The Hunter: A Novel

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars | 12,427 ratings

Price: 19.69

Last update: 08-04-2024


Top reviews from the United States

Elise in Palm Springs
5.0 out of 5 stars Long Anticipated Sequel to The Searcher is Well Worth the Wait
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2024
This is the sequel to Tana French’s novel, The Searcher. I read that novel and eagerly hoped that we’d see Cal Hooper again in subsequent book. Cal is a retired Chicago police officer who moved to the rural west Ireland village, hoping for a quiet life. In The Searcher, Cal meets a lonely, almost feral teenager, Trey, who wants Cal’s help to find a missing brother. Cal and Trey form a tenuous bond, and when we catch up with the pair in The Hunter two years later, we find that bond has grown stronger and deeper, and a touch easier, with Cal becoming a cautious surrogate father to Trey, treading lightly so as to not stain this carefully nurtured relationship.

Both novels are rich in their imagery of the rugged Irish setting, and in illustrating how difficult it is for any “interloper” to become accepted by the town’s citizens. Each in their own way, Cal and Trey both have to constantly work to find their place in the village that is their home.

The Hunter explores the return of Trey’s father to the village. This obvious grifter, Johnny Reddy, arrives with no apology for his long absence and the hardship it’s meant for his wife and several children. He brings a get-rich-quick story of long-lost gold deposits that enthralls many gullible men in Johnny’s old circle of detractors. But both Trey and Cal are more skeptical, as are a few others. The supposed basis for the lost-gold tale is an English millionaire, who arrives to support Johnny’s scheme. This is the story that drives this novel.

As with other Tana French crime novels, while it is a story of “crime,” it’s more a novel about relationships. We see the action through Cal’s lens, and we have access to his inner thoughts and motivations. But it’s a very clever third person narrative.

Gorgeous prose. Keen insight into the human psyche. Completely satisfying. Very hard to put down. I cannot give this novel any less than a 5-star rating. I hope Tana French is busy writing her next novel. I want to keep reading her beautifully told stories for the rest of my life.
ejandress
4.0 out of 5 stars a slow burn
Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2024
Excellent writing again from Tana French. Her characters come to life and you can easily escape into this Irish village. Story is a bit slow but worth the read to an excellent ending.
LL Purcell
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and Engaging
Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2024
A true, psychological thriller firmly set in Ireland, with an engaging cast of characters I’d follow forever. Tana French nails the art of small town manipulation integrated seamlessly with the story’s setting.
Karen J. Dahood
5.0 out of 5 stars A stunning, satisfying, loving read
Reviewed in the United States on July 31, 2024
This author had been on my do not read list as she was a best seller. I have not trusted this designation until I read the first Cal Hooper novel last week and now this. I am somewhat reminded of William Kent Krueger’s novels of small town life in the mid-century Midwest in America. The Irishness of this makes it ever more fun. But there is emotional truth in every heart she includes.
Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars As good as ever
Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2024
If you are a fan of Tana French, you will not be disappointed. This book is a sequel to The Searcher, and I’d advise you read that book first, just to know the relationships between Cal, Trey, and Lena. Trey is the primary protagonist in this story, and she is a splendid character. All of the characters are fully developed; each of them is distinct and fully fleshed in the mind’s eye. There are interesting twists in the story, and the way the characters respond to those twists, individually, is fascinating. Wonderfully written and well worth the investment of your time.
Beth
4.0 out of 5 stars Not quite up to French's usual but first-rate writing, just the same
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2024
THE HUNTER is Tana French's continuation of THE SEARCHER and its story of Cal, an American retired detective who has moved to a small town in Ireland; Trey, a teenaged girl in that town who is still set on righting the wrong that was the subject of THE SEARCHER; and the rest of Cal's neighbors, most of whom made me wonder at the end of the last book why he did not just leave and still make me wonder if he will. He should.

I've read all of French's books, and they normally rate five stars. But I don't rate THE HUNTER that way for two reasons: first, unlike most of French's books, this one has a slow beginning. Second, THE HUNTER assumes you have already read THE SEARCHER and remember all the particulars of the murder in that book. I did read it but did not remember everything. This was troublesome.

But (and this is a big but) French's writing, especially her dialogue, is as first rate as ever right from the start. You'll never want to give up on this book.

So you'll read about Cal and Trey and their neighbors again, including Lena, Cal's love interest who shares his concern for Trey, and Mart, the neighbor from hell, in my opinion, who pretends to be neighborly.

But there's not much action until another murder occurs almost halfway through the book. Anyone in the town could have done it, even someone from outside the town; the victim, Rushborough, was a despicable man.

Another man the town would like to get rid of is Johnny, Trey's father, who has come back after a 4-year absence, a man who loves no one but himself. He and Rushborough had come up with a scheme to sell these people on the idea that there was gold on their land. They were almost successful.

All in all, this town does not seem like a good place to live. I don't understand why Cal doesn't just get out of there. It's a beautiful piece of Ireland but full of trouble. If French continues this series, I think she's going to have to deal with that.

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