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I like reading. I like going through a (self-imposed) meticulous process of finding and researching just the right book for any occasion - be it a long flight, a vacation, or just reading at home. There is a book for all moods. I would also like to mention here that my devil’s advocate in this is this phenomenal app called Goodreads. If you are an ardent book reader and you haven't heard of this app, you are honestly truly missing out. I do not think there is any book, any volume, any series, that I will pick up without checking its rating on Goodreads. (The ratings are user defined and are extremely accurate - so any book with a rating over four is bound to be incredible - by all standards etc.) Anywho, I digress - lets return to Tana French.
So I first heard about Tana French from Goodreads (big surprise there :p). She is a Dublin based author who won the 2008 Edgar Award for Best First Novel ('In the Woods') and a series of other awards. And her books have constantly received top accolades from all across the globe. So it goes without saying that I was intrigued enought to put in that request to get her book from my local library. And boy was I hooked!
To start with 'In the Woods' is truly one of the best psychological thrillers I've read in a while. (It was so intriguing that I couldn't stop myself from googling for days on end reading spark notes about the story etc.). Tana French has currently written four books all revolving around the chronicles of the Dublin Murder Squad. Let this whole book series thing not phase you out. This isn't about cheesy sequels and continuing love sagas and the rest of the shenanigans that follow most series books. Each of her books is a first person narrative of each of the characters - which brings me to the next point. The characters!
To say that she has done a good job with the characters would be an understatement. She has massaged each character, their quirks, traits, and nuances within the fabric of the readers mind. So you'll love Cassey, you'll be constantly amazed by Frank, you'll adore Sam, and Rob - let’s just not say much about him :p Very few authors have such a knack for embedding fictional characters in a readers mind. You cry for their strife, you feel for their pain, you laugh at their triumphs, you get frustrated at their helplessness. Simply beautiful.
My second Tana French accolade would go to her writing. Its rare to come across such absolutely beautiful prose - such poetic writing even. She has a way of swirling words and placing them just right so that they come out beautifully and written in a way with such references as one can never imagine. Very hard to describe but if you pick up one of her books, you'll get what I mean.
And my third and final tribute goes out to her stories. Simply put, they are wow with a capital W. I am still to comprehend how she came up with the story for The Likeness (her second book). And not only did she churn up an incredible story, but she churned up incredible characters and incredible story writing to accompany that. Talented, much?!
So here I am - an eternal Tana French fan - down with her first two books and currently on her third. Already awaiting starting her fourth and have never been more pleased. Hope this motivates some of you readers out there to pick up one of her copies, you will not be disappointed ;)
