Last year, I read Bernard Minier's The Frozen Dead and enjoyed the creepiness of the asylum in the Pyrenees and the grotesque crime that Commandant Martin Servaz must investigate--the murder of a valuable horse belonging to a French billionaire. Initially, Servaz is put out at having to investigate the death of a horse, but soon the killer escalates, the horse was a preface--a warning, a symbol. People die, the suspense increases, and disturbing elements of revenge keep the tension high.
Last week, an ARC of The Circle, Minier's next in the series, arrived in the mail, and I found myself again immersed in a taut thriller as Servaz investigates a murder in the small academic town where his daughter is enrolled at an elite institution.
Complications: the suspected murderer is the son of the woman Servaz loved in his youth and never quite gotten over; the escaped killer Julius Hirtman from the previous novel may have played a role in the death of the young teacher; a mysterious "circle" among students may put Servaz's daughter in danger....
Interspersed with the narrative of the current investigation are sections from the pov of a woman held prisoner by a twisted individual.
The characters are well-developed (I liked the inclusion of Elias and Servaz's daughter Margot and of characters from the previous novel, even if mentioned only by name); the plot moves at breakneck speed, even with the diversions of different strands; and the psychological suspense is intense. Tangled situations kept me guessing!
As in the first novel, the translator is Alison Anderson, and again, she does a great job.
ARC from Minotaur Books.
Crime/Police Procedural/Suspense. Oct. 27, 2015. 470 pages.
Well developed characters and a fast paced good plot are enough to convince me I should try this one. I am glad you enjoyed it, Jenclair.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy that the translations of Minier's books are becoming available. You know I love a good mystery!
DeleteI remember that previous book and I meant to read it. Off to see if my library picked it up. This one sounds great!
ReplyDeleteTry the first one, too! Both are very good!
DeleteYou are on a roll with great crime fiction! I love series but of course then it gets hard to keep up with so many good ones. Still doesn't keep me from adding yet another to my list.
ReplyDeleteWhen they are free, they are so hard to resist. Of course, then I must pay if I want the first ones in a series, but luckily, The Frozen Dead was NetGalley, and this one came in the mail!
DeleteOoh, I've never heard of this author, but I'm definitely going to check him out now. I love me a good psychological thriller. Thanks for the heads-up!
ReplyDeleteIf you are interested in this series, start with The Frozen Dead that introduces the characters! Strangely, I still find the death of the horse more horrifying than the deaths of the people in that novel.
DeleteSounds like a great series and that the characters are well-developed. I wonder if these books could read as standalone or should they be read in order?
ReplyDeleteI would read The Frozen Dead first. This is one of those series that has a storyline weaving through the books, rather than just familiar characters with brand new mysteries to solve.
Delete