Tana French

Reader Comments about THE LIKENESS

Penguin
ISBN: 9780143115625
(May 26, 2009)

Here are comments from our group of Advance Readers about Tana French's THE LIKENESS.

Candace from Rapid City, SD

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
Yes, I read IN THE WOODS.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
Patricia Cornwell, Kathy Reichs, John Sandford, Rhys Bowen, Douglas Preston/Lincoln Child, and John Dunning.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
I enjoyed the book. It was a little slow to start with, but after the first couple of chapters I couldn’t put it down. It was fascinating story and the characters were well developed. This could be read as a stand-alone novel but there was some history about the main character, Cassie Maddox, that was introduced in the previous book. It would have been confusing for someone who had not read IN THE WOODS. I would recommend reading that one before this.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
Yes.

Frankie from Mobile, AL

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
This is the first Tana French book that I have read.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
I have enjoyed books by Harlan Coben, Mary Higgins Clark, Sue Grafton, Patricia Cornwell and Carlos Ruiz Zafón, among others.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
I really enjoyed THE LIKENESS. It kept me guessing and, of course, I kept thinking about how dangerous it would be to try and impersonate someone living in such close quarters with others.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
Absolutely. I will probably go back and read her first book.

Heather from Crystal Lake, IL

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
I have read IN THE WOODS, Tana's first novel.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
My favorite mystery author is Harlan Coben, but I have read plenty of others: James Patterson, Stephen King, Karen Rose and Heather Graham, to name a few.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
I liked THE LIKENESS and I really like the character Cassie, although I was hoping Rob was more involved in the book. He was my favorite character from IN THE WOODS. However, I did really like IN THE WOODS much better. I was much more intrigued by it and thought there were a few slow parts throughout the middle of THE LIKENESS that didn't really hold my interest.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
I would LOVE to read more by Tana. IN THE WOODS is now one of my favorite books.

John from Augusta, GA

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
No, but after reading THE LIKENESS I purchased IN THE WOODS.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
Stieg Larsson, Charles Finch and Mark Mills.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
I enjoyed this mystery very much. Ms. French possess skill in developing the plot, characters and setting. Ms. French presents a unique plot in which the protagonist is called to a crime scene in which the victim, a mirror image of her, also possesses an alias, the protagonist has used during previous undercover work. The author kept you guessing until almost the very end of the book.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
Yes.

Jon from Chapel Hill, NC

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
I previously read IN THE WOODS by Tana French, which I thought was fantastic.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
Some other mystery authors I read are: Ken Bruen, Denise Mina, Donna Leon, George Pelecanos, Dennis Lehane, Alan Furst, Don Winslow, Daniel Woodrell, Craig McDonald, Theresa Schwegel, Marcus Sakey, Lee Child, and Kate Atkinson.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
I thought THE LIKENESS was an outstanding book. Set six months after the end of IN THE WOODS, again in the Dublin area, Cassie goes undercover as the murder victim at University. I at first thought the plot was a bit far-fetched (the murder victim being a identical likeness of Cassie Maddox), however I was soon mesmerized by the quality of the writing. Honestly, the plot became almost secondary because I was so mesmerized by the brilliant writing. Those who consider mystery writing low brow only need to read Tana French’s two novels, and I predict they will come away with a new respect for the genre.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
I would read the next Tana French novel in a heartbeat. Obviously she is a rising star in the mystery community and deserves a huge audience.

Kristen from Lowell, MA

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
No, I have not, although her book IN THE WOODS was on my list of books I wanted to read.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
Mary Higgins Clark, Tami Hoag, Val McDermid, Patricia Cornwell, and Jeffery Deaver, but there are many more that I want to read.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
It captivated me from the beginning sentence and took me on a wonderful ride that had me holding my breath until the end.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
Judging from reading THE LIKENESS, it would be an absolute yes!

Misty from Chicago, IL

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
No.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
This is really one of the first full mysteries that I've read. Although, I have read some J.D. Robb and Charlaine Harris.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
I truly enjoyed this book. It really drew me in. The author has a wonderful writing style that just captured my attention. The character development was fantastic. I had conflicting emotions when it came to whether I liked Cassie Maddox, but I feel that really good authors evoke emotions, good or bad from readers. I feel that I may have understood something more, had I read IN THE WOODS, but I think this book stands alone very well.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
I would.

Sandi from Monroeville, PA

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
Yes, I read IN THE WOODS when it came out. I enjoyed it very much, but did find my interest waning about halfway through the book. It picked up again and I finished it. I thought it was a good story but it did lag at times.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
You really don’t want a whole list do you? I’ll name just a few. Bill Pronzini, Marcia Muller, William Kent Krueger, Steve Hamilton, Peter Robinson, Jonathon King, Simon Beckett, and Deborah Stone. These are just some I have on my bookshelves now, but I can’t remember all of my favorite authors as many are out on loan or are shelved at the library.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
I just finished it last night and I loved it! It is a book made for longtime, luxurious reading. I did not want to rush through it, but experience all her words and the ability to put me in the story. This was even better than N THE WOODS, and I came to like Cassie more in this book than the last. I was sad to finish it and now need to look at my TBR stack for the next book to read. Her words were fantastic and I wish I knew these people. I did race through the last 100 pages because I wanted to see what would happen.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
Absolutely!

Josephine from Allentown, PA

Have you previously read a book by Tana French?
No.

What other mystery authors do you usually read?
James Patterson, Linda Howard, Andrew Gross and J. A. Jance.

What did you think of THE LIKENESS?
To be honest, it is taking me awhile to get into the story. I like books that grab me with the first chapter.

Would you ever read a future book by Tana French?
I really don’t think so.