Review: Knife

Knife by Jo Nesbø
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Note: My first Jo Nesbo book after it was seen as quite a popular read on Goodreads and was read by fellow mystery lovers, hence why I picked this up.

Where do I start? God, where do I begin?

The cover first of all is something that is quite mysterious and alluring, in a sense of danger and anticipation of something that is not predicted nor in sight to be identified. I always love a good cover which has everything mystery written all over it. So points to that.

The plotline. Well the plotline was definitely something. I mean chasing after a killer that Harry once put behind, is out for revenge and is threatening everyone he loves, and he has to save the day again. I really love those kinds of plots where you go back to the very first case, or better yet, visit your past, just to get away from the mundane past or a present problem. It's all good in my books, so totally another star was given to it.

The main character. Well Harry Hole was something of an enigma I'd heard from previous fans of the series. Personally, I am new to this series, so going into this book with a lot of expectations was almost a headache to deal with as there was so much hype behind this novel and this series overall, that I was determined to be a fan of this author and his series as well.

But what a disappointment he turned out to be. All I got from Harry hole was his constant rebellious, childish, and an irresponsible regard for everything to do with the law and the case, and everything that was attached to him, personally. A drunkard, a law breaker, a vengeful man, a broken case overall. That's what I perceived of Harry from 140 something pages. Definitely not my type of a problem solver, or someone who saved lives in a different fashion to a doctor's.

Such a detective or a main character is usually the sign of bad things to come when things don't seem to change and you've already got such a terrible character to represent the plotline.

The background characters. So many stories, so many unnecessary plotlines added to the main plotline. It really does create a conundrum of sorts when you're trying to focus on one situation at a time. It literally does blow up in your face and not in a small "oops, my mistake." More like a "kapow, your whole plot is ruined. Muhahahah!" That is how everything went to ruin with extra plotlines.

Filler, filler, filler and killing of beloved characters. I don't understand why there has to be so much filler, especially over 100 pages worth of filler. It almost seems like half the time Harry seems to be dealing with an almost midlife crisis rather than acting like a mature, responsible adult in charge of laying down the law. There's almost zilch spotlight on the case itself, rather it's Harry, Harry, Harry. ALL THE GODDAMN TIME. Geez. And why do you have to kill off someone so close to the main character just to make a point? That's another dumb thing, I don't understand. Why must someone close be killed to make a point? Why can't something else change or be affected to make a case? WHYYYY?

A total disappointment down the drain. Sigh, so many hopes dashed. So much lost.

PS: That's why people. You should keep your head clear, no matter the banners of appreciation or words of praise reach your ears.

So, not a recommend you guys. A HARD NOT RECOMMEND.

Until the next page,

J.B


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