In the Woods

by Tana French

hardcover, 496 pages

Published Aug. 6, 2007 by VIKING, Hodder & Stoughton London, UK,.

ISBN:: 978-0-340-92474-7

(19 reviews)

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. He is gripping a tree trunk in terror, wearing blood-filled sneakers and unable to recall a single detail of the previous hours.

Twenty years later, the found boy, Rob Ryan, is a detective on the Dublin Murder Squad and keeps his past a secret. But when a 12-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 …

4 editions

Maika reviewed In the Woods by Tana French (Dublin Murder Squad, #1)

Review of 'In the Woods' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I love Raymond Chandler’s hardboiled crime novels featuring Detective Philip Marlowe. In the Woods is the first time I’ve encountered so much of what I love about those books, complete with a haunting, melancholy ending, but without the sexism and occasional racism or homophobia, and set in Dublin instead of Los Angeles. It’s a beautifully written labyrinth of mysteries, murder, and criminal investigation, interwoven by the personal and professional relationships of differently damaged humans. I found it completely engrossing and it’s just the beginning of what’s now a six-book series, so I can’t wait to read more.

Thomas Gaffney reviewed In the Woods by Tana French (Dublin Murder Squad, #1)

Review of 'In the Woods' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Very good book. Heard good things about it and picked it up, even though the mystery/police-procedural story isn't my thing. Quite liked and will definitely pick up the author's next book (The Likeness).

More of a psychological who-dun-it, then a strict this-is-how-the-police-solve-crimes case study. Also, the book does NOT follow the basic A,B,C steps of other murder stories. I was guessing, confused, and led in circles many times by the different twists and turns. Plus, the almost supernatural aspect of the aforementioned "Woods" plays with the genre and makes the book a solid read.

I'd recommend it, definitely to people who like murder mysteries, but also to people who don't.