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deschatjes's review against another edition
3.0
Flashback style murder mystery with a very genuine warts and all investigator. Clever twist keeps you guessing to the end
eclipsingyou's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
took ages for me to actually settle into the story of this one as it started out so slowly with heaps of irrelevant information that’s meant to be character building but just felt boresome. but at around the halfway point when the detective work is actually in full swing and pieces of everything unravel, it became much more interesting and i found myself flying through the late chapters.
plays into some tropes a little, but it’s hard not to with a murder mystery.
plays into some tropes a little, but it’s hard not to with a murder mystery.
lunaseline's review
4.0
Jag gillar deckare på vindpinade öar. Ann Cleeves serier är favoriter, och när Sharon Boltons, PD James och andra låter sina historier utspela sig i Nordsjön applåderar jag.
Det funkar även om man hittar på sina öar, som Adolfsson så finurligt gjort. Eftersom min förförståelse kring ölivet är god - och anpassad till mysterier och mord - känns Doggerland fullt naturligt.
Poliskvinnan vi får följa skiljer sig kanske inte så mycket från andra poliskvinnor (tragisk bakgrund, svårt att bli respekterad på jobbet, bor ensam och dricker alkohol regelbundet etc.), men jag gillar henne. Att hon envist gräver i det förflutna istället för att spåra brottet i nutid är kanske inte helt rimligt, men blir såklart mer intressant och relationsinriktat. De små tidshoppen till ett hippiekollektiv är också lagom korta för att de inte ska ta över, eller avslöja för mycket för tidigt. Överhuvudtaget tycker jag Adolfsson klarar upplägg och takt bra. Boken är kanske lite lång, men det är ändå ganska få transportsträckor. Upplösningen? Där tappar vi fötterna i den karga jorden och hade den varit längre/tagit upp mer plats hade jag blivit riktigt irriterad. Nu kan jag ändå ha överseende, och ja - jag kommer säkert läsa fler delar i den här serien.
(Betyget ska givetvis ses i relation till andra i genren. Det här är inte stor litteratur, men trevlig sådan.)
Det funkar även om man hittar på sina öar, som Adolfsson så finurligt gjort. Eftersom min förförståelse kring ölivet är god - och anpassad till mysterier och mord - känns Doggerland fullt naturligt.
Poliskvinnan vi får följa skiljer sig kanske inte så mycket från andra poliskvinnor (tragisk bakgrund, svårt att bli respekterad på jobbet, bor ensam och dricker alkohol regelbundet etc.), men jag gillar henne. Att hon envist gräver i det förflutna istället för att spåra brottet i nutid är kanske inte helt rimligt, men blir såklart mer intressant och relationsinriktat. De små tidshoppen till ett hippiekollektiv är också lagom korta för att de inte ska ta över, eller avslöja för mycket för tidigt. Överhuvudtaget tycker jag Adolfsson klarar upplägg och takt bra. Boken är kanske lite lång, men det är ändå ganska få transportsträckor. Upplösningen? Där tappar vi fötterna i den karga jorden och hade den varit längre/tagit upp mer plats hade jag blivit riktigt irriterad. Nu kan jag ändå ha överseende, och ja - jag kommer säkert läsa fler delar i den här serien.
(Betyget ska givetvis ses i relation till andra i genren. Det här är inte stor litteratur, men trevlig sådan.)
piggelin's review
Långsam och varken central händelse eller karaktärerna intresserar mig.
kcfromaustcrime's review against another edition
4.0
Combined review of Fatal Isles, Wild Shores and Cruel Tides (books 1 - 3 in the Doggerland series):
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/fatal-isles-wild-shores-cruel-tides-maria-adolfsson
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/fatal-isles-wild-shores-cruel-tides-maria-adolfsson
clazzyb82's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
kazza27's review against another edition
4.0
I was originally drawn to this book as my Dad used to listen to the Shipping Forecast and the names used to really capture my imagination.
Doggerland is a small group of Islands between UK and Denmark which is now submerged by water . The author has fictionalised this which I found fascinating that she went to so much detail to create this setting. I loved the descriptions of Doggerland :
She never thinks of the sea as blue. Down on Frisel and even in Dunker and along the entire west coast up toward Ravenby, the sea is different from here. There, white breakers skip merrily across deep blue seas and white cotton-ball clouds drift across the clear blue sky. There, the rolling hills are green and the trees grow tall and lush.
Thank you to Tracy Fenton for my invitation to the tour and for copy of the books from Zaffre in return for a fair and honest review.
The story is also engaging, Karen wakes up in bed next to a man and she knows she has messed up big time. She sneaks out while he is asleep but it is not long before we discover the man is her boss ! She goes home and then gets called by the chief of police to tell her she needs to lead an investigation into the brutal death of a woman Susan Smeed, who happens to be the ex wife of the man she slept with last night.
Beaten to death with a poker Karen has to uncover why this woman has been murdered. This means interviewing Jounas her boss as he is a suspect, he is not happy about this at all.
This was quite a slow paced crime novel which had lots of details and also some surprises. I liked Karen as a character and I would be interested in reading more about this fictional setting and Detective. She works hard and has experienced sexism at work as a woman in the police force and her latest boss is part of prominent family in Doggerland.
This was a good read which kept me interested, I was not convinced that Jounas had killed his wife but the evidence does seem to be pointing towards him.
A great debut and introduction to a new series.
4 stars ****
Doggerland is a small group of Islands between UK and Denmark which is now submerged by water . The author has fictionalised this which I found fascinating that she went to so much detail to create this setting. I loved the descriptions of Doggerland :
She never thinks of the sea as blue. Down on Frisel and even in Dunker and along the entire west coast up toward Ravenby, the sea is different from here. There, white breakers skip merrily across deep blue seas and white cotton-ball clouds drift across the clear blue sky. There, the rolling hills are green and the trees grow tall and lush.
Thank you to Tracy Fenton for my invitation to the tour and for copy of the books from Zaffre in return for a fair and honest review.
The story is also engaging, Karen wakes up in bed next to a man and she knows she has messed up big time. She sneaks out while he is asleep but it is not long before we discover the man is her boss ! She goes home and then gets called by the chief of police to tell her she needs to lead an investigation into the brutal death of a woman Susan Smeed, who happens to be the ex wife of the man she slept with last night.
Beaten to death with a poker Karen has to uncover why this woman has been murdered. This means interviewing Jounas her boss as he is a suspect, he is not happy about this at all.
This was quite a slow paced crime novel which had lots of details and also some surprises. I liked Karen as a character and I would be interested in reading more about this fictional setting and Detective. She works hard and has experienced sexism at work as a woman in the police force and her latest boss is part of prominent family in Doggerland.
This was a good read which kept me interested, I was not convinced that Jounas had killed his wife but the evidence does seem to be pointing towards him.
A great debut and introduction to a new series.
4 stars ****
tucholsky's review against another edition
1.0
Must be so good to have a scenario of a crime book series in a land which only exists under the sea and in history. A blank slate for a writer unfettered by reality. Invent towns, invent family sagas, invent social situations and festivals, no continuity errors, no forensic errors and no laughable improbable actions or twists because, "its my world, I invented it so that just happens". Like a game of dungeons and dragons. Unfortunately Maria Adolfson likes that inventing bit too much and this is so slow to get onto any police work because the family sagas of the Smeeds and the Commune are too inviting a sidetrack to avoid. When the end comes its no spoiler to say "just run down a list of cliche crime book outcomes and you'll come across the very, very sudden denouement
yollie's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
mevrouwboek's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
3.0
6.0