Irene (Verhœven series)

Irene (Camille Verhœven Trilogy #1) is a crime novel written by French novelist Pierre Lemaitre. The novel, though originally published in French in 2006, came to be translated to English by Frank Wynne [1] in 2014. It is the first book in the Camille Verhœven series by publication order but the second to be translated in English after Alex.

Irene
Cover of Irene
AuthorPierre Lemaitre
Original titleTravail soigné
TranslatorFrank Wynne
CountryFrance
LanguageEnglish
SeriesVerhœven series
GenreCrime fiction
PublisherMacLehose Press
Publication date
March 6, 2014
Media typePrint (hardcover)
Pages398
ISBN978-0-857-05288-9
Followed byAlex 

It was shortlisted [2] in the CWA International Dagger award 2014 and received positive reviews internationally.

Plot

Commandant Verhoeven is happily married, expecting his first child with his lovely wife Irène.[3] . A series of unsolved murders start to put a strain to his relationship. With his personal life in shambles, he further has to deal with the press. Then Verhoeven makes a breakthrough discovery: the murders are modeled after the exploits of serial killers from classic works of crime fiction and that the killer has killed before. With time running out, Verhoeven realizes that all along he's been the unwitting dupe in The Novelist's plans to create an original work of his own.

Reception

  • "Irène gets off to a fast start and races pell-mell to a jaw-dropping conclusion . . . Mr. Lemaitre fires away in a prose style that's like a flurry of short jabs to the solar plexus."―William Grimes, The New York Times [4]
  • "Verhoeven is a one-of-a-kind detective . . . Not for the faint of heart, this gritty thriller will appeal to fans of Chelsea Cain, for the grisly details, and Fred Vargas, for the French setting and iconoclastic sleuth."― Kirkus Reviews
  • "French literary sensation Lemaitre earned comparisons to Stieg Larsson (and a 2013 CWA International Dagger Award) with Alex, a gruesome and twisty mashup of police procedural, thriller, and psychological horror. Its newly translated predecessor might be even better . . . [Irene is] hardly predictable, as [Lemaitre] pushes the pulse-quickening plot toward an ingenious-and shocking-finale."―Library Journal

References

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