Fans of Irish crime writer Tana French – they are legion – already know to expect the unexpected. In this case, it’s an experiment in genre that French herself has described as “mystery software running on Western hardware” that began with French’s previous book,Tana French didn’t expect to write a sequel to The Searcher., is therefore the second book in an unplanned trilogy, and while it makes sense to start at the beginning, I cheerfully dived into the middle and had no problem keeping up.
The premise of this genre-bending experiment is this. A stranger comes into town and is confronted with a problem that he helps the townsfolk sort out and then – here’s the shift – stays. In this case, the stranger is retired Chicago detective Cal Hooper who has bought a plot of land, fixed up a derelict house, and befriended a child called Trey, one of six children living with their mother up on the mountain in hardscrabble conditions.
What concerns Cal most is the fact that Trey has revenge on her mind. Whether she wants to punish her father for his neglect, or the credulous villagers for the disappearance of her adored elder brother two years earlier, isn’t really the point. Cal and the widowed Lena, both somewhat peripheral to the village community, are worried that Trey’s involvement in Johnny’s get-rich-quick scheme will end badly for her. And then Rushborough is murdered.
It’s a twisty plot that gives French the leisure to evoke a beguiling place and its inhabitants, both human and animal. Trey’s dog Banjo, for instance, “is a lot more talkative” than his mistress, we’re told on the first page. Wherever Trey is, there’s Banjo, who is also a brother to Cal’s dog, Rip.
“Get Netflix,” Cal suggests. “I’ve got the Netflix,” says Mart. “There’s never anything on it, only Liam Neeson battering people with snowploughs, and sure he’s only from up the road.” This and so much more. Prepare to be beguiled.
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