Review: In The Woods (Dublin Murder Squad 01) by Tana French

Cover of In the Woods

Book info:
Form: pdf
Genre: crime mystery, contemporary fiction, psychological mystery
Target audience: adults

Synopsis (from Goodreads):
As dusk approaches a small Dublin suburb in the summer of 1984, mothers begin to call their children home. But on this warm evening, three children do not return from the dark and silent woods. When the police arrive, they find only one of them, a boy called Adam Ryan, gripping a tree trunk in terror, wearing blood-filled sneakers, and unable to recall a single detail of the previous hours.

Twenty years later, the found boy who changed his name into Rob Ryan, is now police detective on the Dublin Murder Squad. He keeps his past a secret because it is the most convenient for his career. He still doesn't remember anything but soon he will have to face the demons of his past. When a twelve-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 the previous unsolved mystery. Now, with only snippets of long-buried memories to guide him, Ryan has the chance to uncover both the mystery of the case before him and that of his own shadowy past.

What I liked:

I am happy to say I liked a lot. Firstly the narrative voice of Tana French is completely captivating - atmospheric, funny, intelligent without being patronizing. Secondly the author managed to omit many template mistakes. Imagine yourself a book without a love triangle. Imagine a book in which two main characters, a young man and a young woman at the beginning of their career, simply befriend each other, without any sexual context, and continue that friendship almost to the very end. Imagine that Rob Ryan, the narrator, can be deliciously honest about his own shortcomings, saying something like this:

"What I am telling you, before you begin my story, is this - two things: I crave truth. And I lie."

There is also Cassie Maddox, who not only thinks and acts like an intelligent human being but also is a dropout psychology student so perfectly able to analyze herself and the others. If only those others listened to her and believed in her best intentions...

The friendship between her and Rob Ryan is at the heart of the story, interwoven with Rob's childhood trauma and the ongoing investigation concering a murder of a 12-year-old Katharine Devlin, an aspiring ballet dancer. I found that thread really refreshingly original. I was so pleased it wasn't the case of an insta-love or insta-lust but something far more mature and real, something beautiful and true. Of course the fact that their frienship is doomed from the beginning because Rob admits he destroys every relationship, sexual or otherwise, due to his childhood drama or maybe a flaw of his character, adds to it a dash of nostalgia. Let me quote him once again:

"And then, too, I had learned early to assume something dark and lethal hidden at the heart of anything I loved. When I couldn't find it, I responded, bewildered and wary, in the only way I knew how: by planting it there myself."

Well, I don't know about you but that quote I found simply heartrending. How not to like such a character?

Finally let me add that the attention to police procedural detail was exquisite. I was really surprised Ms. French hasn't worked as a cop herself.

What I didn't like:

This book won the Edgar Award for best debut novel but it doesn't mean it is perfect. Don’t read it for the mystery part. In fact I found the criminal puzzle the weakest as I was able to spot the main culprit without any problems somewhere in the middle of the investigation and I am not the brightest fictional crime solver around, even old, good Agatha Christie always managed to mess with my head (fortunately I loved every minute of it)

Also don't read it if you like everything nicely solved and explained in your books because plenty of questions will be left unanswered. If I were to choose an alternate title for this book (and yes, it is a bit spoilerish) could be: Complete Lack of Any Clear Explanation About What Really Happened In The Woods. It didn't bother me much; I admit that monsters living inside our heads are rarely exposed or explained and that's why they are more interesting and terrifying than any real creature you can meet. Those kids might have been taken by the Pooka or the slavers or the elves or Doctor Who - children disappear apparently for no reason all the time and some of the cases are never going to be solved. I am ok with that and if you share my outlook you'll be fine as well.

Also, as you might guess, do not expect any easy HEA anywhere. It is not a fairy tale.

Final verdict:

Go, read it!

Review: The Vampire Tapestry by Suzy McKee Charnas

Book info:

Form: pdf format, e-book

Genre: contemporary fantasy with psychological elements

Target audience: adults

Synopsis:

Dr. Edward Weyland is an anthropology professor in the Cayslin Center for the Study of Man. Some people think he is an introverted, lonely scholar absorbed in great work; some say he has a secret sorrow too painful to share; others claim he is a charlatan or a genius working himself to death just to prove he can. Almost nobody guesses that he is a vampire.

One day Weylands attacks Katje de Groot, a maintenance worker who has suspected for some time he is not just a work-driven social scientist; as a result of their struggle he is almost mortally wounded. His life goes downwards from that point and reaches a low when he is found and abducted by a band of unscrupulous humans, led by a man called Roger. They feed him, helping to survive and heal, and they provide a shelter but only because they want to exploit him in the most profitable way they can think of. After a while Roger invites along a Satanist, Alan Reese, who wants Weyland to become his most prized MayDay sacrifice – the event which he intends to be recorded and broadcast, in other words sold. Weyland escapes in the last possible moment only because Mark, a 15-year-old nephew of Roger, employed by his uncle as a kind of caretaker, cannot bear the burden of observing anybody, even a vampire, being humiliated, condemned to death, and denied food for a longer period of time.

After that accident Weyland tries hard to rebuild his academic persona with the help of Floria Landauer, a middle-aged psychotherapist. Once again he is on the brink of revealing too much of himself to an intelligent, incisive and curious woman and he must flee. Will he be able to return to his old role or will he be killed? Or maybe he will go into the Sleep to wake up in new, different times?

My impressions:

This is a selection of episodes from a long life of an ultimate predator, a story mainly about the precarious survival – not about love, hate, fighting or caring about the others. It is divided into 5 parts novella-like which could be taken individually and read as short stories (in fact chapter 3 was originally published separately as The Unicorn Tapestry). The novel was very well-written and the author managed to capture that ‘otherness’ of a mind of an untamed beast who has to mimic his prey in order to succeed. I suppose the biggest asset of this story is the fact that Weyland as a character is nothing you expect. Forget about super-handsome, super-horny vampire hotties who sparkle and are as emotional as your average teenager when they aren’t busy stalking all the pretty girls in their area. Forget about haughty and proud vampire overlords who rule their covens swinging swords and other weapons of choice with deadly precision but deep down are like those white fluffy bunnies - in dire need for a company of a worthy female or two. Compared to Weyland these are not vampires, these are normal guys dressing up like children in a kindergarten. The Vampire Tapestry is, contrary to many paranormal romance books, an adult novel of impressive psychological insight and chilling horror.

In many reviews I’ve read that people didn’t like the main lead, found him boring or disgusting. I admit Weyland is easy to despise, even hate, especially if you, starting this novel, expected just a tortured human with fangs. Well, I would compare him to a great predator, a mountain lion, leopard or cheetah – plenty of people find these animals mesmerizingly pretty but what would they say if one of those big cats attacked their pet or even worse, somebody from their family? Weyland is presented and acts like a highly specialized predator. He can be pleasant and charming, he is nice to look at despite his age (he looks like a fit man is in his fifties). Yes, he exploits the softer aspects of human nature, like the need to congregate and communicate, the need of tenderness, understanding and love but he never empathizes – he can’t and he doesn’t want to.

 In the first part it becomes obvious that he is not beneath killing just to satisfy his selfish hunger. Of course he prefers not to leave a trail of bodies in his wake but if a push comes to shove, no problem. He even pretends to rape women in order to divert any unwanted attention from himself. On the other hand I found his behaviour, as repulsive as it was, completely logic and understandable – any successful predator needs to be ruthless in order to survive and Weyland’s prey is cunning and might be dangerous to him because in this story the vampires are hardly immortal or/and indestructible. What made it work for me was the fact that Ms.McKee managed to present a psychologically viable ‘alien’, down to his scorn for ‘cattle’ he must pamper and endure in his own best interest.

The best parts of the book? I loved the lecture Weyland presented in the first part, speaking about hypothetical vampires, enjoying the game he was playing with his ignorant audience, growing more at ease on the podium as he warmed to his subject because who doesn’t like speaking about themselves? Then, later, the description of Weyland attending an operatic performance of Tosca and being affected by the human art form he’d been scorning I found simply brilliant. It was really nicely done, showing that sometimes your environment can change you despite yourself – yes, if you gaze at the abyss the abyss will, at some point, gaze back.

One more thing – I truly enjoyed the diversity of secondary characters. They were normal, three-dimensional people, most of them middle-aged or older, some of them handsome, some of them ugly but none of them judged just because of their appearance and muscles. As real-life as they come.

Final verdict:

This was the first novel I’d read that presented vampires from an evolutionary position, and it didn’t disappoint. If you want to read a gritty story about an ultimate predator with human-like intelligence and completely inhuman set of mind, this is your book. Don’t expect any romance or hormone-induced drama. Don’t expect mighty warriors fighting against other warriors for the favours of stunning females. No bats or fangs. No swooning beauties or sparkles. Expect modern settings with a dash of supernatural. I admit the book left me rather pleasantly impressed. In fact if vampires existed at all, I bet they would be similar to Weyland.

Rameau's Review Archive: The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares by Joyce Carol Oates

Rameau's ramblings: This was the first Joyce Carol Oates novel I ever read.

First posted on Goodreads November 6th 2011.

Synopsis:
Marissa is a beautiful, sweet, but slow 11-year-old. Judah, an older girl from the same school, has led Marissa to a secluded basement. Remaining an unaware hostage for days, Marissa grows weak as Judah prepares to sacrifice her to the Indian legend, the Corn Maiden. 
 

The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares by Joyce Carol Oates


First of all, if you don't like nightmares and don't want to be scared and repulsed by the horrors ordinary people do, don't read this. Since I'm one of the slightly skewed people who enjoy reading about the darker side of the human nature, I actually enjoyed the book and most of the short stories within.

I got lost in the pain and desperation Marissa's mother felt when she found her daughter missing and her world unravelling under the scrutiny of the authorities and the public. I felt the confusion as the innocent teacher agreed to help the police only to find himself in the centre of a witch-hunt. And I even found a sliver of understanding and the pity for the kidnapper.

All this happened within the first short story and more was to come with the others thanks to Oates' writing. She managed to keep me turning the pages even when I was annoyed with her choices both for the characters and the effective writing. Somehow Oates managed to make third limited past tense seem more immediate and gripping than most authors manage with first person present tense.

The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares is an acquired taste, and since this is my first encounter with Joyce Carol Oates' work, I can only assume the same goes for the rest of her work. It's going to take a while for me to explore this theory further though.

I received an Advanced Readers Copy from the publisher through NetGalley.



View all my reviews

Review: My Sore Hush-a-Bye by Renata F. Barcelos

Book info:
Form:pdf
Genre: psychological fiction
Target audience: adults and older teenagers

A copy of this novel for reviewing purposes was sent to me free of charge by the author  - thank you very much Renata for being so patient with me !  That fact, of course,  didn't influence my review in any way. 

Synopsis:

Camille Marie Jones seems to be just your average, shy, dark-skinned teenager who lives with her uncle Bob and have problems with bullies at school. Still the more you get to know her the more you think something is wrong with her and uncle Bob and all their little happy home. Why Bob never lets Camille go and play with her peers? Why they never watch news, just old, black-and-white movies? Why they listen only to old songs of David Bowie and Mama Cass?  Why he gives her a bath although she is approaching maturity?

One of few Camille shcool friends, Ashley, disappears. Camille thinks she knows what happened to the girl but she doesn't want to tell anybody because it would mean the end of her little world. However the end is approaching soon anyway - uncle Bob has procured a new girl called Giselle and is spending more and more time with her. Camille feels unwanted, jealous and old. Yes, you read it right - OLD. Out of sheer depair she does something unthinkable - she phones her mum - and all the hell breaks loose.

What I liked:

It was a novel told in the first person limited narrative voice which sent shivers down my spine. Camille was such a shy, sweet girl, somebody who deserved something better than a false household with a creepy uncle. From the very beginning I felt uneasy reading about their relationship and I was right.

Still the best feature of this book was the psychological construction of the main character. I don't know whether Ms Barcelos is a psychologist but if she is not, she is clearly somebody gifted in this area. Camille's reactions and thoughts were so incredibly right that from time to time I felt as if I read a report of a real person, describing real events. It was weird but in a positive way. It made me curious and I found the novel very readable, finishing it during one evening.

Uncle Bob was also a three-dimensional character, a baddie I would love to meet more often in fiction (not in real time though, really creepy).

 What I didn't like:

I admit that sometimes the narration was flowing too slow for my liking but these were only short fragments. I think it would be better if the author decided to add another narrative voice (the whole novel is rather short so it would be perfectly doable) - that of uncle Bob or Ashley, Camille's friend, making the book more complex.

Final verdict:

A very good psychological novel about physical and psychological abuse. Incredible characterization and a great story!!! Thank you for the opportunity to read and review it!