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yanaorwhatever's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
dandelionwine1928's review
3.0
My rating is actually 3.5 stars.
So, apparently this is #7 in a series about the main character, Louise. I didn't know this, though, so this is the first one I've read. And really, I think it was okay to read it out of order. There was probably some background on Louise that I haven't gotten, but I didn't find myself super confused or anything like that.
This is a good page turner, and it definitely held my suspense. I also thought the twist at the end was interesting, and I had not been expecting it at all. The examination of the treatment of disabled people in institutions was sad and disturbing, but I was glad it was addressed. I enjoyed Louise and the other characters (specifically Melvin!).
There were a few aspects of the book that I thought could have been stronger. The romance between Louise and Eik felt rushed and kind of baseless. I didn't particularly see a reason or a need for that, and if Blaedl wanted to take it in that direction I would have preferred for her to lay more of a foundation for it than one night at a bar. The ending also felt rather rushed. I think I would have preferred more of a chase at the end.
The writing also wasn't particularly strong. The story was good, but sometimes cliche phrases were used or the descriptions were fairly bland. I'm giving this a benefit of the doubt, though, because this might just be due to the fact that it was translated.
Overall, this was a good creepy read, and it was a nice autumn read. I read it in about two days, so it definitely held my interest. If you're a fan of mystery or crime thrillers, I would recommend it, but it's no Tana French.
So, apparently this is #7 in a series about the main character, Louise. I didn't know this, though, so this is the first one I've read. And really, I think it was okay to read it out of order. There was probably some background on Louise that I haven't gotten, but I didn't find myself super confused or anything like that.
This is a good page turner, and it definitely held my suspense. I also thought the twist at the end was interesting, and I had not been expecting it at all. The examination of the treatment of disabled people in institutions was sad and disturbing, but I was glad it was addressed. I enjoyed Louise and the other characters (specifically Melvin!).
There were a few aspects of the book that I thought could have been stronger. The romance between Louise and Eik felt rushed and kind of baseless. I didn't particularly see a reason or a need for that, and if Blaedl wanted to take it in that direction I would have preferred for her to lay more of a foundation for it than one night at a bar. The ending also felt rather rushed. I think I would have preferred more of a chase at the end.
The writing also wasn't particularly strong. The story was good, but sometimes cliche phrases were used or the descriptions were fairly bland. I'm giving this a benefit of the doubt, though, because this might just be due to the fact that it was translated.
Overall, this was a good creepy read, and it was a nice autumn read. I read it in about two days, so it definitely held my interest. If you're a fan of mystery or crime thrillers, I would recommend it, but it's no Tana French.
cassmdurell's review
dark
slow-paced
2.0
Too predictable, too many storylines, and too much wrapped up at the end too quickly.
cooperca's review
4.0
I don't know why authors from Scandinavia seem to write such disturbing stories in such a freakish good way! But oh I love them!
I picked this up on a whim as I needed something for the 5 hour flight I was about to get on. Wow, this book made the time just fly (no pun intended) and made me look at my fellow travelers in a new, sinister manner. Not that the story takes place on a plane, more about how we really don't know what lurks beneath. When the perpetuator is finally revealed, Louise Rick (technical manager of the Special Search Agency) looks at the perps house recalling all the times she had driven passed, unknowing what was really happening inside.
The guilty was just not the one committing the crime, but those around him/her that believed that there are some individuals who could easily be sacrificed. The coldness of the perp and those who covered up the crime was disturbing. When the story comes out, you just shake your head and go, 'holy crap'.
This is a slow burn of a book, one that's right at the edge of boiling and when it finally does, it's explosive.
Why the 4 stars? I had an issue with one of the passages towards the end of the book that took me out of the story. I don't know if it's because I've watched too many Law & Orders, but I doubted that the situation would have presented itself in the way it was written. Hey, it was my hangup, but it did bother me.
I will be checking out more of Ms. Blaedel's books as overall I really enjoyed Louise's journey as a cop in Denmark.
I picked this up on a whim as I needed something for the 5 hour flight I was about to get on. Wow, this book made the time just fly (no pun intended) and made me look at my fellow travelers in a new, sinister manner. Not that the story takes place on a plane, more about how we really don't know what lurks beneath. When the perpetuator is finally revealed, Louise Rick (technical manager of the Special Search Agency) looks at the perps house recalling all the times she had driven passed, unknowing what was really happening inside.
The guilty was just not the one committing the crime, but those around him/her that believed that there are some individuals who could easily be sacrificed. The coldness of the perp and those who covered up the crime was disturbing. When the story comes out, you just shake your head and go, 'holy crap'.
This is a slow burn of a book, one that's right at the edge of boiling and when it finally does, it's explosive.
Why the 4 stars? I had an issue with one of the passages towards the end of the book that took me out of the story. I don't know if it's because I've watched too many Law & Orders, but I doubted that the situation would have presented itself in the way it was written. Hey, it was my hangup, but it did bother me.
I will be checking out more of Ms. Blaedel's books as overall I really enjoyed Louise's journey as a cop in Denmark.
forwalaka's review
2.0
Завязка интересная, но дальше сюжет как будто топором вырубали. Я даже угадала, кто убийца, а это надо очень постараться автору, чтоб такой тугодум, как я, догадался.
tinaha083's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this one! I have an obsession with cold cases, dual timelines, and twins. This book has two of the three. I’m looking forward to reading the other two in this loose trilogy.
dovesfalling's review
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
From the very first words —
Gone is coming. Gone is coming! The words pounded in her ears as the rocks and branches of the forest floor tore her feet and shins. Her head was whirling and fear made her heart constrict.
I was riveted by this compelling mystery.
The Forgotten Girls is Sara Blaedel’s seventh in her Louise Rick mystery series, translated from her native tongue to English – much to my delight! I haven’t read any of the others (I will be rectifying that quite quickly) but had no issues in picking up the book and diving right in. There are minimal references to other cases / characters, but this novel is the beginning of a new career for Louise, so it’s in some ways a natural starting point.
Louise is heading up a new agency, searching for missing persons. Her new partner, Eik Nordstrom (who I kept picturing as Eric Northman from True Blood… delicious!) has to be picked up from a bar the first day, and she quickly realizes that her boss wants her to close cases quickly, without doing the necessary and crucial police work that Louise so loves.
When the case of Lisemette crosses her desk, Louise expects that she will be able to solve it before dinnertime. After all, the dead girl has a large and grotesque scar down one side of her face. Surely someone will recognize her and come forward?
But no one does, and Louise begins to learn of the forgotten girls… and all that has befell them since they were institutionalized many, many years ago. In between searching for Lisemette’s twin sister, Louise and Eik also deal with the very real and very present-day threat of a vicious rapist and murderer, attacking women as they walk through a nearby wood.
Are the cases related? Will Louise be forced to confront the very painful realities of her past?
I could not put this book down, and read it in one evening. Sara Blaedel has the refreshing style of many Scandinavian writers – succinct, raw and often disturbing. What happened to the girls is so revolting as to be almost unfathomable. It presents uncomfortable questions of morality and cruelty – and surely echoes must have gone on in many of these institutions in the past.
These girls were for all intents and purposes, dead to their families, and suffered because of it and beyond it. Truly forgotten in the darkness, as if they slipped into an oubliette, out of reach, out of sight, but trapped in their own terrorized bodies.
From the very first words —
Gone is coming. Gone is coming! The words pounded in her ears as the rocks and branches of the forest floor tore her feet and shins. Her head was whirling and fear made her heart constrict.
I was riveted by this compelling mystery.
The Forgotten Girls is Sara Blaedel’s seventh in her Louise Rick mystery series, translated from her native tongue to English – much to my delight! I haven’t read any of the others (I will be rectifying that quite quickly) but had no issues in picking up the book and diving right in. There are minimal references to other cases / characters, but this novel is the beginning of a new career for Louise, so it’s in some ways a natural starting point.
Louise is heading up a new agency, searching for missing persons. Her new partner, Eik Nordstrom (who I kept picturing as Eric Northman from True Blood… delicious!) has to be picked up from a bar the first day, and she quickly realizes that her boss wants her to close cases quickly, without doing the necessary and crucial police work that Louise so loves.
When the case of Lisemette crosses her desk, Louise expects that she will be able to solve it before dinnertime. After all, the dead girl has a large and grotesque scar down one side of her face. Surely someone will recognize her and come forward?
But no one does, and Louise begins to learn of the forgotten girls… and all that has befell them since they were institutionalized many, many years ago. In between searching for Lisemette’s twin sister, Louise and Eik also deal with the very real and very present-day threat of a vicious rapist and murderer, attacking women as they walk through a nearby wood.
Are the cases related? Will Louise be forced to confront the very painful realities of her past?
I could not put this book down, and read it in one evening. Sara Blaedel has the refreshing style of many Scandinavian writers – succinct, raw and often disturbing. What happened to the girls is so revolting as to be almost unfathomable. It presents uncomfortable questions of morality and cruelty – and surely echoes must have gone on in many of these institutions in the past.
These girls were for all intents and purposes, dead to their families, and suffered because of it and beyond it. Truly forgotten in the darkness, as if they slipped into an oubliette, out of reach, out of sight, but trapped in their own terrorized bodies.