I will even go so far as to say, of all of the books that I have been sent by publishers to review, In the Woods is the best yet!
Di
Thanks for the review and recommendation. Sounds great!
Like you, I am "over" those formulaic mystery crime solving type of books. I read too many of them 30 years ago. BUT....I do like Lee Child, especially on audio (and I listen to a lot of audio books) and Elizabeth George but only in the abridged audio versions - she is much too wordy for me.
Posted by: JoAnn | June 21, 2008 at 10:22 AM
Apparently today is 'Blog about an awesome book' day. I hadn't added any books to my tbr list for AGES, and today...well...let's just say you aren't helping.
Posted by: raych | June 21, 2008 at 12:04 PM