Thriller set in NEW YORK (an exciting roller coaster of a read)

17th January 2014

The Helper by David Jackson, thriller set in New York.

A really exciting rollercoaster. Every turn of the page is an up or down, a curve and an upside down. Every character plays their part with perfect timing and consistency, effectively carrying the story forward. Jackson manages to create an atmosphere so murky that brings detective, murderer, victims and associates, in a very ironic way, to life.

Heads up: it might not allow you to sleep, you’ll want to finish it so badly. On the other hand, it might be a perfect read for insomniacs, owl people, or vampires with a thirst for crime fiction.

Okay, so Detective Callum Doyle is pretty great; unbelievably human and touchingly heroic at the same time, he is the perfect combination as a protagonist in a contemporary crime novel. We walk with him through the darkness of an unsettling New York, a New York that possibly none of the non New Yorkers have as much as imagined (or wanted to imagine), and we face distress and melancholia and even a little bit of glimmering hope in his wake… But be careful not to let go of his hand, because you might end up drifting on the ripples of his passing and you’ll have no answer to cling to when the time comes to catch the bad guy. Just trust in him: believe that he will probably, maybe not today or not tomorrow but certainly some day, understand. And keep on walking.

Now the murderer, oh, the murderer… I won’t say much about this person because I do not wish to give anything away, so I will just state the obvious: the murderer is brilliant! A perfectly rounded up character that will mortify you till the end, keeping you always on your toes; so if that’s what you like in your reading (being kept on your toes, not so much being mortified), get this book ASAP.

So now we’re left to speak about New York… okay, so, funnily enough, I picked this book the other week because I wanted to be sent to one of my other favourite cities in the world (London is the first one, but that’s a matter for another day and/or book). Little did I know that this was going to be the New York of darkness and fear… a Gotham City of the real world… but since I do love Batman and I do love superheroes and I still do love New York, there is nothing else I can say but that in this particular case, for a story of a game of cat and mouse, of police going ‘We will get you, baddie, better you count on it!’ (not actual lines of the book, just thought it sounded ad hoc), well, THIS dark and gloomy New York is a very perfect setting then! And it does work, too, to capture the brightness of the city, the enormity of it, the racial mix and the sense of moving forwards… So, if you’re looking for the hopeful New York, the Land of Freedom thing, then, no this book will not be for you; but if you’re looking for a thrill and know that you enjoy the chase and mystery and all that, then yes, this book is definitely for you!

Only one bad thing I have to say about this book: it does not have any pets in the story… I had grown quite used to the furry friends in all the other books I have gone for, so I very much missed that… It does have an adorable little girl named Amy, Detective Doyle’s daughter, who is able to bring back the hope to a distraught New York singlehandedly… or at least to her dad. She’s the sweetness the book needs to balance itself out… and she’s almost as good as a cat! (Sorry about that, couldn’t help myself, hehehe… she’s great as a character in every way, whether she’s human or feline).

So then, off I go, but if you’re picking up this book, try to start early in the day, get all comfy and whatnot, and enjoy!!

Sandra for the TripFiction Team

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