Review: The Trespasser by Tana French

Antoinette Conway has her dream job as a detective on the Dublin Murder Squad. Unfortunately, the antics of the other detectives make it more of a nightmare, cases of harassment and cruel, nasty pranks in an attempt to break her down.  Just as she's close to breaking, she and her partner are assigned another case.

Aislinn Murray is a young, beautiful woman found dead in her apartment.  Her table is set for a romantic dinner so the initial belief is that her death resulted from a "date gone wrong."  Except Antoinette is certain she's seen this young woman before.

When other detectives attempt to get her to close the case quickly, to arrest the victim's boyfriend, Antoinette's suspicious are raised.   The harassment she's been experiencing puts her on edge, yet she can't put an end to the feeling that there are darker ulterior motives surrounding this case.

This is the sixth book in the Dublin Murder Squad series. I adore each and every one of these, for Antoinette’s character is one I truly enjoy.  She’s tough, rough around the edges, just wanting to advance in her career, striving to have the same opportunities as her male counterparts. She’s the only female detective in the highly regarded, highly respected murder squad, and the other detectives in the squad aren’t too pleased about it.

In this most recent case, Antoinette senses similarities between herself and the victim.  Like Aislinn, Antoinette’s father disappeared when she was young.  Aislinn seemed obsessed with finding her father, while Antoinette refused to let “daddy issues” keep her down.  Yet, this connection she feels with the victim compels Antoinette to get answers, rather than closing the case with the first suspect, neatly sweeping the crumbs under the rug.

As with French’s previous books, this most recent one is full of the “trademark” Tana French: richly defined characters, dynamic dialogue, and plenty of twists and turns! While French’s other titles had a little more depth and background to the characters, this didn’t keep me from devouring this book as quickly as possible. Highly, highly recommended. Well-worth the wait!