THE REDEEMER by JO NESBO (Translated by Don Bartlett).It is a freezing December night and Christmas shoppers have gathered to a Salvation Army carol concert. Then a shot rings out and one of the singers falls flat to the floor, dead.
Harry Hole and his team are called in to investigate but have little to work with - there is no immediate suspect, no weapon and no motive.
But when the assassin discovers he has shot the wrong man, Harry's troubles have only just begun.
.... Outer back cover.
FIRST SENTENCE (Chapter 1): She was fourteen years old and sure that if she shut her eyes tight and concentrated she could see the stars through the roof.
MEMORABLE MOMENT (Page 301): And for one vulnerable moment Harry felt nothing but sympathy. Not the sympathy he could feel for the victim or for the next of kin, but for the person who for one heart-rending moment sees his own pathetic humanity.
MY THOUGHTS: To say I had a love-hate relationship with this book is a huge understatement.
With a plot that relentlessly jumped from one aspect/character to another, I became increasingly frustrated at how difficult I found this to follow.
Not only overly long and rambling I also found this a difficult and disturbing read due to certain elements that though thankfully not too protracted I personally found way too violent and unnecessarily graphic.
Main character Harry Hole I however found fascinating and intriguing in equal measures. Seemingly gritty and determined, I loved that he had a vulnerable side and that he was fighting personal demons of his own.
The 4th book in the series, I'm pretty sure reading the previous books would not necessarily have contributed to my enjoyment of this one though it would perhaps have been nice to have followed Harry's story from the beginning.
KEEP IT OR NOT?: A readers group read, I won't be buying a copy of this for the shelves.
9 comments:
I know Nesbo has many fans because I've noticed book bloggers review the books quite often. It's not a genre I tend to read so I haven't yet. I agree that it's usually helpful to start at the beginning of a series to see character growth, etc. The memorable moment got my attention!
Sounds both good and bad Tracy. I don't like it when the storyline is hard to follow.
The plot seems good but I dont like books which are too hard to follow. Too many swinging plotlines are not for me. A great review once again Tracy, have a beautiful day :)
Hmm...doubtful it will make my "to read" list but grateful for the feature. Better luck next read...
Hmmm...don't think this would be my cup of tea, either.
Hi
Like I always say,you save many people their time and money.
I think you must charge for your opinions !
Oh there are POV changes that enhance a story and those that seem to distract. Looks like this is the latter. Hopefully the next read will be better.
I haven't read any of the books in this series. I think you might be right that reading the others in the series might have helped. I love the first line and it sounds like there are some things to love about this book. Great review!
~Jess
Sorry that it jumped around so much!
Hope that you love your next book.
Brandi from Blkosiner’s Book Blog
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