Frank was quite the cool operator in the last book, running the undercover project, psychologically manipulating pretty much everyone. I didn’t see it coming, somehow, that he’d be the main character, I guess because he literally isn’t a part of the murder squad. But, as usual, I needn’t have worried about this odd framing, because French is my Jam.

Diving into Frank’s past, we see him young and in love, seeking to leave his family and town behind forever with his secret girlfriend. Only, she never shows up and there’s a letter suggesting she left without him. Fast forward to “present day”. Frank uncovers some suggestion that she never left at all, and when the body is found, Frank inserts himself into a murder squad investigation, which ends up really, really effectively showing what and how Frank tics.

French reminds me of Donna Tartt in some ways, actually. Main characters always have a secret, beating inside of them that drives them in ways they’re not aware of. And the conflict is a knife to that heart every time, all while they’re trying to function. They either seek help or bleed out (emotionally, psychgolically, etc. not physically). It’s always really affecting and a lot of material to interrogate. Parallel that with the attempted solving of a crime, and you get really character driven, really believable situations that develop organically. In less deft hands the story of an undercover cop coming from a poor Irish household with an abusive father might have felt like a rehash. French always manages to take commercial ideas and put a spin and lens to them that make them feel fresh and interesting. She is Rapidly becoming a favourite author, who straddles literary and genre fiction intersections.