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Poet Ocean Vuong's debut novel is a shattering portrait of a family, a first love, and the...
Reckless Deceptions (Dallas after Dark #3)
7.0
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DESIRE WITH NO LIMITS Erica Keeley has always been willing to break the rules to catch a...
Adult Romance Suspense
The Brilliant Death
7.8
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For Teodora DiSangro, a mafia don’s daughter, family is fate. All her life, Teodora has hidden...
Fantasy young adult fantasies
The Splendor Before the Dark: A Novel of the Emperor Nero
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Ascending to the throne was only the beginning… Now Margaret George, the author of The Confessions...
English Pastoral
8.0
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As a boy, James Rebanks's grandfather taught him to work the land the old way. Their family farm in...
The Silence In Between
9.0
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Imagine waking up and a wall has divided your city in two. Imagine that on the other side is your...
Historical fiction Germany WW2 East/ West Berlin The Berlin Wall
The Echo Chamber
10.0
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What a thing of wonder a mobile phone is. Six ounces of metal, glass and plastic, fashioned into a...
Satire
Hunger and Thirst
10.0
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1987: After a childhood trauma and years in and out of the care system, sixteen-year-old Ursula...
Confessions
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I was at a time in my life where I got to thinking more about people's choices – how everything...
Historical fiction
Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Chestnut Man in Books
Mar 24, 2019
And if the cover doesn't do it for you, the story certainly will. It does make for uncomfortable reading at times given the subject matter but it is a story about a serial killer so some gruesome descriptions of the crimes shouldn't come as too much of a surprise.
The plot is gripping, dark and thrilling and the pace of the book is ideal with a seamless mix of murder, politics and police procedure all wrapped up in a perfect psychological thriller package. I actually don't normally like what is called Scandi-noir after having previously tried and failed to read one by a very successful author but this one is excellent.
The characters are fantastic - I know it's a good book when I can see the characters as real people and imagine who would play them if the book were made into a film or TV series - the Danish actor, Kim Bodnia, from The Bridge (Bron/Broen) and Killing Eve would be perfect for the role of Hess.
This is the debut novel by this author, although he has written the highly acclaimed series "The Killing", and a very accomplished debut it is and my thanks must go to the publisher, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph, via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review.