A Review: The Likeness by Tana French

Moving towards the finish line on the RIP VI Challenge, I picked up Tana French's The Likeness.  Having read the first and the third of the Dublin Murder Squad series, I had this one sitting on my shelf for quite some time and thought it was the perfect novel to help me works towards completion.

The premise: Cassandra Maddox, a leading player in the first novel, In the Woods, has decided to dive, head first, into the world of the undercover agent.  Taking the place of a murdered victim, who she almost identically resembles, Cassie must take residence in a brilliant Irish country house, with the deceased's closest friends. Cassie must maintain her role, in order to track down her killer, without forming attachments, despite the allure of the fellowship the four offer.  True to the genre, expect characters to crawl out of the wood work, and twists and turns that complicate matters to the extreme.

The novel, was, for the most part, completely unrealistic. When you begin, you'll certainly question whether or not someone, who, in every sense of the word creepy, looks just like you, could fool your closest friends or family. I'd like to believe that I have certain quirks that no one could ever recreate. However, for the purpose of the story, I was able to suspend disbelief and join the party.

There's something about French's language that is almost indescribable for me.  It's exciting and draws my attention. It's well crafted and funny. I usually don't want to put it down but almost always end up doing so just so I don't finish too soon.  The characters are highly excitable, infectious even, despite their obnoxious commentary and mostly disagreeable attitudes.  Furthermore, she's able to create unique voices that clearly define each character, making the story much more engaging.  She spends her time delicately balancing between setting up the landscape, the characters and the action, leading to an ultimately enjoyable, thrilling read.

It may not be as solid as some readers prefer, but I found it highly entertaining and quite witty.  I found that this particular title had more closure than the first or third novels in the series, which may persuade readers to pick this up instead.  While you don't have to read them in order, I find that it's probably good advice.

3 of 4 RIP VI Challenge Reads 

(Although, I think I might have just added two more considering I'm doing so well so far!) Stay tuned for my review of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, which I'll be finishing up in the very near future.)

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A Review: The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

So here it is.  Yes, I finally finished (and lived to tell about) the tome that had interested me for so long.

I picked it up for the RIP VI Challenge because it was supposedly bursting with surprises, and mysterious individuals appearing in white, and things that made me say, "holy shit, did that really just happen?!"

Ok, so while I will admit that many events were somewhat predictable and several characters made me want to throw the book across the room in you've-got-to-be-kidding-me frustration, I really enjoyed this novel.  Upon further discussion of my thoughts about the novel, I decided I'd up the 3 stars I gave it on GoodReads, and throw in a 4.

Without an English degree to allow me to provide you with complex literary terminology to back my opinion up, I'm just going to point out a couple of reasons why I really enjoyed this long-but-completely-worth-the-time read. This is by no means a summary of the events that take place in this book--to do so would ruin the surprises (if you're actually surprised) and devalue the mystery that encompasses this legendary novel.


Character development.
Laura Fairlie and Sir Percival Glyde (two of our main players) may be mere shells of what you would typically expect, especially when the story revolves around the two, Collins definitely delivers with this large cast.  (It's actually necessary in order to allow the story to progress.) While Laura, by all modern standards, needs to learn to make a decision on her own, the events that unfold would have been largely delayed, if not prevented altogether, if she just learned to open that little mouth of hers.  Sir Glyde- yeah, that guy is a joke. So let me get to my point... Count Fosco and Marian Holcombe dazzled me.  Not to mention Old Mr. Fairlie, who also gave me a little chuckle every now and then.

Count Fosco:
Count Fosco roars! The narrator doesn't spare us any of the details of this overly large man's obsession with small animals and his ability to captivate his audience no matter how transparent his motives may be.  He reminds me of jolly Old Saint Nick, you know, eating ALL the cookies and leaving a bombastic thank you note, when all you really wanted was that duvet from Anthropolgie.  This enigmatic man was a selling point in the narrative and made things much more interesting.

Marian Holcombe:
Marian is the epitome of a woman who knows her stuff.  She's intelligent, she's caring and she knows that she isn't just a woman.  No, she speaks on behalf of Laura, and even though she falls back into the ranks of the female at this time period, the lady loses her cool and manages to make the men realize that they need to start respecting or shit will really hit the fan. It's important to note that Collins was using Marion as a way to voice his difference of opinion of the status of the female in society at this time.  

Old Mr. Fairlie:
Wow.  This hypochondriac whiner made me laugh more than I thought I could stand.  He may care little for his own niece's life, but the following passage is just a little taste of what you get with this guy (and it's just too much):

Cool. Here was a matrimonial hailstorm pouting in the South of England; and I was invited, by a man with fever in every fold of his coat, to come out from the North of England, and take my share of the pelting.  I tried to put the point forcibly, just as I have put it here.  The count deliberately lowered one of his horrid fingers; kept the other up; and went-- rode over me, as it were, without even the common coachmanlike attention of the crying "Hi!' before he knocked me down. 

Imagery. 
Sure, some people dread plowing through the details of Victorian life in a place as drab as Blackwater Park (yes, Blackwater Park, the name just screams sunshine);  however, I was in the novel, living as an invisible cast member in this outrageous ensemble.
The inner dialogue of Hartwright allows me to feel the desire he's suddenly developed for Laura, almost as strongly as the day I first kissed my own love.


This novel was more than enjoyable.  Aside from the fact that I've been spoiled by cheap nighttime crime shows and other thriller novels, I recognize that this work was definitely something new to hit the scene when it was initially published.  I appreciate the writer's patience and diligence in providing a complex storyline with a large cast of characters that didn't lose focus-- a novel that remained a serious literary work 'till the very end.

Challenge totals: Book 2 of 4.  

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