Nemesis

by: Jo Nesbo

Published by: Harper

Reviewed by Krista Quinn

If you are looking to read an average, run-of-the-mill mystery, this is not the book for you. If you’re looking for a psychological crime drama that is well written and has many layers, then this IS the book for you.

Nemesis, by Jo Nesbo, is the second installment in the series that follows detective Harry Hole as he solves murders. (It is the second installment but the third of series to be translated into English.) Hole is complex man who has issues with alcohol and doesn’t exactly fit in with the other Crime Squad inspectors. He is dealing with some other heavy personal matters and he is trying to solve a bank robbery/murder cold case when his ex-girlfriend Anna is murdered twelve hours after he last sees her. Harry continues to investigate the robbery/murder and begins to investigate Anna’s death, keeping his connection to her a secret.

The plot twists and turns intricately and extensively as Harry travels from Oslo to Brazil and back again, while more people die and Harry struggles to figure out what’s going on, and to gather enough evidence to crack the cases.
Ultimately the reader has a long journey ahead, and lot of paying attention to do because the novel is not always told in a linear fashion. New information is always emerging and this keeps the reader ever so slightly off-kilter and wondering what is going on.

While the characters are well-developed none of them are particularly likeable. Harry Hole is a self-loathing man who cheats on his girlfriend while she is away in Russia settling a custody battle. Hole’s adversary, Tom Waaler, is a little too intense.

One of the best things about the book is that it is set mainly in Oslo, and the setting almost becomes another character. I enjoyed reading about all of the little cultural differences between America and Norway.

Nemesis is not a page-turner–it’s too deep for that. The plot unfolds slowly, but stick it out for the entire 500 pages–it is worth the effort.

Armchair Interviews says: Read this and watch for the third installment, The Devil’s Star.

Author’s Web site: http://www.JoNesbo.com