artemisia_vulgaris's review against another edition
challenging
dark
5.0
This is a book about a terrible, sad murder. It is a crime book, not so much in that it investigates how a crime was committed, but by going deep into the causes and effects, the humanity of the people involved, victim, perpetrators, investigators, suspects. Several characters are viewed from the inside, and very uncomfortable it is at times, so vivid is the writing and so extreme the distress. This book addresses terrible things.
If you want a nice straightforward procedural, this is not it. Instead, it pulls tropes inside out, giving us the sordidness and hollowness of what is too often presented as glamorous or righteous and the decency and goodness where we expect despair. Family is an important theme, and money another, and though it leans hard into the dysfunctions and horrors of family, there is some beauty and love in the wreckage, and shining hope.
If you want a nice straightforward procedural, this is not it. Instead, it pulls tropes inside out, giving us the sordidness and hollowness of what is too often presented as glamorous or righteous and the decency and goodness where we expect despair. Family is an important theme, and money another, and though it leans hard into the dysfunctions and horrors of family, there is some beauty and love in the wreckage, and shining hope.
andrew61's review against another edition
5.0
I'd probably give this 4.5 but I've gone to 5 rather than 4 as it was a really good crime novel from a writer I've not read before and with a really strong female police lead . There were no crime cliches and the plot was well drawn and it was a satisfactory ending . I'd strongly recommend it and I'll definitely read more.
dianna_reads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
deepakchecks's review against another edition
2.0
Very ordinary. I was taken in by the reviews I had read and also the fact that it won a Crime novel of the year awards which I initially thought was a Guardian award, but now realized its a Theakstons Old Peculier crime novel award.
Anyway, the crime and the criminals are introduced in the beginning. The investigation and the life of the criminals progress in alternating chapters. The plot point was not good enough for me and it was a tough read as well, not strictly because of the quality of the prose. It disapp
Anyway, the crime and the criminals are introduced in the beginning. The investigation and the life of the criminals progress in alternating chapters. The plot point was not good enough for me and it was a tough read as well, not strictly because of the quality of the prose. It disapp
lisagray68's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 is my true rating. I always love Denise Mina's mysteries. Pretty much your basic police procedural, nothing out of this world - I just like the way she writes and I like her main character.
lauraethacker's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely loved this ending! Lady detectives are my favorite. Absolutely fantastic character building. Better world building in this second book for someone not in Great Britain.
carasara's review against another edition
3.0
Good characterization but kind of middling plot. Also the very end makes no sense, Maybe I missed something there, I don't know. Still, I do like Alex Morrow and the narrator is quite good, so I may listen to the next book in the series.
Spoiler
why would Sarah have to resort to prostitution if her mother was so wealthy?kchisholm's review against another edition
4.0
The second in the Alex Morrow series, THE END OF THE WASP SEASON is a book that it would be possible to read before the earlier. The opening chapters of the book introduces the reader to the three women at the centre of this story - DS Alex Morrow, Kay Murray who worked for Sarah Erroll and Sarah herself, 24 years old, murdered in a house that she rarely used.
Somehow, however, the focus of the book seems to be Lars Anderson, millionaire banker, disgraced financier, suicide hanging himself from a tree in the garden of his house. Father in a family that's about as dysfunctional as it can possibly get, his son returns from school to a family falling apart, not necessarily just because of his father's suicide, somehow the man's life seems to have had a more profound affect on a son, wife, daughter and mistress.
Needless to say this is an intricate tale weaving together a tangle of lies, deceit, damage, power, influence and moral ambiguity. Mina is renowned for her ability to create a well-drawn, complex and memorable cast of characters - from the main protagonist through to many of the lesser cast members. There's no sign of that ability flagging in THE END OF WASP SEASON. The other element that I've come to expect, particularly following on from the first Alex Morrow book, is a sense of restraint, contemplation, almost a reluctance to get into the evil that human beings can do. That's enhanced by the fragility of so many of Mina's characters. From Kay Murray, childhood friend of Alex's, Kay is a battler. She's not had an easy life, and somehow the tension of her embarrassment at her circumstances viewed by Morrow; her reaction when one of her children is briefly a suspect for the killing of Sarah; her pride and her vulnerability were beautifully executed. As was the character of Thomas, son of Lars, a young man pulled from school to confront the reality of his father's legacy, and the implosion of his family and everything that he thought life was supposed to be. Even down to the surreal experience of he and his mother discovering freezers of food, and working out how to actually prepare a meal - Thomas grows up in front of the reader's eyes, and there's something really quite sad about the way that has to happen.
The restraint of the storytelling in THE END OF WASP SEASON is the thing that really stays with me since I've finished the book. There was also something there - perhaps something about the way that sex and sexual politics started to play such a big part in the potential resolution, stacked up against Morrow's mostly male colleagues seeming disregard for this particular murder that could very well have been telegraphing something pointed. It could also be that I'm reading in something that wasn't ever supposed to be there, but there did just seem to be a little tale of attitude being told here, purposely underplayed, purposely observational and not conversational.
It is, however, not a book that's necessarily devoted to solving the crime. That aspect of the plot, whilst investigated by Morrow, is somehow less important than the why, and the way that circles of influence emanate from the rich and powerful. Perhaps it's a plot for a post GFC world? The way that the ripples of one person's life choices, and influence based simply on their wealth and ruthless use of the power that money can bring, can have repercussions in the most unexpected places.
The problem with picking up any book by Denise Mina is that she has hit so many heights with those that have come earlier, that somehow, sub-consciously there's always an expectation that perhaps this book could be the one that's not quite as good. For this reader, this wasn't that book. Denise Mina continues to write engaging, thought-provoking and always interesting stories.
Somehow, however, the focus of the book seems to be Lars Anderson, millionaire banker, disgraced financier, suicide hanging himself from a tree in the garden of his house. Father in a family that's about as dysfunctional as it can possibly get, his son returns from school to a family falling apart, not necessarily just because of his father's suicide, somehow the man's life seems to have had a more profound affect on a son, wife, daughter and mistress.
Needless to say this is an intricate tale weaving together a tangle of lies, deceit, damage, power, influence and moral ambiguity. Mina is renowned for her ability to create a well-drawn, complex and memorable cast of characters - from the main protagonist through to many of the lesser cast members. There's no sign of that ability flagging in THE END OF WASP SEASON. The other element that I've come to expect, particularly following on from the first Alex Morrow book, is a sense of restraint, contemplation, almost a reluctance to get into the evil that human beings can do. That's enhanced by the fragility of so many of Mina's characters. From Kay Murray, childhood friend of Alex's, Kay is a battler. She's not had an easy life, and somehow the tension of her embarrassment at her circumstances viewed by Morrow; her reaction when one of her children is briefly a suspect for the killing of Sarah; her pride and her vulnerability were beautifully executed. As was the character of Thomas, son of Lars, a young man pulled from school to confront the reality of his father's legacy, and the implosion of his family and everything that he thought life was supposed to be. Even down to the surreal experience of he and his mother discovering freezers of food, and working out how to actually prepare a meal - Thomas grows up in front of the reader's eyes, and there's something really quite sad about the way that has to happen.
The restraint of the storytelling in THE END OF WASP SEASON is the thing that really stays with me since I've finished the book. There was also something there - perhaps something about the way that sex and sexual politics started to play such a big part in the potential resolution, stacked up against Morrow's mostly male colleagues seeming disregard for this particular murder that could very well have been telegraphing something pointed. It could also be that I'm reading in something that wasn't ever supposed to be there, but there did just seem to be a little tale of attitude being told here, purposely underplayed, purposely observational and not conversational.
It is, however, not a book that's necessarily devoted to solving the crime. That aspect of the plot, whilst investigated by Morrow, is somehow less important than the why, and the way that circles of influence emanate from the rich and powerful. Perhaps it's a plot for a post GFC world? The way that the ripples of one person's life choices, and influence based simply on their wealth and ruthless use of the power that money can bring, can have repercussions in the most unexpected places.
The problem with picking up any book by Denise Mina is that she has hit so many heights with those that have come earlier, that somehow, sub-consciously there's always an expectation that perhaps this book could be the one that's not quite as good. For this reader, this wasn't that book. Denise Mina continues to write engaging, thought-provoking and always interesting stories.
iamgaarden's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5