Reviews
"I've been enthusiastically telling everyone who will listen to read Tana French. She is, without a doubt, my favorite new mystery writer. Her novels are poignant, compelling, beautifully written, and wonderfully atmospheric. Just start reading the first page. You'll see what I mean." -- Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author " Broken Harbor proves anew that [Tana French] is one of the most talented crime writers alive." -- The Washington Post "Ms. French has come to be regarded as one of the most distinct and exciting new voices in crime writing. She constructs her plots in a dreamlike, meandering fashion that seems at odds with genre's fixed narrative conventions...Ms. French undercuts expectations at every turn. The victims begin to look less like victims; the case starts to unravel and the lead detective makes compromises that could ruin him." -- The Wall Street Journal "Ms. French creates haunting, damaged characters who have been hit hard by some cataclysm...This may sound like a routine police procedural. But like Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl, this summer's other dagger-sharp display of mind games, Broken Harbor is something more... she has irresistibly sly ways of toying with readers' expectations" -- Janet Maslin, The New York Times "So much of the pleasure inherent in reading these novels is in trying to figure out where things are going and being constantly surprised, not to mention thoroughly spooked. I predict Broken Harbor will be on more than one Best of 2012 list--it's definitely at the top of mine." -- Associated Press "a tour de force." -- Laura Miller, Salon.com "In most crime novels, cood cops and decent people court tragedy by disobeying the rules of society. But the stories French tells reflect our own savage times: the real trouble starts when you play fair and do exactly as you're told." -- Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review "French's psychologically rich novels are so much more satisfying than your standard issue police procedural...French brilliantly evokes the isolation of a Gothic landscape out of the Brontes and transposes it to a luxury suburban development gone bust. The cause, of course, is Ireland's economic free fall -- the Celtic Tiger turned needy cub -- and, like all superior detective fiction, French's novels are as much social criticism as they are whodunit." - Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air "French ...[is] drawn not just to the who but also to the why -- those bigger mysteries about the human weaknesses that drive somebody to such inhuman brutality. What really gives Broken Harbor its nerve-rattling force is her exploration of events leading up to the murders, rendered just as vividly as the detectives' scramble to solve them." -- Entertainment Weekly (A- rating) "These four novels have instated Ms. French as one of crime fiction's reigning grand dames -- a Celtic tigress... It's not the fashion in literary fiction these days to address such things as the psychological devastation that a fallout of the middle class can wreak on those who have never known anything else, and Ms. French does it with aplomb -- and a headless sparrow and dozens of infrared baby monitors." -- The Washington Times " Broken Harbour is a novel, of course, but it's also a headline...it's good to see contemporary literature engaging a crisis that has had such an impact on the lives of so many. This is, in fact, what good literature does. It makes us look at our world and perhaps forces us to see what we have chosen to ignore." -- Los Angeles Times, Salon.com 's Laura Miller has this advice for anyone who has not yet read EVERY Tana French novel, "Just go out and get them right now." -- NPR's Weekend Edition "Part police procedural, part psychological thriller, all fun." -- People ("Great Summer Reads") "Every bit as piercingly brilliant as its predecessors . . . Readers can brace themselves for the gritty details of a typical police procedural and then sit back and savor the poetry." -- Chicago Tribune "Tana French describes Broken Harbor , her latest thriller set in Dublin, as a 'chain-linked' book, because a secondary character from an earlier novel becomes 'the narrator of the next.' This is the world according to Mick 'Scorcher' Kennedy. He has his murder squad's highest solve rate, earning him the lead in a triple family murder near the seaside at Broken Harbor. Scorcher's narration is commanding and compelling, cynical and honest, and it'll keep you riveted to this book. Murder is 'a unique crime,' says Scorcher, 'the only one that makes us ask why'... The novel is a complex psychological procedural, following Scorcher and his rookie partner, Richie, through their investigation, each step punctuated with Scorcher's teachable moments like 'Nothing can trip you up like compassion.'" -- The Minneapolis Star-Tribune "French's plotting is gripping and original, but perhaps most impressive is her facility with the psychological implications of murder. There is evil at work in this book, but it's an evil that can be found within human nature rather than contrived to give the hero something to grapple with. Also on display is a bleak landscape of an Ireland hit particularly hard by the recession." -- The Daily Beast "French is known for creating detectives that are as complex as the mysteries they solve." -- The Millions.com, "Most Anticipated: The Great Second-Half 2012 Book Preview" "French's eloquently slow-burning fourth Dublin murder squad novel shows her at the top of her game . . . As usual, French excels at drawing out complex character dynamics." -- Publisher's Weekly "Each of French's novels offers wonderfully complex and fully realized characters . . . French has never been less than very good, but Broken Harbor is a spellbinder." -- Booklist (starred review) "A mystery that is perfectly in tune with the times . . . [French] continues to distinguish herself with this fourth novel, marked by psychological acuteness and thematic depth . . . There are complications, deliberations and a riveting resolution." -- Kirkus (starred review) "French's deft psychological thriller, focusing on parallel stories of mentally ill mothers and the tragedy of depression, offers a nuanced take on family relationships that will satisfy her fans and readers of psychological thrillers and police procedurals." -- Library Journal, "I've been enthusiastically telling everyone who will listen to read Tana French. She is, without a doubt, my favorite new mystery writer. Her novels are poignant, compelling, beautifully written, and wonderfully atmospheric. Just start reading the first page. You'll see what I mean." -- Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author " Broken Harbor proves anew that [Tana French] is one of the most talented crime writers alive." -- The Washington Post "Ms. French has come to be regarded as one of the most distinct and exciting new voices in crime writing. She constructs her plots in a dreamlike, meandering fashion that seems at odds with genre's fixed narrative conventions...Ms. French undercuts expectations at every turn. The victims begin to look less like victims; the case starts to unravel and the lead detective makes compromises that could ruin him." -- The Wall Street Journal "Ms. French creates haunting, damaged characters who have been hit hard by some cataclysm...This may sound like a routine police procedural. But like Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl, this summer's other dagger-sharp display of mind games, Broken Harbor is something more... she has irresistibly sly ways of toying with readers' expectations" -- Janet Maslin, The New York Times "So much of the pleasure inherent in reading these novels is in trying to figure out where things are going and being constantly surprised, not to mention thoroughly spooked. I predict Broken Harbor will be on more than one Best of 2012 list--it's definitely at the top of mine." -- Associated Press "a tour de force." -- Laura Miller, Salon.com "In most crime novels, cood cops and decent people court tragedy by disobeying the rules of society. But the stories French tells reflect our own savage times: the real trouble starts when you play fair and do exactly as you're told." -- Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review "French's psychologically rich novels are so much more satisfying than your standard issue police procedural...French brilliantly evokes the isolation of a Gothic landscape out of the Brontes and transposes it to a luxury suburban development gone bust. The cause, of course, is Ireland's economic free fall -- the Celtic Tiger turned needy cub -- and, like all superior detective fiction, French's novels are as much social criticism as they are whodunit." - Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air "French ...[is] drawn not just to the who but also to the why -- those bigger mysteries about the human weaknesses that drive somebody to such inhuman brutality. What really gives Broken Harbor its nerve-rattling force is her exploration of events leading up to the murders, rendered just as vividly as the detectives' scramble to solve them." -- Entertainment Weekly (A- rating) "These four novels have instated Ms. French as one of crime fiction's reigning grand dames -- a Celtic tigress... It's not the fashion in literary fiction these days to address such things as the psychological devastation that a fallout of the middle class can wreak on those who have never known anything else, and Ms. French does it with aplomb -- and a headless sparrow and dozens of infrared baby monitors." -- The Washington Times " Broken Harbour is a novel, of course, but it's also a headline...it's good to see contemporary literature engaging a crisis that has had such an impact on the lives of so many. This is, in fact, what good literature does. It makes us look at our world and perhaps forces us to see what we have chosen to ignore." -- Los Angeles Times , Salon.com 's Laura Miller has this advice for anyone who has not yet read EVERY Tana French novel, "Just go out and get them right now." -- NPR's Weekend Edition "Part police procedural, part psychological thriller, all fun." -- People ("Great Summer Reads") "Every bit as piercingly brilliant as its predecessors . . . Readers can brace themselves for the gritty details of a typical police procedural and then sit back and savor the poetry." -- Chicago Tribune "Tana French describes Broken Harbor , her latest thriller set in Dublin, as a 'chain-linked' book, because a secondary character from an earlier novel becomes 'the narrator of the next.' This is the world according to Mick 'Scorcher' Kennedy. He has his murder squad's highest solve rate, earning him the lead in a triple family murder near the seaside at Broken Harbor. Scorcher's narration is commanding and compelling, cynical and honest, and it'll keep you riveted to this book. Murder is 'a unique crime,' says Scorcher, 'the only one that makes us ask why'... The novel is a complex psychological procedural, following Scorcher and his rookie partner, Richie, through their investigation, each step punctuated with Scorcher's teachable moments like 'Nothing can trip you up like compassion.'" -- The Minneapolis Star-Tribune "French's plotting is gripping and original, but perhaps most impressive is her facility with the psychological implications of murder. There is evil at work in this book, but it's an evil that can be found within human nature rather than contrived to give the hero something to grapple with. Also on display is a bleak landscape of an Ireland hit particularly hard by the recession." -- The Daily Beast "French is known for creating detectives that are as complex as the mysteries they solve." -- The Millions.com, "Most Anticipated: The Great Second-Half 2012 Book Preview" "French's eloquently slow-burning fourth Dublin murder squad novel shows her at the top of her game . . . As usual, French excels at drawing out complex character dynamics." "Each of French's novels offers wonderfully complex and fully realized characters . . . French has never been less than very good, but Broken Harbor is a spellbinder." -- Booklist (starred review) "A mystery that is perfectly in tune with the times . . . [French] continues to distinguish herself with this fourth novel, marked by psychological acuteness and thematic depth . . . There are complications, deliberations and a riveting resolution." -- Kirkus (starred review) "French's deft psychological thriller, focusing on parallel stories of mentally ill mothers and the tragedy of depression, offers a nuanced take on family relationships that will satisfy her fans and readers of psychological thrillers and police procedurals." -- Library Journal
