Book review: Faithful Place

By Tana French
Reviewed by Natazzz

There are crime novels that you read to pass the time and crime novels that you truly enjoy. Faithful Place (2011) by Tana French is one of the latter. Having already read her previous two novels - In the Woods and The Likeness - which I thought were both great, I was eager to get started on this one. Luckily, it did not disappoint.

Faithful Place tells the story of Frank Mackey, an undercover cop in Dublin (who was also a main character in the previous novels). Twenty years ago he planned to run away with his then girlfriend Rosie, but she didn't show up and he never heard from her again. He decided to leave home anyway and hasn't looked back since. That is, until he hears that Rosie's suitcase has been found. Frank is forced to return to the place where he grew up and get reacquainted with his dysfunctional family. Back home, Frank is soon to discover exactly what happened all those years ago.

It is your typical crime novel, but with a difference. The difference being that it is narrated really well. Just as in her previous novels, French makes you identify with her main characters and you end up feeling what they are feeling and even rooting for them. The novel is fast paced and doesn't waste pages on unnecessary details, which is always a plus. It also scores pretty good on the suspense factor, as for most of the novel I was not aware, yet very curious, as how the story would unfold.

To sum it up, Faithful Place is everything I look for in a good crime novel. It's got a good storyline, it's fast paced, suspenseful, with likeable main characters you can identify with and an outcome that it not too predictable. If you enjoy a good crime novel, you will enjoy this one!