The Blood Strand: A Faroes Novel Paperback – February 16, 2016

Terrific police procedural. Loved the interaction between the main two detectives. This story kept me glued to the pages. Want to read more by Chris Ould.

Murders occur even on Islands whose names are only found in crossword puzzles. This book is very reminiscent of the Wallander mysteries, similar locales (cold, remote). Great read.

So much more intriguing than I thought it would be. Creative. Thought provoking. Great word pictures. Hard to put down.

I did enjoy this although I had quite a few issues with the story/plot. I did enjoy the setting and the descriptions of the islands, the bleakness, starkness and the way the community was described.There are two themes in this novel. There is the murder, mystery police procedural component and then there is the return of the main character, Detective Jan Reyna. Jan returns to the islands to confront a past that continues to haunt him. The two themes intertwine.The primary issue I had with this novel was the "reveal" as to who the murderer was and why the crime was committed. That component just didn't gel or seem feasible to me.Also the ending just felt incomplete and was unsatisfying. I realise that it will be an ongoing series but there just didn't seem to be enough resolution in this novel.The story started strongly but just fizzled out at the end.

You get a feel for the setting. The story doesn't stall. The characters are believable. The case is solved and you end up wanting to learn more about them. The story continues.

It took me awhile to get into this book. I think the location and language made it harder than I thought. That being said, I learned a lot (which is always a bonus) and I really enjoyed the characters. The location is so much a part of the story that I found myself Googling stuff all the time. I've read all the books now so that should tell you how much I enjoyed this one. Be sure and read them in order.

A good read-interesting setting and characters

I loved this book. I was fascinated and deeply interested in the descriptions of the islands,the landscape, the weather, the people, the language. The characters were alive and three dimensional. I very much loved the third person perspective in the Faronese main character alternating with the first person perspective of the English main character. I hardly ever put this book down. I can't wait to read more from this author.