Jo Nesbo and Michael Connelly by the Pool this Summer

I’ve been revisiting the crime fiction genre over the summer holidays as a perfect escape from the weather and natural disasters that are affecting both Queensland and country.

My first was Reversal, the new novel from Michael Connelly. I had previously read The Poet and then The Scarecrow both featuring Crime Reporter Jack McEvoy and FBI Agent Rachel Walling in a traditional style whodunnit but well written and with good twists and turns. I was curious to see if the latest offering which stars LAPD Detective Harry Bosh and defence attorney Mickey Haller is similarly enjoyable.

Jason Jessup was convicted 25 years ago in a high profile child murder case, but with the advancement of DNA testing, bodily fluids on the victim’s dress have subsequently been linked to her stepfather, thus putting in doubt Jessup’s conviction. In the interests of neutrality, Mickey Haller has been asked by the District Attorney’s Office to take on the prosecution of the case, effectively changing sides and coming up against one of his colleagues in the defence community. Mickey has to come up with the evidence to put Jesse away once and for all – evidence that is 25 years old.

I still have a soft spot for this more straight forward style of the crime genre having cut my teeth on Patricia Cornwall, James Patterson, Harlan Coben, and Jeffery Deaver but in recent years I found that there was too much of the same old, same old, and the offerings by some of the writers have become a bit formulaic. In recent times, I have yet to find an American crime author that I have wanted to read another of their novels, but Michael Connelly almost fits the spot with me having read three in the last 12 months. While Connelly’s style is much more American police show than Stieg Larsson edgy, he is still well worth a read next to the pool or at the beach this summer.

The second book that I read in this genre over January has been Jo Nesbo’s Nemesis. Now this is a writer that I want to read more of. Nemesis features Detective Harry Hole to whom the English speaking world was first introduced in The Redbreast. Like many of the lead characters in Scandinavian crime fiction, Hole is a “damaged” character - in The Redbreast he is a recovering alcoholic, with little personal life and whose closest friend in the police force ends up dead during the course of the novel. In Nemesis, things are looking up for Hole – he hasn’t had a drink since the last novel, and he is in a relationship with a future with Rakel and her son Oleg. Then, Hole’s life is turned upside down.

While on a murder case that occurred during a bank robbery, Harry has to investigate the apparent suicide of an old girlfriend. Complicating this investigation is that, unknown to his colleagues, he had dinner with her the night before and arrived home with no recollection of it after apparently “falling off the wagon”. Coincidentally, the only person who can identify the robber of the bank happens to be the ex-girlfriend’s uncle, a reknown bank robber himself, currently serving time in prison. What follows is a tale of mystery, revenge, and suspense where the reader is lead first one way and then another in guessing the outcome, but ultimately has to wait until the end before all is revealed.

I’m certainly looking forward to seeing what develops in the third novel available in the series in English, The Devil’s Star.

Enjoyed the Millenium Trilogy then try the books by Jo Nesbo

Checking the bestsellers list in the A2 guide of The Age this week (for period ending July 10 2010), I can’t believe that the Millennium trilogy still makes it into the top ten bestsellers – not only at a national level but also for sales through independent bookstores in Australia. Surely everyone has read them by now. I have moved on and discovered another European crime novelist – Jo Nesbo. I recently read a fairly old novel of his, The Redbreast, which is set in Norway. Released in Australia by Random House, here’s the blurb for the novel from the Random House website:

Harry Hole, drunkard, loner and brilliant detective is reassigned to surveillance after a high profile mistake.


He’s bored by his new job until a report of a rare and unusual gun being fired sparks his interest because of its possible links to Neo Nazi activity. Then a former soldier is found with his throat cut. Next Harry’s former partner is murdered. Why had she been trying to reach Harry on the night her head was smashed in? The investigation leads Harry to suspect that the crimes have their roots in the battlefields of Eastern Front during WWII. In a quest that takes him to South Africa and Vienna, Harry finds himself perpetually one step behind the killer. He will be both winner and loser by the novel's nail-biting conclusion.

I have to confess that I found the beginning of the book a little confusing as it starts with an attempted assassination of a visiting US President. Oh, no I thought. Another American styled crime novel, but I kept going to see where it was heading. I’m so glad I did. This was a crime thriller with lots of suspense and really challenged me to work out the connections in the story. The novel weaves chapters about events in World War II with the current day murders, and as each connection is revealed I kept oscillating between different scenarios as to who was the killer, especially since we are given brief glimpses of him throughout the book without him being identified. Unlike many of today’s crime novels, it took me quite some time to get to that point where you know who did it and it came only just before Harry Hole did himself. Often, I find the identity of the perpetrator is revealed too quickly in today’s crime novels, and the rest of the story is not strong enough to maintain the engagement of the reader.

Apparently, there are two Harry Hole novels before The Redbreast, but these haven’t been translated into English so you do miss some of the character build up for Hole that you get when you read a series from the start. If you want to read the series in order, the books available in English in the series are Nemesis, The Devil's Star, The Redeemer, and finally, The Snowman.