Thank you Simon & Schuster Audio for the ALC and Gallery/Scout Press / Netgalley #partner, for the advanced copy of The Harbor in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press / Simon and Schuster Audio
Published: February 22, 2022
Summary:
From the #1 internationally bestselling author of The Butterfly House, called “brazen and original” by The Toronto Star, comes a timely, suspenseful, and darkly original new novel about a missing child and the web of lies that has threatened his life—and may prevent him from ever being found.
When fifteen-year-old Oscar Dreyer-Hoff disappears, the police assume he’s simply a runaway—a typically overlooked middle child doing what teenagers do all around the world. But his frantic family is certain that something terrible has happened. After all, what runaway would leave behind a note that reads:
He looked around and saw the knife that had stabbed Basil Hallward. He had cleaned it many times, till there was no stain left upon it. It was bright and glistened. As it had killed the painter, so it would kill the painter’s work, and all that that meant. It would kill the past, and when that was dead, he would be free.
It’s not much to go on but it’s all that detectives Jeppe Kørner and Anette Werner have. And with every passing hour, as the odds of finding a missing person grow dimmer, it will have to be enough.
My thoughts:
This is the fourth book in Katrine Engberg’s Korner and Werner series. I’ve read the previous two books that have been translated into English, though I’m not quite sure why the second book in the series has not been translated. But either way, I am absolutely loving this series and even though this book came out back in February, it was more of a too many books not enough time thing than anything else. So of course, with November being #NordicNovember, this book was a priority for me…plus the next book in the series, The Sanctuary, comes out in early 2023, and I plan on getting to that one as soon as it is available!
Once again, we have a very atmospheric and dark crime thriller. A boy has gone missing and as Korner and Werner start investigating, they end up with more questions than answers. There are plenty of suspicious characters, all who appear to be keeping secrets and this certainly keeps you on your toes, wondering who could be responsible.
In addition to the case, we also get that continued character development that I love when reading a series. Here, we see how the stress of their jobs takes a toll on their personal lives and their relationships and I appreciated that the author explored this. This is something that is real and relatable.
I love this series and am quite eager to see what happens in the next installment. As always, if you do decide to pick it up, I encourage you to read it in order, though each book does have a self-contained case so that they can be read as stand-alones, it’s the character development that builds from book to book.
Audio thoughts:
Once again, I went the audio route and I’m so glad I did…this book really translated well into audio and the narrator, Graeme Malcolm really did a great job bringing the book to life. He is so consistent with the voices and does a great job with the pacing and intonation. I hope he continues to narrate this series for as long as it goes on because I definitely plan to listen to the rest of the series.
Books in this series:
- The Tenant
- The Butterfly House
- The Harbor
- The Sanctuary – due out February 2023
