Customer Reviews

The Rattle-Rat (Grijpstra & De Gier Mystery)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

A subtle, complex mystery by a writer of unexpected cool. I love nearly all his books, and this is my favorite. On my all-time great mysteries list.

His style is unusual and deeply comical or perhaps comically deep. You have to read him for yourself to really understand. For me it was love at first book.

Although I never did specifically figure out what a rattle rat was, this book is good fun. All of the usual characters have well drawn roles. I highly recommend it!

The illogical plot in this story is more than offset by the offbeat, unpredictable but wise interplay between the characters and the meandering plot developments. I liked it quite a bit.

The Kindle adaptation, on the other hand, was strewn with typos and strange typefaces, which was moderately distracting.

I liked this book, though I don't think it's van de Wetering's best. The quirky, offbeat protagonists (Detective Grijpstra and Sergeant de Gier) must travel to the remote province of Friesland to solve a murder. The Frisians they encounter are a mixed lot and include a rat named Eddy. The ending is far-fetched, but the humor - sometimes sly and sometimes broad, make it an enjoyable read, especially if you've ever owned a pet rat.

Van de Wetering had created a couple of human and clever detectives. In this novel, things go astray. Grijprtra is getting old and sour, De Gier is turning into a silly mistycist (although van de Wetering loves and protects him). Some dialogues are completely unbelievable, the resolution of the murder comes out of the blue, and the drum and flute duets are gone. Only the commisaris retains part of his charm. I think I will re-read "Death of a hawker" and cry.