My readings this month, three in total (a vast improvement over my single novel last month), are all female detective novels written by women, two first-time authors and one international bestseller, all from different countries, and all women at different ranks within the force, and were all exceptionally entertaining. I have teetered back and forth on which book I liked most, settling on each of the three at different times for different reasons. So, after too much deliberation, it has become obvious to me that there is no clear winner. Winner? That’s a funny way of putting it. Like one of the fantastic authors would be printing this review out and framing it? Moving on.
Joanna Schaffhausen
Rating: B+
Olivia Kiernan
Rating: B+
Sara Blaedel
Rating: A-
The first book I read was the very impressive debut novel by Joanna Schaffhausen, The Vanishing Season, a deep character study of a small-town Massachusetts police officer, Ellery Hathaway, who is on the hunt for a serial killer that may or may not exist. Ellery has the misfortune of understanding serial killers more intimately than most anyone alive, having been the sole survivor of one when she was a teenager. Hitting a brick wall in the form of her police chief who thinks she’s completely off-course, Ellery reaches out to a man she hasn’t seen or spoken to in almost fifteen years, since the day he rescued her; FBI Agent Reed Markham.
I found the setup highly original and immediately captivating. The characters of both Ellery and Reed are complex, believable and very likable, and the mystery is well staged and played out. Bonus points for having Ellery’s lone companion be a Basset Hound named Bump. I’m looking forward to reading No Mercy, Schaffhausen’s follow up novel and next in the Ellery Hathaway series.
The second book I read, Too Close to Breath, was by another first-time author, Irish-born Olivia Kiernan, another great character-driven mystery. Of all the numerous detective novels I have read, I had yet to come across a lead female character in the highest position in her department, so I was relieved and excited to meet Detective Chief Superintendent Frankie Sheehan. Whereas Ellery Hathaway had been living her entire adult life with the scarring history of being a serial killer survivor, Frankie Sheehan is coming off the all too-fresh history of having almost been killed in the line of duty. She returns to work, on-edge and still suffering psychological damage from her brush with death, but keeps it well hidden behind her extremely tough, no-bullshit demeanor.
Frankie’s first case back appears at first to be a clear cut case of suicide, which would have suited her just fine, but when the autopsy comes back revealing that the hanging was actually a murder, Frankie is thrown right back into potential danger, setting the stage for scene after scene of building tension.
I tend to find myself feeling oddly at home when reading Irish detective novels. Maybe it’s because that’s where I met my wife when I was doing research for the second entry in The Loss Trilogy, but I think more so because the characters are more unfiltered and crass, like me, and Frankie Sheehan fits right into that mold. She is the driving force behind this story and is a complete badass who I would love to fight along side of. The story itself deals with some seriously fucked up families and marriages, and goes even further by delving into some areas of the dark web that I’d rather not know about (yet find fascinating in the world of fiction). Kiernan has a great hand with dialogue and the book is very well paced. She had me guessing right up to the very end and left me wanting more of Detective Chief Superintendent Frankie Sheehan.
The last book I read this month, The Drowned Girl, is by #1 International bestselling Danish author, Sara Blaedel. It is the third and by far the best I’ve read thus far in her Detective Louise Rick series. What sets this one apart from her first two entries is her willingness to face, head-on, the very controversial, and I think little known topic of honor killings. For anyone not familiar (like me before I read this) honor killings are the murder of a family member who is believed to have brought shame or dishonor upon the family.
Sounds like a super fun read, right? Yeah, not so much. I have never been so uncomfortable reading a book in my life, and I applaud Blaedel making me somehow feel complicit in the constant barrage of accusations, assumptions and false beliefs, held not only by the members of the Danish police department and the news, but the families in questions themselves, and maybe most of all by the public when a fifteen-year old girl from Jordan is found drowned in a lake tied to a large concrete slab. Was it an honor killing, like the early signs are pointing to? Or is something else that lies beyond eyes blinded by rage, hatred and racism?
Louise Rick does her best to hold her own thoughts and emotions at bay, dealing with angry officers, furious and defensive parents, and the media and public who are too quick to point fingers, while she searches for evidence and proof that will point in the direction of the truth. One of the more interesting topics in the book is the question of religion vs. culture. Which is responsible? Where did the idea of an honor killing would even come from?
One of Blaedel’s many smart decisions here is to limit the role of Camilla Lind, Louise’s best friend and reporter for the big local newspaper. I found her character in the first two books to have overstayed her welcome a little bit. It’s not that Camilla doesn’t have a purpose or a role in the series, it’s just that the books seem to work at their best when we’re with Louise.
There is so much at play in this book and so many of the questions are left for us to ponder long after the conclusion of the case. It’s a challenging, thought-provoking novel, and although I never recommend this in a series, this is one you could read without bothering to read the first two. One important note regarding Sara Blaedel’s novels: many of her books were first published in Denmark before she found success in the States and beyond, and have had their titles changed. For instance, The Drowned Girlwas previously published as Only One Life. I unknowingly purchased duplicates copies of the 2nd book in the series, one by the name The Silent Woman, the other by the name Call Me Princess, both with completely different covers. For what it’s worth, I much preferred the title Call Me Princess in the case of that book, as it delivers a nice ‘aaaahhh’ moment when you stumble upon why it was bestowed with that title.
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