Hello From Scenic Idaho

Hello! I hope you have been having good summers and whatnot. I have been shamelessly lazing about the house and reading LOTS of books. Oh so many books! Today I am mentioning two in particular: In the Woods and The Likeness, both by Tana French.

My mother left In the Woods at my house the last time she visited, and this time I packed it in my suitcase, thinking I would return it to her–and perhaps read it, why not? OMG peoples, I am positively ASHAMED that it took me this long to read it. (Here I must note that this is not Mom’s fault. She TOLD me I would like it.) As it is, I devoured it in a day, then talked said mother into buying The Likeness at Costco yesterday. My only regret is that I didn’t get French’s third book, Faithful Place, as well.

So after all this hype, what are the books about? Simply put, they’re about members of Dublin’s “Murder Squad” (a creation of French’s), and each novel addresses a particularly fraught murder case. So yes, they’re mysteries, but they’re not really whodunnits–more along the lines of why-and-how-and-can-we-prove-it-dunnits. The writing is superb, the characters are finely-drawn, and, well, Ireland. I think USians are particularly susceptible to its charms, and I’m no exceptions.

Just go read ‘em, okay?

Excellence of Writing: 10/10 As mentioned above. Very literary for murder mysteries, and I didn’t mind it a bit for once.

Feminist Cred: 5/10 French isn’t overtly concerned with advancing or detracting feminism; all her characters read like real people, women and men alike, and that’s more than many others in the genre.

How Much Do I Recommend It?: 10/10 Can I give an eleven? Let’s put it this way: these are the kind of books that you read in a day, resenting having to turn off the light at night.