As dusk approaches a small Dublin suburb in the summer of 1984, mothers begin to call their children home. But on this warm evening, three children do not return from the dark and silent woods. When the police arrive, they find only one of the children gripping a tree trunk in terror, wearing blood-filled sneakers, and unable to recall a single detail of the previous hours.
Twenty years later, … years later, the found boy, Rob Ryan, is a detective on the Dublin Murder Squad and keeps his past a secret. But when a twelve-year-old girl is found murdered in the same woods, he and Detective Cassie Maddox—his partner and closest friend—find themselves investigating a case chillingly similar to the previous unsolved mystery. Now, with only snippets of long-buried memories to guide him, Ryan has the chance to uncover both the mystery of the case before him and that of his own shadowy past.
Richly atmospheric, stunning in its complexity, and utterly convincing and surprising to the end, In the Woods is sure to enthrall fans of Mystic River and The Lovely Bones. And look for French’s new mystery, Broken Harbor, for more of the Dublin Murder Squad.
more
I was very disappointed with this book.The storyline dragged and the ending left a hole in the plotline.
I love Irish mystery novels and this one was terrific. Looking forward to reading more in this series
A bit boring.
Suspensful who-done-it with compelling main characters.
I liked this book but like her others better. Characters were somewhat unlikeable, but an interesting premise that kept menguessing
Loved this book fast pace but disappointed with no resolution to the earlier event.
The ending left you hanging. I like stories that are buttoned up at the end.
Great plot
I thought the author took the main character’s feeling of having a lucky life and twisted it into a downward spiral after certain events occurred. There were unpredictable turns in the story to make it a page-turner. I recommend the book.
Without a doubt, one of the most over-rated wastes of time you could possibly read. It sounds like it should be good, right? It’s not. The ‘mystery’ from his childhood is mentioned again and again, but NEVER EXPLAINED! At all! Stay away from this one. There are much better books out there. Even a bad book would be better than this.
I’m really torn on what to rate this book, which is why I stuck with a number in the middle. The writing is good. I like the pop culture references and the little digs amuse me. I don’t really care for the main character/narrator of the story. There are two mysteries but only one has a solution and it’s not exactly satisfying. I was really in it …
DNF–quit 20% in. This author’s writing style is definitely one you will either love or hate. Reminds me of moody noir with overly cryptic voice-overs. Also I was really disappointed that there was no Irish voice. Apparently the author is from America although she has lived in Dublin for a while.
An exceptional writer
This is a beautifully written book and I was really into it for the first half. However as the foreshadowing more and more indicated bad things happening, I got more reluctant to finish it. The ending was the saddest possible and not in a sad-but-beautiful kind of way; I think it would have been less horrible if one of the two main characters …
Tana French writes seductively beautiful prose. I was a little upset by the ending. The entire mystery was framed by a larger mystery and to me it fell a little flat that it wasn’t all tied up with a bow. Kinda like a literary writer wanted to educate a genre about how endings don’t have to stick to formula. I’d still recommend it for the quality …
Excellent book. Deep and thought provoking.
The story stays with you.
This book was interesting, but the ending leaves so much unresolved. It was disappointing because you hang on through the whole book thinking the original crime will be solved.
Tana French, where have you been all my life?
This first book in the Dublin Murder Squad series has been televised, but the on-screen version doesn’t hold a candle to the book.
Look for deep, well-drawn characters, a marvelous Irish setting, and a complex plot. Delicious!
Great story and impeccable writing!
Beautiful writing but the long descriptions become work to get through after a while.