Reviews

The Night Man, by Jørn Lier Horst

syren1532's review

4.0

A gruesome discovery in the early morning in dense fog - the head of a young girl left on a stake in the middle of the town. Wisting and his team struggle to identify the victim, all they can say for sure is that she is from an ethnic minority. The killing leads to intense press interest which includes Wisting's daughter Line. One of Line's contacts links the girl to the recent discovery of a suitcase filled with drugs left at Larvik station. Then another body is discovered in the local river - a man this time but he is also from an ethnic minority. As Wisting and his team link the two murders and discover connections to the international drug trade Line is investigating locals who could be involved in the drug trade in Larvik.

A great read which takes you from Norway to Sweden and Afghanistan. Love this series of books.

Thanks to Netgalley, Penguin Random House and Jorn Lier Horst for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

lina_petrina's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

judefire33's review

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 

As all my followers know, Jorn Lier Horst and Wisting are on the top of my favorite author and character list, so as always I was looking forward to reading The Night Man.

I have all the Wisting books that have been published in English and have read them all in the order that they have originally been published in Norway, However, The Night Man is actually book 5 in the series, so therefore it does read a little out of sync. This is my only complaint as I think that it should be made clear before readers dive in.

that said, the story is excellent as always, the way Jorn Lier Horst writes the police procedural side is always so true to life ( something to do with him being a Detective with the Norweigian Police before becoming a novelist ), and I love that we get so deep into Wisting’s psyche with every book in the series. I don’t know why but I just really feel so much warmth for William Wisting as a character, he is such a lovely thoughtful Detective, who always goes to the ends of the earth for the victims of crime. He isn’t perfect, his relationship with His son, Thomas isn’t the best, but he is close to his daughter, Line who I also love… she is a journalist and has her father’s curious and analytical mind.

Line features quite heavily in The Night Man, and as I’ve said it’s strange reading about what’s happening to her as this book is in the last compared to the last read of A Question Of Guilt. But her character is so well written by Jorn, I always find it amazing how male authors can portray female protagonists so well.

The storyline follows the discovery of a child’s severed head on a post in the middle of Larvik, Norway. There are some quite gory descriptions of this that made my skin crawl haha, but that’s one of the reasons I adore Crime Fiction. We follow Wisting and his team on a journey through drugs and child exploitation from Europe to Afghanistan, on a quest to find the killer or killers.

The detail Jorn Lier Horst writes in his books is what always stays with me, the descriptions of the settings, the food being eaten, the insides of Norweigian homes, all are exquisite and totally make The Night Man sing.

The ending leaves the reader wanting, but as I’ve said if you were to read the Wisting series in order – the next book being Dregs – it actually makes more sense. But as I love Wisting and also Jorn Lier Horst, it didn’t matter to me. It was a great read and another added to my collection. To help new readers I will list the Wisting series in order for you –

1. Key Witness (Org. Nøkkelvitnet, 2004)
2. Disappearance of Felicia (Org. Felicia forsvant, 2005)
3. When the Sea Calms (Org. Når havet stilner, 2006)
4. The Only One (Org. Den eneste ene, 2007)
5. The Night Man (Org. Nattmannen, 2009) – translated into English July 2022
6. Dregs (Org. Bunnfall, 2010) – translated into English by Anne Bruce, 2011
7. Closed for Winter (Org. Vinterstengt, 2011) – translated into English 2013
8. The Hunting Dogs (Org. Jakthundene, 2012) – translated into English 2014
9. The Caveman (Org. Hulemannen, 2013) – translated into English 2015
10. Ordeal (Org. Blindgang, 2015) – translated into English 2016
11. When It Grows Dark (Org. Når Det Mørkner, 2016) – translated into English 2016 (A prequel to the series.)
12. The Katharina Code (Org. Katharina-koden, 2017) – translated into English 2018
13. The Cabin (Org. Det innerste rommet, 2018) – translated into English 2019
14. The Inner Darkness (Org. Illvilje, 2019)- translated into English 2020
15. A Question of Guilt (Org. Sak 1569, 2020)- translated into English 2021
16. Boundless (Org. Grenseløs, 2021)
17. The traitor (Org. Forræderen, 2022)

I hope that this helps those readers who haven’t yet ventured into William Wisting, Norweigian Noir that is gripping and sublimely written by a master of an author.

So my score is a sound 4 stars – only let down Penguin Michael Joseph not making it clear where The Night Man suits on the Wisting series.

 

tonund's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

hulter_tumulter's review against another edition

3.0

Grei skuring fra Wisting-land. Bærer preg av repetisjoner og sidefyll.

carohd's review against another edition

4.0

Rask lettlest krim som fenger!
Var et litt kjedelig parti midt i boka, men det tok seg fort opp igjen! Leste nesten hele boka på flytur til og fra London i Påsken.

sivastrid's review against another edition

5.0

Elsket denne boken. Den første krimboken jeg leste og etter det har jeg vert helt frelst. Har etter det lest de fleste andre bøkene i denne serien.

michael_k's review against another edition

Ένα ακόμη πολύ καλό αστυνομικό από τον συγγραφέα. Πλούσια πλοκή, συμπαθείς ήρωες, ωραίος ρυθμός αφήγησης. Όπως πάντα παράλληλα με το έγκλημα εμφανίζονται και τα κοινωνικά προβλήματα πίσω από αυτό χωρίς όμως να γίνονται κυρίαρχα στην αφήγηση.

Διαβάζεται εύκολα και ευχάριστα, ιδανικό για ένα χαλαρό Σαββατοκύριακο. Βασικό παράπονο είναι ότι το βιβλίο είναι "εκτός σειράς" με συνέπεια η ζωή του κεντρικού ήρωα να είναι μπερδεμένη όπως έχουν εκδοθεί τα βιβλία, ευτυχώς αυτό δεν επηρεάζει την κεντρική υπόθεση.