The Searcher : By - Tana French

By Author: shashi
Total Articles: 2
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I was surprised that "The Searcher" was not another perspective from her "Dublin murder squad" - but I was not disappointed. The story is a bit slow off the mark, the first third of the book spent vividly describing the feel of the "lonely west" of Connaught and gradually getting us to know the characters. Cal, a recently retired Chicago cop has moved to the west of Ireland to what he thinks is a quaint, quiet and bucolic village. Of course, things aren't what they seem on the surface. To begin with, sheep are mysteriously killed and mutilated. And then a young adolescent ne'er do-well enlists Cal's help in what may be a missing person's case.

I was particularly struck by the vivid descriptions of the countryside - and its relation to the storyline. As the story opens, it is lush, green, sweet. As summer gives way to fall it becomes hostile, cold, unpredictable. So, too does the tiny village in which Cal is trying to make his home - unsure of the culture, of small-town life, of the generations of connections and history and gossip he has moved into. I found this brilliant.

The mysteries Cal ...
... reluctantly gets involved in - and the unknown connections and interrelationships he's only obliquely aware of - make for riveting reading. As with previous French novels, the final conclusion is a gut-punch, although the "whodunnit" is neither as surprising nor as breath-taking as her previous work. That said, even a work that is not as strong as previous mysteries, there is much to enjoy here. If you have never read any of Tana French's work, you are in for a particular treat. And while "The Searcher" isn't her best, its still a thumping good read.

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