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juushikaTitle: Faithful Place
Author: Tana French
Published: New York: Viking, 2010
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 400
Total Page Count: 90,995
Text Number: 260
Read Because: fan of the author, purchased from Borders
Review: Detective Francis Mackey hasn't gone home for twenty years, ever since he was stood up by his girlfriend Rosie on the night they planned to elope together. But now, evidence surfaces that Rosie was murdered on that night and Francis must return to Faithful Place and re-immerse himself in the dense web of his family's dramas in order to discover her killer. French's other murder mysteries set in the same location and featuring an overlapping cast of characters, In The Woods and The Likeness, are unexpected personal favorites. I'm generally not one for the genre, but those books have realistic characters and exquisitely crafted atmospheres which make them rise above simple whodunits—they are books of nuance, grace, and heartbreaking emotion. Faithful Place, sad to say, doesn't live up to my admittedly high expectations as set by those other books.
It too takes place in Dublin, and the protagonist appeared in The Likeness, but the book lacks the magic I expect from French. Mackey and the rest of the cast are faulted, finely-realized characters, but there's no magic in the atmosphere—the Place is claustrophobic and gritty, but it's insufficiently transportive and so, while it feels real, it doesn't pull the reader into its heart. Meanwhile, the murder mystery plot is a little too simple and its reveal comes too soon. The book lacks complexity—which isn't to say that it's basic or boring (I don't think that French could write such a novel), but rather it doesn't live up to the high standard that French has set for herself and, in that way, it's somewhat of a disappointment. Nonetheless it's engaging and beautifully character driven, so I give it a moderate recommendation—but In The Woods and The Likeness I recommend with enthusiasm.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
Author: Tana French
Published: New York: Viking, 2010
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 400
Total Page Count: 90,995
Text Number: 260
Read Because: fan of the author, purchased from Borders
Review: Detective Francis Mackey hasn't gone home for twenty years, ever since he was stood up by his girlfriend Rosie on the night they planned to elope together. But now, evidence surfaces that Rosie was murdered on that night and Francis must return to Faithful Place and re-immerse himself in the dense web of his family's dramas in order to discover her killer. French's other murder mysteries set in the same location and featuring an overlapping cast of characters, In The Woods and The Likeness, are unexpected personal favorites. I'm generally not one for the genre, but those books have realistic characters and exquisitely crafted atmospheres which make them rise above simple whodunits—they are books of nuance, grace, and heartbreaking emotion. Faithful Place, sad to say, doesn't live up to my admittedly high expectations as set by those other books.
It too takes place in Dublin, and the protagonist appeared in The Likeness, but the book lacks the magic I expect from French. Mackey and the rest of the cast are faulted, finely-realized characters, but there's no magic in the atmosphere—the Place is claustrophobic and gritty, but it's insufficiently transportive and so, while it feels real, it doesn't pull the reader into its heart. Meanwhile, the murder mystery plot is a little too simple and its reveal comes too soon. The book lacks complexity—which isn't to say that it's basic or boring (I don't think that French could write such a novel), but rather it doesn't live up to the high standard that French has set for herself and, in that way, it's somewhat of a disappointment. Nonetheless it's engaging and beautifully character driven, so I give it a moderate recommendation—but In The Woods and The Likeness I recommend with enthusiasm.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
