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    The House of Dolls
    The House of Dolls
    The House of Dolls
    Audiobook12 hours

    The House of Dolls

    Written by David Hewson

    Narrated by Saul Reichlin

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Anneliese Vos, sixteen-year-old daughter of detective, Pieter Vos, disappeared three years ago. Her father's desperate search revealed nothing. One day, Laura Bakker, a trainee detective visits to tell him that the daughter of local politician, Katja Prins, has gone missing in circumstances similar to Anneliese. Vos is drawn back into the life of a detective, hoping that somewhere will be a clue to his daughter's fate…
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherW. F. Howes Ltd
    Release dateApr 10, 2014
    ISBN9781471262258
    The House of Dolls
    Author

    David Hewson

    Former Sunday Times journalist David Hewson is well known for his crime-thriller fiction set in European cities. He is the author of the highly acclaimed The Killing novels set in Denmark, the Detective Nic Costa series set in Italy and the Pieter Vos series in Amsterdam. The Killing trilogy is based on the BAFTA award-winning Danish TV series created by Søren Sveistrup and produced by DR, the Danish Broadcasting Corporation. While he lives in Kent, Hewson's ability to capture the sense of place and atmosphere in his fiction comes from spending considerable research time in the cities in which the books are set: Copenhagen, Rome, Venice and Amsterdam.

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    Reviews for The House of Dolls

    4/5

    36 ratings4 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Interesting setting, I liked the story line, but wasn't a big fan of the characters who seemed a bit shallow. I couldn't relate to them and they felt like a typical litterary personna instead of the possibiliy of being a actual human being.
    • 4/5
      The House of Dolls – Fast Paced ThrillerDavid Hewson has used all his experience to write an excellent crime thriller, The House of Dolls will take your breath away. It ticks all the boxes with a clever defective detective and his even more defective side kick cycling around Amsterdam. It is yet another clever euro-crime novel that is set at a breathless pace that touches on darkness and some places we would rather not tread but need to see the light. Hewson’s transitition from screenwriter to crime thriller reader means that he can spend more time developing the characters so that they are strong and clear, so that you get deeper characters with conviction. The plot is both imaginative and breathtaking while being original and fast paced, everything you want from a thriller.A prominant politician’s daughter goes missing and a doll with blood on it is delivered to her parents, similar to a case three years earlier when the daughter of a police officer goes missing. Since that case the police officer Pieter Vos has quit the police and living in a wreck of a barge on a canal and his ex-partner is now married to Wim Prins. The police send for Pieter to help the investigation as he has plenty of insight.Vos has an Amsterdam outsider Laura Bakker as his assistant, a complete misfit who is expecting to be sacked the following week. My small part star of the book is Sam Vos’ dog who seems to mirror the oddness of Vos with all his querks. Vos and Bakker are two different but identical people who work well together when nobody else seems to trust her.As Vos and Bakker investigate the disappearence of Wim Prins daughter they step in to a gangland war, corruption in politics and the police and a long bike ride around Amsterdam. The further Vos gets in to the investigation the bigger the web that he has to investigate. It is when the daughter of one of the gangland bosses in a dingy by his barge that the pace and danger pick up in the search for the truth. Every where Vos looks the web seems to get bigger plenty of people are avoiding telling him and Bakker the truth.It is only through the dogged determination of Vos and Bakker that the Police are able to crack the case with some surprising twists and turns. The bond develops between the pair the further in the investigation they get and there is a grudging respect for Vos from the other police officers who are hoping he is able to crack the web of lies.A great book, short chapters that are quick and punchy, well worth reading and easy to understand why Hewson is a fantastic novelist.
    • 4/5
      First time I've read this author & I noticed his other books have received very mixed reviews but I really enjoyed this, mostly due to the main character.
      The MC is Pieter Vos, a 39 year old former police detective in Amsterdam who left the job after he was unable to solve the abduction of his own daughter. It's 2 years later & Vos is living on a decrepit houseboat. It's shabby & broken, much like him. He spends his days with his dog, staring at a doll's house at the nearby Rijksmuseum, convinced it's linked with her disappearance.
      His solitude is interrupted one day by Laura Bakker, a newby cop who brings a summons from his former boss Frank De Groot. The vice mayor's daughter is missing. A ransom was delivered along with a doll, much like the one Vos received when his daughter was snatched. Would he come back & help with the investigation?
      It's a tricky situation. Besides the fact Vos is still recovering from a nervous breakdown, the vice mayor's second wife is Liesbeth, Vos' former partner. He's not sure he wants to deal with her but can't resist the chance to find new information that may lead to news of their daughter.
      Meanwhile, in alternating chapters, we follow 2 drug lords fighting for control of the city. One is due to be released from prison & it's only a matter of time before the bodies start to pile up. What begins as 2 separate stories is eventually interwoven as past secrets & alliances are slowly revealed & Vos is drawn into their bloody battle.
      It's a complex, layered story with many sub plots. The author does a good job of gradually bringing it all together with a large, diverse cast of characters, all with personal agendas. Lies, secrets, machiavellian plans, affairs, back stabbing...and that's just the politicians. At least the gangsters are more straight forward when it comes to revenge.
      You can't help but feel strongly about some of the characters. Vos is a sympathetic & likeable "hero". He's a smart, honest guy whose life was ripped apart, leaving him with a tenuous grip on his sanity. And though he still harbours some feelings for Liesbeth, she comes across as a self absorbed & ambitious harpy that he should be grateful to be rid of. Her husband epitomizes the word "sleazy" & I desperately wanted to see him get what he deserved. The only character that didn't ring true (and was just down right annoying) was Laura. Yes, she's a misfit but the way the author writes her dialogue makes her sound like a spoiled, petulant child rather than an adult in a professional career.
      The last third of the book has twists & surprises on almost every page as the horrible truths emerge. And if you thought you knew the good guys from the bad, think again. Sometimes gangsters can be more honourable than supposed law abiding citizens.
      All in all, a fast paced & intricate thriller that did just what a good book should...kept me eagerly turning the pages to see how it all shook out & who was left standing at the end.
    • 4/5
      This book was a pleasure to read. The story moved quickly along, the characters and Amsterdam were interesting, and I had no idea who done it. In fact, the ending was unusual and satisfying. I hope the author writes more for these characters, and I hope he includes a list of Dutch pronunciations next time..