The Secret Place by Tana French Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“If I've learned one thing today, it's that teenage girls make Moriarty look like a babe in the woods.”- The Secret Place, Tana French

The photo on the card shows a boy who was found murdered, a year ago, on the grounds of a girls’ boarding school in the leafy suburbs of Dublin. The caption says, I KNOW WHO KILLED HIM.

Detective Stephen Moran has been waiting for his chance to get a foot in the door of Dublin’s Murder Squad—and one morning, sixteen-year-old Holly Mackey brings him this photo. The Secret Place, a board where the girls at St. Kilda’s School can pin up their secrets anonymously, is normally a mishmash of gossip and covert cruelty, but today someone has used it to reignite the stalled investigation into the murder of handsome, popular Chris Harper. Stephen joins forces with the abrasive Detective Antoinette Conway to find out who and why.

But everything they discover leads them back to Holly’s close-knit group of friends and their fierce enemies, a rival clique—and to the tangled web of relationships that bound all the girls to Chris Harper. Every step in their direction turns up the pressure. Antoinette Conway is already suspicious of Stephen’s links to the Mackey family. St. Kilda’s will go a long way to keep murder outside their walls. Holly’s father, Detective Frank Mackey, is circling, ready to pounce if any of the new evidence points toward his daughter. And the private underworld of teenage girls can be more mysterious and more dangerous than either of the detectives imagined. 

Yet when we came back, late, from the Hyacinth garden, 

Your arms full, and your hair wet, I could not 

Speak, and my eyes failed, I was neither 

Living nor dead, and I knew nothing, 

Looking into the heart of light, the silence. 

Oed’ und leer das Meer.

I chose this quote from TS Eliot's The Waste Land, because the entire time I was reading this book, this verse just kept repeating itself over and over in my head. It makes sense in the concept of Chris Harper's killing. Also, I've been listening to Alec Guinness' recitation of it a lot lately, not sure why, but I highly recommend it. It's like 20 minutes long, but it's worth a listen. 

So now I'm all caught up with the Dublin Murder Squad. Not quite sure how to feel about it. On one hand, I'm relieved- as much as I enjoyed these "behemoths" (they may be only 400 pages, but they feel like 600)- I'm glad I don't have to put aside a week in June to get through one. On the other, I'm sad that I have to wait for 2018 (I think she publishes every two years) to get the next Dublin Murder Squad book. She just has such wonderful ideas and characters and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. And who's going to narrate- I'm thinking maybe Breslin from The Trespasser, since he kind acted like Kennedy did in Faithful Place, though I'm hoping for O'Kelly. I would say Fleas might also be an option, but he's a bit too much like Mackey. But who the hell knows?

Also, after reading one of her books I find myself using the same phrases as her characters. Fuck me, the spit of you, bleeding, etc, I just use it all. It's pretty funny actually.

This book was different from her typical Dublin Murder Squad books. But, in my opinion, it was different in a better way than Faithful Place was. Like, it only took place over the course of a day, maybe two. And interestingly, it was told in a kind of dual narration, half of it being first person with the spotlight being on Det Stephen Moran, the other half being third person focusing on the main four girls who were suspects in the case. And, believe it or not, it was successful. 

Of course, the first time it was a bit jarring, given that there was no warning about the POV shift, but as the story unfolded it really worked. This probably had a lot to do with the little interest I had in Stephen Moran and the little connection I felt he had to the case. Sure, on the surface it was there, but it wasn't the same connection that Ryan or Maddox or Mackey or Kennedy or, hell, even Conway had to the cases in their respective books. I felt like Moran was her most vanilla narrator yet- he lacked the usual distinctive voice that I've come to expect from French MCs (ironically, that's probably what makes him stand out in her array of main characters), and even his backstory was pretty generic. He reminded me of a watered down Det Sam O'Neill from the first two books (an aside: I always thought Sam was jipped of his own book- would have loved to see him mucking around the countryside he grew up in solving a murder). 

On the other hand, Holly and her friends were fantastic. I loved getting involved in their odd little world, that ended up even turning dangerous. In some aspects, it reminded me of that Jodi Picoult novel about the witches, but I much preferred Tana French's take on it. Though the supernatural aspects were a bit underdeveloped, I still enjoyed them immensely as I'm still on my Twin Peaks high (by the way, I was underwhelmed and unnerved by the first two episodes, but I watched the third episode yesterday and I think I'm now hooked- it got a lot better real quick). The killer also pleasantly surprised me. Frankly though, I think it's a testament to French's skill that she actually got me really enjoying and understanding the close friendship these girls formed- normally, I hate reading about friendship, as I mentioned in my The Pearl Thief review.

Interestingly, I think the side characters were better than the main character. By better I mean more developed and better written. Not more likeable, although I prefer Mackey in small doses. He's much more fun in this book than he was in Faithful Place. Nice to know he's back with Olivia, by the way. Conway, I still don't like. She's a great character, but, quite frankly, I really didn't like her in The Trespasser and I still really don't like her. She's like the kind of character I hate- the one who would stub her toe and then sue the offending desk for discrimination. Also, I still think that if it wasn't for Moran, she'd make a horrendous Murder detective- she's too obnoxious and abrasive, with absolutely no tact. In a lot of ways, and forgive me if this is a stupid comparison, but she reminded me of Jess from Gilmore Girls. I don't know, but she just got under my skin like Jess got under my skin. The world isn't out to get you, Conway. Maybe if she stopped acting like that, she might have actually gotten more chances, more good cases. She made me miss Cassie Maddox- both had the same experiences in Murder, but Maddox dealt with it in a far more mature way.

But honestly, the fact that I didn't like Conway didn't impact the rating at all (though it did annoy me enough to knock The Trespasser down to an 8 out of 10- though perhaps if I revisit that book after reading the series up to that point and giving it the time I deserve I might rate it higher, but I'm not that inclined to do that in the near future). If anything, that just raised French higher in my eyes, because Conway is entirely unlike any of her other characters. Sure, out of all her main characters I'd probably get along with Maddox the most, followed by Ryan, but all of her characters are so easily distinguishable, and all of them felt like real people. I've reiterated this so much in my reviews of her books, but that's because it's the truth. 

Bottom line, I am now an unapologetic Tana French fangirl. And I don't fangirl for many things. In fact, apart from a Percy Jackson phase in fifth grade, I think I've only ever considered myself a fangirl for two things- the Unwind series (something I've little written about with the exception of my abandoned Tag Tuesday posts), and Twin Peaks (something I've been writing about with fervor lately because it's been my obsession since January). But now, I want to add Tana French to that list. I believe that her books should be mandatory reading for any crime novel lover. Or hell, even just one of hers, since I guaran-damn-tee that she has written a book you will love. Contemporary family drama fans- Faithful Place. History lovers- The Likeness. Paranormal mystery enthusiasts- The Secret Place. Those who love social commentary- Broken Harbor. Feminists- The Trespasser. And good old fashioned mystery fans- In the Woods. Just pick one of hers up. Sure, they take up a lot of your time, but you wouldn't regret it.

8.5-9 out of 10

PS: After reading this book, my current rankings for the Dublin Murder Squad are as follows:

Bookwise: In the Woods, Broken Harbor, The Likeness-The Secret Place (tie), Faithful Place, The Trespasser

Protagonist-wise: Cassie Maddox, Rob Ryan, Mick Kennedy, Frank Mackey, Stephen Moran, Antoinette Conway

Broken Harbor by Tana French Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“I have always been caught by the pull of the unremarkable, by the easily missed, infinitely nourishing beauty of the mundane.”- Broken Harbor, Tana French

In Broken Harbour, a ghost estate outside Dublin – half-built, half-inhabited, half-abandoned – two children and their father are dead. The mother is on her way to intensive care. Scorcher Kennedy is given the case because he is the Murder Squad’s star detective. At first he and his rookie partner, Richie, think this is a simple one: Pat Spain was a casualty of the recession, so he killed his children, tried to kill his wife Jenny, and finished off with himself. But there are too many inexplicable details and the evidence is pointing in two directions at once.

Scorcher’s personal life is tugging for his attention. Seeing the case on the news has sent his sister Dina off the rails again, and she’s resurrecting something that Scorcher thought he had tightly under control: what happened to their family, one summer at Broken Harbour, back when they were children. The neat compartments of his life are breaking down, and the sudden tangle of work and family is putting both at risk . . .

I was putting off reading this book. I know, I know, I need to set aside a certain amount of time- like a week or at least four days- to reading Tana French's work. But I was disappointed with Faithful Place, if you'll recall, and it was a bad month to begin with so I really didn't want to be brought down by even my go-to mystery writer. So I left this book until the last 3 or four days of April, hoping I'd finish it by May.

I don't know why I was so worried about it. Broken Harbor (is it Broken Harbor or Harbour? It's odd to me that the spelling was Americanized, but none of the words were) ended up being another literary police procedural, the kind I expected from The Dublin Murder Squad. 

As usual, we have a brand new main character in the form of Mick "Scorcher" Kennedy. And as usual, he's new and interesting and so different from Rob Ryan or Cassie Maddox or Frank Mackey or Antoinette Conway (remember, I read The Trespasser before I read the rest of the series). I love how French isn't afraid to give each of her characters different views or opinions regarding something; I think that's what ends up making them all feel like individuals. So many authors give all their characters the same opinions on everything (ones that usually mirror the writer's) and I feel like all their characters just blend together. I know that Cassie Maddox's views on, let's say land development because it fits here, probably differ dramatically from Mick Kennedy's. It also makes it harder to guess what the author's actual opinions are, which I like. 

And the side characters were particularly fabulous in this book. Now, I really want a spinoff series following the crime scene techs. French could have so much fun with it- we could have Dr Cooper, Larry (who might have taken Cooper's spot in being my favorite side character), Sophie (who appears in a couple of the other books), Kieran, hell, even Tom the wilderness guy would be great- who knows what shit that guy gets up to. I also think it would be great if she wrote a book that would be about O'Kelly back when he was a rookie detective and some case that he got himself into. That would be a really great book. See, here's the thing about Tana French- her characters, even the side ones, always grab me. She has such a great eye for detail and ear for dialogue and everything that makes a great writer, especially a great mystery writer. 

I enjoyed the actual mystery, too. It was fascinating and sad, following this family as they spiraled downward into economic ruin and madness, even if, as Kennedy said, they did everything right. And there's something about the mysteries that she writes that just capture my imagination. Like in this case, I've always been interested in the effects of something, like poverty, has on the human psyche. With the exception of Faithful Place, the mysteries just stay with me. 

And I love the Irishness of what she writes. While I don't yet understand the subtle nuances of each different accent (and for such a small country there's tons of them), I can still hear the different ways everyone speaks practically in my ear (and does anyone else imagine that Cooper speaks in this flat, kinda nasally voice devoid of all accent?). Her love for her country seems evident, even though she often criticizes it. Her writing is just fabulous too. A common criticism is that her descriptions are too wordy, but honestly, when all her main characters are detectives- typically observant people who notice every little detail- it makes sense to go into detail on everything. I think Broken Harbor was her funniest book so far, too. I envy how effortlessly French can make banter sound, and several times I actually found myself laughing out loud. I think Kennedy's my second favorite of her protagonists (below Cassie, but just above Ryan if not on the same level)

What else can I say? Tana French has not disappointed me again. I would recommend Broken Harbor in particular to anyone looking for a book about desperation and keeping up with the Jones and everything along those lines. It would be a crime to put Tana French in a box labelled "mystery writers". Because what she writes is so much more. As much as I liked the one Jilliane Hoffman book I read of hers, she's not on the same level as Tana French. One's a really great crime writer, and the other is a literary fiction writer whose books happen to be about detectives.

8.5-9 out of 10

Faithful Place by Tana French Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“Most people are only too delighted to wreck each other's heads. And for the tiny minority who do their pathetic best not to, this world is going to go right ahead and make sure they do it anyway.”- Faithful Place, Tana French

Back in 1985, Frank Mackey was a nineteen year old kid with a dream of escaping his family's cramped flat on Faithful Place and running away to London with his girl, Rosie Daly. But on the night they were supposed to leave, Rosie didn't show. Frank took it for granted that she'd dumped him - probably because of his alcoholic father, nutcase mother, and generally dysfunctional family. He never went home again. Neither did Rosie. Then, twenty-two years later, Rosie's suitcase shows up behind a fireplace in a derelict house on Faithful Place, and Frank, now a detective in the Dublin Undercover squad, is going home whether he likes it or not. 

Getting sucked in is a lot easier than getting out again. Frank finds himself straight back in the dark tangle of relationships he left behind. The cops working the case want him out of the way, in case loyalty to his family and community makes him a liability. Faithful Place wants him out because he's a detective now, and the Place has never liked cops. Frank just wants to find out what happened to Rosie Daly - and he's willing to do whatever it takes, to himself or anyone else, to get the job done.

I've written many times of my ardent love for the work of Tana French. Having read three of her prior works and loving two of them (I'll probably reread The Trespasser in June after I read Broken Harbor and The Secret Place, might like it more now than I did back in December), I was fully prepared to love this book. And I did, but not as much as the first two in the series.

The problem was not the writing. It was what you'd expect of French- great characters, great dialogue, expert wording and sentence structure. I love how easily I can tell all her characters apart, how you could give me a quote from any of the books I've read by her and I can tell you which book it was based off narrative alone. Frank was an enjoyable narrator, reminding me of the main character in a hardboiled PI story. I also liked the relationships present, especially Frank and his daughter's. You don't see very many father-daughter relationships in fiction, so I liked that. The beginning and ending were also pretty pitch-perfect, as you'd expect from her writing. It was easily her funniest work too- I actually laughed out loud at several points.

Honestly, the above was really the only sign that this was a Tana French novel. I was disappointed by the amount of domestic drama and lack of actual police procedure. There weren't as many red herrings as there are usually in her work. I get that French was trying to break out of her formula, but honestly, that formula wasn't a bad one. I was kind of hoping she'd pull some last minute twist, but then was disappointed when that didn't happen.

Happily, French did have some Irish cultural bits, and she translates the sound of an Irish accent to the page really successfully. One thing I noticed about Irish accents, by the way, is just how much people in Ireland can tell about you based on what accent you have. That's something that interests me, especially since we don't really have that in America. Sure, there are some dialects and accents that are stereotyped as being rich or poor or educated or uneducated, but for the most part we don't really pay much attention to accents apart from it being a tip-off about where someone is from.

There were a few things that were different about this book that some readers might actually like more. I found this book to be less verbose than her other works. Sure, French can still set up a scene and write descriptions that make you feel like whatever it is she's describing is right in front of you, but it's not as ornate. This was also a faster read than her other books were. Some may also find Frank to be more engaging than Cassie or Ryan were. Also, this is more of a straight-up mystery novel than a crime novel or police procedural. I personally prefer the latter, but if you like the former more than this might be your favorite French novel. 

Honestly, this book was the only one that didn't fit in with the rest of the Dublin Murder Squad series. Frank and Cooper were the only characters from the other two to appear again. I get that French wants to progress in the series with new characters, but couldn't she at least have given us a cameo of Cassie or Sam (thought Sam would be the most likely since he was the one still working Murder)? Frank wasn't even a part of Murder, he was in Undercover. Looking at the synopsis of the next two books in the series, Scorcher and Stephen become our next narrators, and they were in this book, but other than that this book felt more like a spin-off than anything else.

Did I still like this book and give it a high score? Yes, of course. But I didn't love it the same way I loved both The Likeness and In the Woods. I mean, it's not like this book is going to deter me from picking up the rest of the series.

8-8.5 out of 10

The Likeness by Tana French Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“When you're too close to people, when you spend too much time with them and love them too dearly, sometimes you can't see them”- The Likeness, Tana French

The haunting follow up to the Edgar Award-winning debut In the Woods

Tana French astonished critics and readers alike with her mesmerizing debut novel, In the Woods. Now both French and Detective Cassie Maddox return to unravel a case even more sinister and enigmatic than the first. Six months after the events of In the Woods, an urgent telephone call beckons Cassie to a grisly crime scene. The victim looks exactly like Cassie and carries ID identifying herself as Alexandra Madison, an alias Cassie once used. Suddenly, Cassie must discover not only who killed this girl, but, more importantly, who is this girl?

Sorry about the review gap again. Like I said, I was away, but I got a ton of reading done so there should be lots of reviews coming up soon. But this is the third Tana French book I've read and already, she's become one of my favorite authors. I have been looking for a good, dependable thriller writer for a long time now, and finally found one that probably will become an automatic buy for me. 

I was more or less intimidated going into this book, and if you're at all familiar with her writing you could see why. She's very verbose, especially with her descriptions. They're beautiful, sure, but don't exactly make for quick reads. And this book wasn't a quick read; it was slow, building up to the reveal of whodunnit. While the actual murder happens at the very beginning, that part of the book is mostly reserved for character development as we get to know who we're working with and why we should root for them. In this case, we got to know mostly Cassie Maddox, but also Frank Mackey, Sam O'Neil, and the inhabitants of Whitethorn House- Daniel, Justin, Rafe, and Abby. We also get to know the dead girl, Lexie, but most of what we do know of her is speculation. 

French's characters and character interactions are where she shines as a writer. Her characters are people, each with distinct personality traits. Characters are allowed to have different opinions as the main character and are not made into villains. No informed attributes here, either, if the characters say they are something, then they are. They don't even have to say anything- we get through their actions that Justin is squeamish, for instance, or that Abby is artsy. Mackey is different than Sam who was different from Ryan, and I think that if she had chosen to make this book multiple points of view, each would have been clearly distinguished from the others. I loved especially Cassie, the main character. I loved her passion for history, especially the Whitethorn House. I could relate, as someone who also finds delight in all things old, photographs and houses especially. I also loved Justin, who about broke my heart, along with Rafe (the obvious sexual tension between those two was great, and I wanted more of their story), and Frank and Sam and, honestly, just about everyone. I do miss Rob though, but I love how his absence was worked in. French doesn't just mention it a few times and dismiss it or only bring it up when it's convenient to her character, it's a recurring theme in the book that the events of In the Woods and especially losing Ryan hurt her deeply, and made her so desperately lonely that she fell even harder than she would have into this group of friends in the Whitethorn House. The way she dealt with that was brilliant. It wasn't like when Elliot left in SVU- you know, when Olivia just basically was sad for a day and then never mentioned him again, despite how close they were, until one day when it's convenient for the plot? Yeah, doesn't happen here. I also loved all the characters' senses of humor- while none were really laugh out loud funny, they all still made me giggle or at least snort.

I also absolutely loved the Irish culture and history that was touched upon- a lot actually- in the text. I only know bits and pieces about Irish history, and the parts when French went in detail about the Anglo-Irish families and the resentment that still lingers amongst the Irish of them was fascinating. It made me want to know more about Ireland, and it made me want French to write a historical fiction novel. I will say this, though, the middle dragged on a bit- though the ending completely made up for it. Cassie's life in the Whitethorn House was getting a monotonous, though I suppose that's meant to showcase Cassie falling into this seemingly idyllic world of the House and its occupants, and I am starting to get a feel for the French Formula, if you will (sorry, I have a bit of an affinity for alliteration). Beginning sets up case, middle focuses mostly on the psychological effects the case has on the main character (some of the side characters, too), with a ton of red herrings thrown in with each given a detailed backstory and potential MO, and then the end, where the actual killer is revealed. Now, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. Mystery novels are, after all, the most formulaic books you can write, apart from romance novels, and most mystery authors have their own formula that works for them. This is great for me, because sometimes I want an author who I can rely on, whose books take on this comforting path and are still excellent. So let's talk about the ending.

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW

Honestly, I had Daniel pegged from the start as the man, or if not the actual killer than the ringleader. Honestly, I had the killer from In the Woods pegged from the start too, but in both cases I enjoyed watching it unfold and got really happy when it turned out my instincts were right. Like dancing around in my chair happy. Even though he was an absolutely fascinating character- shame it had the ending it did- his parts honestly kind of bored me. Like when he was going on and on to Cassie about why they had to kill Lexie and oh my God just shut up already. I get that a big part of his character was the fact he goes off on long rants, but still. I do wish his psyche/ thought process was explored a little bit more. I can't even consider the reveal of the killer(s) to be a twist, because it was so well done and obviously what the book was building up to. So many twists just feel so half-assed, or like the author thought that a twist was meant to blindside you completely and make no sense, when in reality there has to be little hints leading up to the Big Reveal. I also loved how each red herring had reasons to kill, as I mentioned before, and even has done things that I wouldn't personally approve of, but they are still not the killer. It's like in Twin Peaks, when both Leo and Ben are potential killers and they have the motive and everything and they're both horrible people, but they didn't do it. As much as we want them to have done it because it makes sense in our minds, it's still not them. I was absolutely glued to the pages during Justin, Rafe, and Abby's tale about what happened the night Lexie died (and really wanted to give Justin a hug). A few other, more minor spoilers to touch on, because really the whole ending was so. Freaking. Good. French made sure to wrap up the mystery of who Lexie really was, probably still feeling the public outcry over In the Woods' unsolved second mystery, which I liked but would have been fine never knowing. I also loved how Sam and Cassie stayed together. I was expecting Cassie to dump him in favor of going back on the Murder Squad, but she didn't! Yay, a couple I like stays together! It's nice that Cassie doesn't have to prove herself as a career-oriented woman by breaking up with Sam. It's nice to know that love doesn't always have to take a backseat, as corny as that sounds.

MAJOR SPOILER SECTION OVER

I needed Faithful Place like yesterday. The fact that it stars Frank Mackey makes me even more excited to get into it. While I loved this book personally, and love this series so far, I will say this. If you don't like verbose descriptions, slow-burning mystery novels, or police procedurals, I wouldn't read these books. These books are not Gillian Flynn thrillers, far from them actually. I, however, happen to love those things, which makes this series absolutely perfect for me.

8.5-9 out of 10