The Hunter
By Tana French
- Release Date: 2024-03-05
- Genre: Mysteries & Thrillers
Description
A New York Times Bestseller • A New York Times Notable Book of 2024 • A New York Times Best Crime and Best Thriller Novel of 2024 • A Washington Post Best Thriller of 2024 • An NPR, New York Post, Chicago Sun-Times, and Globe and Mail Best Book of 2024 • A Wall Street Journal, Parade, and AirMail Best Mystery Book of 2024 • An Elle Best Mystery and Thriller Book of 2024
“Extraordinary.”—Maureen Corrigan, The Washington Post
“Hailed as the queen of Irish crime fiction, French spins a taut tale of retribution, sacrifice, and family.” —TIME
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Searcher and “one of the greatest crime novelists writing today” (Vox), a spellbinding new novel set in the Irish countryside.
It’s a blazing summer when two men arrive in a small village in the West of Ireland. One of them is coming home. Both of them are coming to get rich. One of them is coming to die.
Cal Hooper took early retirement from Chicago PD and moved to rural Ireland looking for peace. He’s found it, more or less: he’s built a relationship with a local woman, Lena, and he’s gradually turning Trey Reddy from a half-feral teenager into a good kid going good places. But then Trey’s long-absent father reappears, bringing along an English millionaire and a scheme to find gold in the townland, and suddenly everything the three of them have been building is under threat. Cal and Lena are both ready to do whatever it takes to protect Trey, but Trey doesn’t want protecting. What she wants is revenge.
From the writer who is “in a class by herself,” (The New York Times), a nuanced, atmospheric tale that explores what we’ll do for our loved ones, what we’ll do for revenge, and what we sacrifice when the two collide.
Reviews
Love this author.
5By Third amigoHer writing took me a bit but when it grabbed it became an obsession. Sleep became unimportant. Cal is character so rich with a self imposed code of right and wrong. His legacy maybe what makes you want to read more to see where this goes.Beautiful Description and a compelling story
5By Gary MankoTana French’s The Hunter is a slow-burning, atmospheric sequel to The Searcher, set in the fictional Irish village of Ardnakelty. The novel follows retired Chicago cop Cal Hooper, his young protégé Trey Reddy, and his partner Lena as they navigate a tense situation sparked by the return of Trey’s estranged father, Johnny, and a dubious gold-mining scheme. The story delves into themes of revenge, loyalty, and the murky morality of small-town justice. French’s writing features lyrical prose, rich character development, and vivid depiction of the Irish countryside. The novel focuses more on relationships and the rhythms of rural life than on traditional mystery elements, with Trey emerging as the emotional core of the story. I appreciated the layered storytelling and careful character development as well as how this story seamlessly picks up from where The Seeker left off. Overall, The Hunter offers a contemplative exploration of human nature and community dynamics and is a wonderful depiction of how the population of a small agrarian Irish town ebbs and flows together. I loved this book!Fairly good read
3By Overt ReaderThis is a nice follow up book to the Searcher and fairly entertaining but didn’t pull my interest in completely. Some sections of the book weren’t realistic and I found myself skipping paragraphs. I’m glad I read this book but wanted to be entertained more.Good story
5By JudeTheArtistRead the two Cal Hooper books in order. Everything in the first book really sets the stage for the second.Cozy, murder mystery
5By njmobileI love this series set in a small Irish village. The characters come alive.Transported
5By ccicatididI read books to escape and this one takes me to a small place. Well it is a big place to those who live there and navigate the interesting and complex dynamics. I loved this book . The language of the area is beautiful.The Hunter
4By ReadingbytheseaI have read all her books, I tell everyone if your looking for a look mystery interesting characters read her books. I like the story and the characters. I’m giving it only 4 stars, the reason for this, her other stories had great twist, the twist on this one was no big surprise.A Gem
4By LucylwwThis is the sequel to The Searcher, and it’s a gem. The problems I had with The Searcher (see my review) are nowhere in evidence. We again meet Cal Hooper, a retired Chicago cop who has moved to a tiny village in Ireland. The girl, Trey, who he took under his wing previously is now 15; her father, a wastrel, has returned to town to run a scam. When his accomplice is murdered, Trey plans to use the murder to exact a revenge for crimes against her family. The Hunter has a taut and focused plot that proceeds at a slow burn, only to erupt into an extraordinary sequence of events that leads to a climax and denouement I didn’t see coming. Who committed the murder? We find out, but this is no run-of-the-mill murder mystery; its focus on the mysteries and secrets within Cal, Trey and the entire Irish community (village, farms, mountain people) open out the story and give it psychological and philosophical dimensions. The community itself is like a living organism, whose needs must be met. The Hunter lacks the thrills associated with the big brash doings of French’s Dublin Murder Squad, and I confess to missing that larger canvas of French’s earlier works, but The Hunter is an excellent read.The Hunter
1By reader100017Dull as ditchwater.Fantastic
4By Auggie's ManThe writing was incredible, especially bringing in the Irish ways of speaking and vocabulary. The characters were exceptional and the plot held many surprises. Great book!Thoroughly Enjoyable
5By Mimi M. 56Wonderful, memorable characters and a great story to boot. Who could ask for more?!Saw in the library
5By Res4221Loved this book had no idea about it but really enjoyed the writing and the characters I felt very vested in the the storyThe Hunter
5By jmcd readerThis book is a long delicious read. The dialect is so intriguing and it allowed me to savor the characters more fully. I hated to see it end.Fast read
4By carocrossLove the characters. Unexpected story. Can’t wait for the next one to be written.Great Character Development
5By Hunter_97Really a well-written book; an excellent sequel to “The Searcher.” Enough surprises to make me not want to put it down. When it ended, I was sad. It could have gone on forever.The Hunter by Tana French
5By az oA terrific story with compelling characters in a small rural town in Ireland. The dialogue is very enjoyable.Waste of time. Nothing worth reading
1By Francis 2024Slow and boring.Always a great read
5By MSDWGAWTana French never disappoints.A Who Dun It, but so much more
5By JAB0401I am just overwhelmed by this book. It’s classified as a mystery and you know there will be a body, but it surpasses other books in this category. It’ll make you want to continue read it to find out the “why”, even more than the “who”. Although, finding out the “who “ was worth the wait. At no point did I know what was going to happen next. I’m having a hard time describing it. The best I can say it that the plot follows the inner workings of a small community, much as Edith Wharton, Jane Austen, and Dennis Lehane did (in Small Mercies). I suggest you read The Searcher beforehand, since it begins the story with the same characters. I’m hoping that the author will continue the storyline, making this a trilogy.
