In the Woods

this book could have been so great. i feel cheated. i really enjoyed the first 98% of the book though. sorry if this is a spoiler but i am doing you a favor. no one likes to feel angry after finishing a book.

French's debut really is everything it's cracked up to be: literate, taught, and consummately spooky. Her characters are achingly believable, from the police, victim and villains right down to the not-so-innocent bystanders. The central mystery is satisfying as well, though it's less puzzle than psychodrama, with the damaged detective-narrator playing the main role. His gradual disintegration, and subsequent self-understanding, would be compelling reading in any genre.

Readers may be unsettled, however, by the book's fantastic element. This is not a novel that plays by strict generic rules: those who ONLY like mysteries might be exasperated by French's cagy blend of fantasy, horror, and mystery. The woods of the title are haunted, maybe literally, by echoes of both the narrator's past and the nation's; by the god Pan, and the fear he is supposed to inspire in lonely places. It's about wildness and childhood, as well as a particular crime. Personally, I thought it was perfect. It's reminiscent of the best in English ghost stories, but anchored by the police procedural plot--think Algernon Blackwood or M. R. James by way of Ian Rankin. For a blustery October night, what could be better?

I cannot understand the hype surrounding this book. It was okay but the horror element of it went nowhere. It started at times but petered out. It was recommended as having a supernatural theme. That was never truly delved into. May have been a better read if that theme was continued fully. Also, the relationship between Rosalind and Ryan wasnt fleshed out enough to have it be such a big deal towards the end. Lots of potential here with a good story but got lost in the woods.

This is a character-driven story where the murder of the day informs, but is not central to, the point. It's about the detective and the mystery of his life-- not so much the mystery he's trying to solve for the police department. The resolutions or lack thereof aren't about the murder mystery; they're about the protagonist. I love this book, loved the "sequel" about his partner, The Likeness. If you're not looking for fabulous scene-setting, character-informing descriptions of the weather, this may not be the murder mystery for you. Some elements of the story did remind me that this was her first published novel, but it only makes me excited for her future work.

I've been reading this book for three interminable days. French writes great descriptions of the weather. It is easy to feel the rain than it is to feel empathy for the characters. It was too easy to figure out the first mystery and frustrating that the second isn't resolved at all. I might give a look at her new book, "The Likeness," if there is an hint that perhaps the plot is this book might be resolved. A writer owes her readers some form of resolution.