The Frozen Dead by Bernard Minier

St. Martin's Press

Minotaur Books; Reprint edition (Aug. 12 2014)

482 pages - 29.41 $

Frozen is the first novel by a former worker in the French customs administration. His book was widely praised by the press when released in France in 2011 and he released a second book Le Cercle in 2012 in which me meet back with the same character, Servaz a literate and sensitive cop.

The blurb

A suspenseful and chilling murder mystery set in a high-security asylum for the criminally insane and the snowy mountains of the French Pyrenees

The first victim is a horse: its headless, flayed body hangs suspended from the edge of a frozen cliff. On the same day as the gruesome discovery takes place, Diane Berg, a young psychiatrist starts her first job at a high security asylum for the criminally insane, just a few miles away. She is baffled by the slightly unorthodox methods the asylums's director uses, and then greatly alarmed when she realizes that drugs are disappearing from within the fortified institution while someone seems to be slipping out at night. 

Commandant Martin Servaz, a charismatic, Toulouse city cop fond of quoting Latin, can’t believe he has been called out over the death of an animal. But there is something disturbing about this crime that he cannot ignore. Then DNA from one of the most notorious inmates of the asylum, a highly intelligent former prosecutor who is accused of killing and raping several women, is found on the corpse... and a few days later the first human murder takes place. 

Servaz and his colleague, the mysterious Irene Ziegler, must use all their skill to solve the terrifying mystery, in The Frozen Dead by Bernard Minier.

What's good about it ?

The atmosphere is really oppressive. Everything is cold, white (because of the snow) or gray or ugly. The suspects include prisoners locked up in an asylum for the most horrific killers. There are a lot of strange people. This creates a rather morbid and creepy feel it must be said. In my case, it was too much. Each time a character takes the road to the asylum or the place of the first crime we're entitled to the overwhelming feelings of that character - sinister course - about the surrounding nature, the road and his feeling of discomfort or fear. So, admittedly, it helps to feel the sensation of discomfort. Yet to live in Quebec (which is not a country but a winter!), I mostly meet people who love their country and think that winter are beautiful with its snowy landscapes. I think it would have been more realistic to include some positive people, right? 

The story is well put together. There's even a twist towards the end that blew me away. The investigation is realistically resolved, the explanations stand and even the escape of a character suggests a possible sequel without a frustrating cliffhanger. The only concern is that the book is a bit long. That's a lot of pages for a thriller and it's very difficult to keep a steady pace as long. So to fill the pages, it is easier to write description (of feelings, landscapes, mundane acts...) This is where - in my case - the author loses me and I start skipping parts to find the dialogue or the action. Now I know that some readers enjoy taking their time in a story, they like to take the full measure of the atmosphere and decor. So, dear reader, if that's your case, this is the book for you. 

And what about the characters? Servaz the literate and sensitive cop is a little too sensitive for my liking, he is afraid of so many things that it's a miracle he's a cop! As for his way of reciting Latin sentences at all costs, I must say it's déjà vu and a little too cliche for my taste. It must be said that there are still several cliche in the characters but that doesn't spoil the story. Still, Servaz is a smart cop who leads good deductions and his team of geek cop is quite endearing. So it's a character that we'll like to follow.

In a nutshell

A well-crafted first novel, a story and an atmosphere murky at will but a story a tad longish, it's a 3/5 for me.

Disclaimer: An e-galley of this title was provided to me by the publisher. No review was promised and the above is an unbiased review of the novel.

The Second Deadly Sin by Åsa Larsson - out 12th of August 2014

Quercus Books (US) - MacLehose Press

352 pages - 26.99 $

Another Scandinavian author (Swedish to be precise). This is definitely trendy, but I did not want to stay on an aftertaste of disappointment with my reading of The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler. So here I am, trying agin a new Swedish author whose name appears regularly on networks.

The blurb

Oprah.com raved that Åsa Larsson’s Rebecka Martinsson is a crime fighter who has all the needed gut insticts," and listed the series as "Mysteries Every Thinking Woman Should Read." In The Second Deadly Sin, dawn breaks in a forest in northern Sweden. Villagers gather to dispatch a rampaging bear. When the beast is brought to ground they are horrified to find the remains of a human hand inside its stomach. In nearby Kiruna, a woman is found murdered in her bed, her body a patchwork of vicious wounds, the word WHORE scrawled across the wall. Her grandson Marcus, already an orphan, is nowhere to be seen. Grasping for clues, Rebecka Martinsson begins to delve into the victim’s tragic family history. But with doubts over her mental health still lingering, she is ousted from the case by an arrogant and ambitious young prosecutor. Before long a chance lead draws Martinsson back into the thick of the action and her legendary courage is put to the test once more. 

What's about that book

Larsson knows how to make us feel what experience her characters... including the dog. And just for that, it blew me away. I think especially of a scene where the Brat, Martinsson's puppy runs around the house in all directions until he can go out, it's a scene you may find useless because it adds nothing to the plot, but it brings a lot to the atmosphere! There is also how Maja portrays von Post, a moment of pure happiness (well, in your teeth von Post!) Or, the day spent with Martisson in her house, drinking moonshine and doing trips to the sauna, while investigating, along with Pohjanen (and we learn a bit more about Swedish culture). It thus makes us feel good in the presence of Martisson, wanting to get to know her. That create a sense of familiarity with the characters and it's very nice. 

The plot follows two stories that, as so often, join in the end, one explaining the other. This has already been done, of course, but when it's well done, as is the case here, it's nice. A story unfolds in the early twentieth century, while the other is in the present. Ultimately, it is the story of a family that we can judge cursed as misfortune rained down on her, a family cursed by greed. 

Aside from the very human and endearing characters, the two-story plot, Larsson sprinkles her story of political shenanigans, low blows and cowardice. Martinsson's success doesn't please everyone and Von Post, the detestable prosecutor, will do anything to counter her. There are few references to the past, especially with regard to Martinsson's psychological past which uses von Post, but not having read the other books did not prevent to understand how this man is a shabby. 

In a nutshell

A clever writing, very endearing characters, a plot well done, a dark atmosphere, cold and sad, but hopeful at the same time. This is a 4.5 / 5 for me.

Disclaimer: An e-galley of this title was provided to me by the publisher. No review was promised and the above is an unbiased review of the novel.

Treachery in Bordeaux by Jean-Pierre Alaux and Noël Balen

Le French Book (May 29 2014)
The Winemaker Detective series - T01
144 pages - 13.95 $

The publisher Le French Book has a mission to publish in English French books they enjoyed. So once again I discovered French authors in English. As I am more and more fond of French novels, as their undeniable quality only confirms the rise of French crime fiction in the world, I decided to try my luck with this first volume in a series devoted to pleasures and wine. Knowing that I was born in Pessac (near Bordeaux), it was with pleasure that I discovered a region that I left before knowing it.

The blurb

In modern-day Bordeaux, there are few wine estates still within the city limits. The prestigious grand cru Moniales Haut-Brion is one of them. When some barrels turn, world-renowned winemaker turned gentleman detective Benjamin Cooker starts asking questions. Is it negligence or sabotage? Who would want to target this esteemed vintner? Cooker and his assistant Virgile Lanssien search the city and the vineyards for answers, giving readers and inside view of this famous wine region. The start of a 22-book wine-plus-crime mystery series that delves into the underworld of a global luxury industry. The world of wine is no more respectable than the world of finance. There’s money, deceit, death, crime, inheritance, jealousy—all the ingredients needed to distill a fine detective series. The series is a hit on TV in France.

What's good about it ?

You don't read that book, you enjoy and sip it while lounging in vineyards or admiring architecture and painting. This is clearly not a detective story like any other: it doesn't happen much... not even  a murder! This can be annoying for who thinks it's a classic novel detective. It's true that at one point I said to myself "but when will the action happens?" 

Maybe because this is the first volume, the authors spend time describing Cooker's living environment, people around him, the decor, his tastes (for painting and wine), we participate in the writing of his book (to the point of reading some passages) and learns more about the history of the region (or country I meant!) It may seem long to some, especially as the book is short. This clearly leaves little time for the plot, but that's part of the charm of this particular novel. 

There's comfort food... and there's comfort books and Treachery in Bordeaux is one of them. No horrible murder, rampage, disillusioned cop, but a mystery that is solved, a cozy atmosphere and an apology for the art of living, of enjoying life, of good food and good wine. The atmosphere is very French, which can charm or not the non-French. 

In a nutshell

A very nice little book with a cozy atmosphere, a simple and well done mystery. For those who enjoy the pleasures of life. This is a 3.5 / 5 for me.

Disclaimer: An e-galley of this title was provided to me by the publisher. No review was promised and the above is an unbiased review of the novel.

The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler

McClelland & Stewart; 1st Edition edition (June 12 2012)

512 pages - 17.99 $

Scandinavians are still a hit on the sales charts. Lars Kepler is a Swedish couple writing together. I must say that I didn't seeing it. I do not know about you but  I like less than others books written by two hands. Anyway, Scandinavian authors are often very good, the story was very promising and a friend gave me this book, so I said to myself I could give it a shot!

The blurb

Tumba, Sweden. A triple homicide, all of the victims from the same family, captivates Detective Inspector Joona Linna, who demands to investigate the grisly murders - against the wishes of the national police. The killer is at large, and it appears that the elder sister of the family escaped the carnage; it seems only a matter of time until she, too, is murdered. But where can Linna begin? The only surviving witness is an intended victim - the boy whose mother, father, and little sister were killed before his eyes. Whoever committed the crimes intended for this boy to die: he has suffered more than one hundred knife wounds and Lapsed into a state of shock. He's in no condition to be questioned. Desperate for information, Linna sees one mode of recourse: hypnotism. He enlists Dr. Erik Maria Bark to mesmerize the boy, hoping to discover the killer through his eyes. It's the sort of work that Bark had sworn he would never do again - ethically dubious and psychically scarring. When he breaks his promise and hypnotizes the victim, a long and terrifying chain of events begins to unfurl.

What I think of it

The story is original, I must admit it. I was intrigued to see how the author would deal with hypnosis, knowing that this kind of method is not always well seen. This is pretty well written, even if the description of the sensations during hypnosis is a bit too metaphysical for me. It reminds me of the book Eat, Pray, Love, when the author tells about the blue reflections that invade her during a transcendent moment of meditation... it was not my favorite part of the book. 

For the rest, one word comes to mind: long. This book is far too long! One example among many other,: when Joona wants to ask a colleague to look for information, it may take a whole page. (Yes Sir!) Because he must take the time to talk about his years of swimming with her, all that... Everything is detailed - and whether in Frédérique Molay's book it was well done and quite useful - here it is often unnecessary. Reading this book that aims to be a thriller (thus normally a breathless thing), is a bit like running in slow motion. There is always something happening, it must be said, but multiple hyper detailed unnecessary actions that revolve around the main plot breaks the flow. As I said recently, too much detail kills the plot. This is the major concern of this novel.

Small bonus point for the tip of humor at the end of the book when Joona called Erik and can not prevent his quirks to step through. 

In a nutshell

This is good, but too long. A 2.5 / 5 for me.

The 7th women by Frédérique Molay

(Paris Homicide Book 1)
Le French Book
254 pages - 9.95 $ (kindle)

Once becomes habit one might say... here I am, reading French thrillers in English! It's great to see that French authors are translated into English, it proves that the French thriller is doing well and it can appeal readers from everywhere. So I read this book in English, with the editor The French Book that mean to translates French books they loved.

The blurb

There’s no rest for Paris’s top criminal investigation division, La Crim’. Who is preying on women in the French capital? How can he kill again and again without leaving any clues? A serial killer is taking pleasure in a macabre ritual that leaves the police on tenterhooks. Chief of Police Nico Sirsky—a super cop with a modern-day real life, including an ex-wife, a teenage son and a budding love story—races against the clock to solve the murders as they get closer and closer to his inner circle. Will he resist the pressure? The story grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go until the last page, leading you behind the scenes with the French police and into the coroner’s office. It has the suspense of Seven, with CSI-like details, giving a whole new dimension to Paris.

What I think of it

I liked the build up of the novel. Initially a simple investigation for a particularly gruesome murder. Then the search for a serial killer and eventually a race against time to save the seventh victim. The book reads quickly and the reading is fluid. The beginning is very technical and we're involved in the initial autopsy as if we were there (which is not necessarily appreciated by everyone). All procedures are clearly explained, whether forensic or police procedures. We feel here a keen eye for detail and the desire / need for accuracy of the author. This will delight fans of the genre who will find a wealth of information. 

The characters are very realistic, it really feels like we're in in the 36 quai des orfèvres and a part of the team, which is always nice when you read a book. As we stay with the team all steps through the investigation, it easy to feel a sense of belonging with those officers. A small problem in my case, the sudden and a bit too fiery love story with the boss of the Crim'. It seems to me that a guy who managed to climb all levels and is found at that young age (38 years old) chief of this famous police division has a little more lead in the head or at least better control of his emotions and will not smooch the woman of his heart at the office... 

I have also a little less liked the fact that from the first murder, the criminal psychologist of the group defines the murderer as a serial killer who has a big problem with his mother. He resent women, surely, seeing what he does them but why not his former teacher, ex wife, neighbor-who-frustrates-him, etc.. This is somewhat simple or cliche like in movies and series dedicated to the genre. Sure, for those who read thrillers from time to time, it is very well done. For those who read thrillers regularly, it might feel like déjà vu.

And a good point for the author who portrays the cops as sensitive persons who care for the others, which is not always like that. Sirsky is particularly kind for the other, always making sure everyone is ok but he's the hero so it's for the better, but the other cops too are. Often, cops are seen like tough or cold people, not here. I find that refreshing and maybe more realist, right?

In a nutshell 

A good first novel for this author, a promising start to the series, a quick and captivating read, this is a 3.5 / 5 for me.


Disclaimer: An e-galley of this title was provided to me by the publisher. No review was promised and the above is an unbiased review of the novel.

The Black House by Peter May - out the 5th of august 2014

Quercus (Dec 3 2013) - Sortie US en 2014

432 pages - 9.99 $ Kindle édition

Another one of those times when the cover attracted my eye... and it's not that bad since the publisher did not provide any description on the NetGalley site. It was not until I try to find what it was that I trully was happy to have chosen it. And I discovered that this was in Scotland, on an island and it talks of Edinburgh of which I have an indelible memory after a week scouring its pubs, its castle, its streets... in short, a city that I love.

The blurb

The Isle of Lewis is the most remote, harshly beautiful place in Scotland, where the difficulty of existence seems outweighed only by people's fear of God. But older, pagan values lurk beneath the veneer of faith, the primal yearning for blood and revenge. When a brutal murder on the island bears the hallmarks of a similar slaying in Edinburgh, police detective Fin Macleod is dispatched north to investigate. But since he himself was raised on Lewis, the investigation also represents a journey home and into his past. Each year the island's men perform the hunting of the gugas, a savage custom no longer necessary for survival, but which they cling to even more fiercely in the face of the demands of modern morality. For Fin the hunt recalls a horrific tragedy, which after all this time may have begun to demand another sacrifice. The Blackhouse is a crime novel of rare power and vision. Peter May has crafted a page-turning murder mystery that explores the darkness in our souls, and just how difficult it is to escape the past.

What's good about it

Scotland! But not just Scotland, of course. 

The 50 shades of... grey atmosphere! But that is because of the weather, cold and wet, the rain, the austerity of the island, its people, hard-working, hard in their moral, hard in their faith. As much as it was nice being on an island, I was not able to warm up throughout the book! For those who have seen the series, a plunge into the atmosphere of the book will give you the impression of having fallen straight into the Hinterland series. 

The book follows Fin the detective and Fin the boy who grew up on the island. The passages of the past are written in the first person, whereas the present is written in the third. At the first paragraph of the young Fin, I found the transition to the first person pretty weird but ultimately, it is very well thought out, since it makes it easy to distinguish between the two periods. The return in the past are also very useful to better understand the issues, the discomfort and the more or less difficult relationships in the present. In the end, it gives two stories within one story with one that makes us understand the other. 

The relationships between the characters are typical of small villages - the unspoken secrets, the gossips - particularly under the yoke of the church. It is about bullies who make the law at school and that one continues to fear in adulthood. The village microcosm - and worse of an island - is a real breeding ground for bullies, drunks and sinners (I had a good pun with that one in French but it's lost in English... a shame!) and I must say that this book paints a rather dark portrait of human nature. There are still some good figures - I'm thinking of Gigs, gannets hunter or Gunn, the young cop - and Fin, a character that we see grow up and that we learn to appreciate. The Black House is the first book of a trilogy and Fin is a character I'll have pleasure to meet again. 

You can feel the love of the author for Scotland, for Lewis, for the tough persons of these countries, for hunting gannets. The descriptions are very too realistic but for all that, the defender of animal rights who struggles against the annual hunt is not a sympathetic character. Peter May has a real talent for describing - the landscapes are all described and it is perhaps the least pleasant side for me (as a reminder, this is really not my cup of tea!) I admit I jumped several descriptive passages because I think that sometimes too much details kills the detail! (or rather the story) 

In a nutshell 

A very good book, hard and tough, a human plot, characters we feel we know from childhood. It is a 4/5 for me.

Disclaimer: An e-galley of this title was provided to me by the publisher. No review was promised and the above is an unbiased review of the novel.

The Whisperer by Donato Carrisi

Mulholland Books; Reprint edition (Jan. 15 2013)

432 pages - 16.50 $

I bought the book The Lost Girls of Rome by Donato Carrisi because he's Italian and I wanted to read something other than Scandinavian or Anglophone thrillers for a change and the French cover was intriguing, as well as the blurb... I haven't yet had the opportunity to read it. End of March, I went to Lyon, in the festival Quai du Polar and Donato Carrisi was there. I didn't bring my book, so I bought another one: The Whisperer to have it signed. I attended a conference on disappearances in which he participated and I found his interventions to be very intelligent and relevant. It could only be promising!

The blurb

A gripping literary thriller and smash bestseller that has taken Italy, France, Germany and the UK by storm.

Six severed arms are discovered, arranged in a mysterious circle and buried in a clearing in the woods. Five of them appear to belong to missing girls between the ages of eight and eighteen. The sixth is yet to be identified. Worse still, the girls' bodies, alive or dead, are nowhere to be found.

Obsessed with a case that becomes more tangled and intense as they unravel the layers of evil, lead investigators Mila Vasquez, a celebrated profiler, and Goran Gavila, an eerily prescient criminologist, find that their lives are increasingly in each other's hands. As sensational a bestseller in Europe as the Stieg Larsson novels, THE WHISPERER is that rare creation: a thought-provoking, intelligent thriller that is also unputdownable.

What's good about it

The very well crafted story and the twists (and what twists!) Carrisi leads us by the nose and we don't realize it until the end. This is really good! It's been a while since I had interrupted my reading to shout  out "Crap! I didn't see it coming!" 

From the beginning, we know that there are six little girls missing (well anyway, it's written on the blurb, so it's not a discovery). Mila, specialist in disappearance is asked to help to find out who is the sixth victim. But whoever did this is very, very strong. He is the one who calls the shots and the police can only run after him and try to understand the messages he leaves them. Then the girls reappear each one after the other and as they find new horrors, it become increasingly urgent to discover the identity of the sixth girl. The story was well constructed, the discovery that goes with every little girl was quite intriguing for the book but Donato Carrisi do not stop there. He hasn't just written a good book based on real facts, no, actually it's a must read book that packs a punch. 

The characters are well written, each with its secrets, which is the underlying theme of the book: we all have a dark side in us. What matters is whether we will lose ourselves in the dark side or if we'll stay in the light. Gavila the ephemeral criminologist and Mila whose past has made her an expert in disappearance are the two main characters and if one is never quite consisting thus endearing, the other is a more complex character one begins to appreciate. 

Good to know, throughout the novel the story is told from the perspectives of Mila and Gavila, some missives of a warden about one of its residents and the thoughts of a captive little girl. It may sound confusing but all is clear in the end and you won't see coming the explanation! 

In a nutshell

This is the first novel by Donato Carrisi and it's excellent! Well-written characters, well-crafted plot and  incredible twists, it's a 5/5 for me.