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Justin's Reviews > In the Woods
In the Woods (Dublin Murder Squad, #1)
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Seriously, man, I wanted to rate this book higher than two stars. I almost went with three, but I just can't do it. This book felt like it ran this long, exhausting marathon only to collapse into a heap, huffing and puffing just before it crossed the three-star line. Right now it's laying there lifelessly. It might get up slowly and crawl across that line later, but I doubt it.
The protagonist of this book really, really annoyed me. It felt like a parody of one of those old black-and-white movies where the picture freezes and the guy steps out toward the camera, lights a cigarette, pulls his hat down, and goes into this long monologue about life or women or his past or whatever. The action would pick up or a new lead would be uncovered, and here comes Rob rambling on for pages and pages.... and pages.
Example:
Cassie: Oh wow! This thing we just found could connect this murder to events from your past! WHOA!
Rob: That is amazing! Great job, Cass!
::Rob steps toward the camera::
Rob: Yeah, Cassie was like that. She was always finding connections to things and blah blah blah. She made a great partner because hey remember that time 20 years ago when my friends and I were in the woods and blah blah blah I want to tell you about all the people I work with and give you a brief description of each one of them and also explain in detail how my boss is and blah blah blah. My mind is trying to remember what happened 20 years ago and you know Cassie and I are great partners and we're best friends and people think we're dating but blah blah blah. Hey, time flies, man. Did I tell you what happened to me as a child? Did I remind you about Katy? Also, her family sure is weird. The people at the dig site are weird. Everyone is a suspect blah blah blah. Let me pause here to tell you how I deal with my roommate and also O'Kelly and my childhood and my current job and Katy and her weird family and interrogation and coffee and vodka and this dream I had and looking for clues and in the woods and we keep hitting dead ends and and and and and blahhhhhhhhhhhh.
Cassie: Hey, Rob. We have a suspect.
Rob: ...
]
The protagonist of this book really, really annoyed me. It felt like a parody of one of those old black-and-white movies where the picture freezes and the guy steps out toward the camera, lights a cigarette, pulls his hat down, and goes into this long monologue about life or women or his past or whatever. The action would pick up or a new lead would be uncovered, and here comes Rob rambling on for pages and pages.... and pages.
Example:
Cassie: Oh wow! This thing we just found could connect this murder to events from your past! WHOA!
Rob: That is amazing! Great job, Cass!
::Rob steps toward the camera::
Rob: Yeah, Cassie was like that. She was always finding connections to things and blah blah blah. She made a great partner because hey remember that time 20 years ago when my friends and I were in the woods and blah blah blah I want to tell you about all the people I work with and give you a brief description of each one of them and also explain in detail how my boss is and blah blah blah. My mind is trying to remember what happened 20 years ago and you know Cassie and I are great partners and we're best friends and people think we're dating but blah blah blah. Hey, time flies, man. Did I tell you what happened to me as a child? Did I remind you about Katy? Also, her family sure is weird. The people at the dig site are weird. Everyone is a suspect blah blah blah. Let me pause here to tell you how I deal with my roommate and also O'Kelly and my childhood and my current job and Katy and her weird family and interrogation and coffee and vodka and this dream I had and looking for clues and in the woods and we keep hitting dead ends and and and and and blahhhhhhhhhhhh.
Cassie: Hey, Rob. We have a suspect.
Rob: ...
]
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Reading Progress
August 19, 2015
– Shelved as:
to-read
August 19, 2015
– Shelved
September 24, 2015
–
Started Reading
September 24, 2015
–
6.0%
"Started this on the plane ride home, and the first 6% has set the bar high for the other 94%."
September 29, 2015
–
31.0%
"I've read so many short books lately that make this book seem looooong."
October 4, 2015
–
43.0%
"This book really takes its time unraveling the mystery, or peeling back the layers of the onion, or whatever."
October 8, 2015
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-50 of 85 (85 new)
message 1:
by
Mandy
(new)
Oct 08, 2015 06:11PM
Not that good? 2 star?
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yeahhhhh I just updated my review...It had moments that grabbed my attention, but it wasn't consistent. And it was soooooo sloooowwwwwwwww........
I need to read some of her work, do these need to be read in order?
I'm not sure. This case wraps up in the end and I'm not sure if the next book follows the same main characters or not. There's definitely no cliffhanger that would make me think you have to read this book first.
It sucked. I was so disappointed.
Yeah I was really let down, too. It was way too long.
Yeah, I wouldn't have minded the length as much if the first case would have been solved or tied into the current case. I feel betrayed! Some people seem to have not minded this but I wanted answers. It had so much potential!
I agree. I just wish the action would have kept moving. It kept bring interrupted by back story or description or the protagonist's thoughts. It became a chore to get through.
We don't share the same opinion on this (I loved it!) but your review made me laugh so much! That was a spot on impression of Rob!
Thanks! It would have been a much better book if Rob would have shut up and gotten out of the way.
He was a bit of a pain to everyone around him I definitely agree with you there haha
Ok I literally just ordered this book, now I'm rethinking it ohh I hope I like it
The story was decent but it just seemed to drag on and on and on. I felt the same way about That Harry Quebert book I read recently. Stop trying to be all deep and literary and just keep the mystery going.
if you haven't already found out, the rest of the series does not follow the same guy. they all follow someone who was introduced in the previous novel. if you liked Cassie tho, give the Likeness a try. I feel like she does (did) a much better job at explaining people and things without sounding so freeze-framey. and also, the Likeness is my personal favorite of the series, even with its pretty unbelievable setup and some of the details... Tana French is worth a second try, is all I'm saying.
Hey thanks Melanie! How much is it tied to this book? Would I need to read it again to get reintroduced to the setting and characters or can I just keep gong?
I will spare you from my rant on how much I hate this book, but it does always make me feel better to see that other people share my pain ;)
I'd like lodge an alternate view for anyone on the fence about reading this novel who thinks, "Oh, no, everybody hates it." I loved it, but am not a fan of police procedural. I don't even really like reading whodunits. If I did, I could definitely see how French might've let me down. For me, the Murder Squad was incidental to what the story was really about and that is a friendship that has run its course. And yes, the series can be read in any order, a testament to French's dexterity, I think.
Yeah I can see that, Joe. I think that was part of the issue for me, too, though. The friendship stud got in the way of the mystery. It would have worked better as one or the other maybe instead of both.
This review. Yes. Yes. A thousand times yes.
you won't need to reread In The Woods to enjoy the Likeness, just remember the impression that you got from Cassie in the first go round. French's mastery of her characters doesn't require anything of you when you plow into the next book but an open mind. I think she introduces new people into her stories with such skill and forethought that she presents them precisely in a way that you feel pretty neutral about them until you read Their story and really come to learn who they are, what they think, where they learned it, and realize you had no idea about any of it when you first met. you know, sorta like real people in real life...and if it helps -I may be beating the dead horse by now- I also feel that while she technically writes "murder mysteries/police procedurals" as a generic classification, they're actually much more intellectual than almost any other I've ever come across in the same genre. they all revolve around murders, being the Dublin Murder Squad series, but the cases worked in them are actually secondary to whatever piece of the detective's past the current case relates to. Tana French explains how people work, how they operate (the Likeness) and cooperate (The Secret Place, the Likeness) and how sometimes the people you grew up with and know fundamentally are people you don't know at all (Faithful Place), or places that were once your favorite can be forever changed in your memories by just one incident (Broken Harbor).
if you read one more in the series and are still disappointed, I'll quit trying to convince you. but if you like your second try, I will claim
victory ;)
ps - Thus far, In the Woods is the only book in which we don't find out what happened. ever, that I recall, altho I've read them each only once. all the other books (the Trespasser doesn't count because I haven't read +it's not even officially published yet) are resolved, past and present, no giant loose ends or cliffhangers.
Dying laughing at how accurate this review is!!!!
Sydney, I think I pulled most of review straight from the pages of the book. I hope I didn't plagiarize too much.
Ahaha, you captured it perfectly!
Justin, please consider one more by French! She is my favorite contemporary writer. Just finished--and loved--her third. I think she asks a lot of her audience in her first book with the ambiguous ending, but she also shows how little she cares about the case as opposed to her protagonist's mind. Would be curious to see if the relationship is salvageable. :)
Man, it's been a while and I can't remember much about the plot anymore. Could I pick up the next book without remember much of the details from this one? I guess I could consider it. 😆
You could! There are a few references to the first one, but I still think it can stand on its own.
I'm just under half way through the book, and this EXACT thing is what's causing me fluster too. Glad I'm not alone. I understand writing style can vary, I actually struggled to read through Stephen King's Tower series, though I'm glad I trudged through and learned to read his style without too much difficulty.. but the long pauses and off the story reflection is making this book move so, so slowly. Still trying to finish it.. I generally want to know how it ends, but it'll take a miracle recovery to make me move to book 2 after this.
This review is hilarious and I understand your criticisms. I did enjoy all the character studies even though I started reading the book as a mystery thriller. It wasn't really that but I still enjoyed it. I didn't find it slow but can totally see why people would find it slow. I have read a lot of books in the past year that I thought were one thing but ended up as something else. When this went in a different direction from my expectations, I just went with it.
Yasssss, omg, this book really pissed me off it was so unsatisfying. Like, I'm in a bad mood having read it 😐
ROFL! Justin the first paragraph of your review had me literally laughing out loud.
Why am I so mad we didn't get to find out what happened to the...trying not to give anything away here...other 2 children? I'm sorry I do not like coming up with endings on my own I enjoy a nice clean cut this-is-exactly-what-happened ending!! And detective Ryan isn't even in the next book? Not sure I'll be reading anything by this author again..
This review is spot on
Lol and after all the unnecessary information one of the main mysteries in the book isn't solved .so disappointed
Yeah that was a big letdown, too. Couldn’t been much better.
I love Tana French, including In The Woods, but I can see where some may find it slow going. Give Broken Harbor a try before giving up on her. Judging by some of your book choices, I think you may enjoy it. I see some have recommended The Likeness, which I liked but required some serious suspension of disbelief, which lowered it a bit in my estimation.
Hey, thanks for the recommendation, Joan! I’ll give her another shot once I get off this horror kick.
This is a precise review. That is exactly how the book read !!!
Ha! I hear they get better though and her new book is supposed to be good as well. I’m Miley intrigued only if Rob isn’t involved.
Excellent review, my feelings exactly
Have you taken the advice of others and tried any of her other books? I wanted to enjoy it bit can't be bothered if it is the same annoying thing
Great review - and we agree on this one! :)
What?! What is happening to me? Is this some kind of alternate universe? 😂
Don’t forget mentioning “Knocknaree” every other freaking sentence as if we could forget where the crimes took place!!
It is a slog this book. I will read the next on but if the insipid Ryan is in not sure I could that
