The Secret Place, Tana French, 2014

The first book that I’ve read by this highly touted mystery writer whose characters are from the Dublin Murder Squad.  Very long, very detailed, and I had to force myself through the middle 200 pages of this 452 pager, but at the end of the day, I really liked it.  Strong character portraits, interesting and surprisingly believable twists in the plot, and an excellent literary style combined to make this a fine addition to my list of ‘gotta reads’.  Stephen Moran and Conway, the detectives; Julia, Holly, Selena and Rebecca; Joanne, Gemma, Allison, and Orla; and finally poor, unsuspecting Chris Harper; not to mention McKenna the headmistress and various nuns and teachers.  Real strength here are the characters and the plot!