"When the high school in the small Norwegian village of Fredheim becomes a murder scene, the finger is soon pointed at seventeen-year-old Even. As the investigation closes in, social media is blaze with accusations, rumours and even threats, and Even finds himself the subject of an online trial as well as being in the dock … for murder?
Even pores over his memories of the months leading up to the crime, and it becomes clear that more than one villager was acting suspiciously … and secrets are simmering beneath the calm surface of this close-knit community.
As events from the past play tag with the present, he’s forced to question everything he thought he knew. Was the death of his father in a car crash a decade earlier really accidental? Has his relationship stirred up something that someone is prepared to kill to protect?
It seems that there may be no one that Even can trust.
But can we trust him?"
Based on the previously published YA thriller, 'Killerinstinkt' and translated by Kari Dickson, Enger credits his wife for giving him the lightning bolt idea of writing two books about the same story. The first became Killerinstinkt, the second is 'Inborn' the adult crossover.
I haven't read Killerinstinkt but can see how Even would make a great lead character in both formats. In Inborn, Even and his courtroom setting became the narrator, leading you through the past events. Even's sections delivered killer (excuse the pun) one-line endings sucking you into reading the next chapter without even realising it. I loved how the book drew you in and shifted your expectations as you turned page after page. I actually went back to the beginning at one point just to check the wording as I had made assumptions at the start of the book that turned out to be wrong. Deliberate move Enger?
I guessed (part) of the ending pretty early on. I actually turned the page down so I could see if I was right later in the book (I know, folding pages, I apologise). I was right, but not totally and it didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book. There were so many twists and turns that I half changed my mind during just about every chapter - very cleverly written!
One of my favourite characters was policeman Yngve, and I thought Enger dealt with his grief beautifully. Yngve wasn't an 'on the edge cop' that he could so easily have been and I found his ending beautifully hopeful. Unexpected in a Scandi crime novel.
Social media was a strong presence in the book almost becoming another character in the story. The added complexity of teenagers gossiping, social media 'truths' and videos streaming must be hellish to contend with (both as a writer and as an investigating policeman.) Yet this is now real life and it's great that authors are starting to incorporate it into thrillers.
Despite the gritty plot there were moments of humour and even a reference to Six Stories! Did you spot it? One thing I did find surprising was how easily Ida seemed to disappear from the story. I really thought after her promise/threat to Even, that Mari's best friend would push things further and make life a whole lot worse for him. She didn't, unless I missed it? This slight loose end however didn't spoil things in a story line already jammed full of intrigue and secrets.
All in all it's a brilliant cross over with strong lead characters and a plot that kept on unravelling right to the end. All your assumptions will be wrong and you will wonder just exactly how many skeletons those closest to you have in their closets.
You did right to listen to your wife Enger. What has she come up with next?
My thanks got to Orenda Books via Anne Cater's Random Things Through My Letterbox website who provided me with a copy of the the book in exchange for an honest review.
Even pores over his memories of the months leading up to the crime, and it becomes clear that more than one villager was acting suspiciously … and secrets are simmering beneath the calm surface of this close-knit community.
As events from the past play tag with the present, he’s forced to question everything he thought he knew. Was the death of his father in a car crash a decade earlier really accidental? Has his relationship stirred up something that someone is prepared to kill to protect?
It seems that there may be no one that Even can trust.
But can we trust him?"
Based on the previously published YA thriller, 'Killerinstinkt' and translated by Kari Dickson, Enger credits his wife for giving him the lightning bolt idea of writing two books about the same story. The first became Killerinstinkt, the second is 'Inborn' the adult crossover.
I haven't read Killerinstinkt but can see how Even would make a great lead character in both formats. In Inborn, Even and his courtroom setting became the narrator, leading you through the past events. Even's sections delivered killer (excuse the pun) one-line endings sucking you into reading the next chapter without even realising it. I loved how the book drew you in and shifted your expectations as you turned page after page. I actually went back to the beginning at one point just to check the wording as I had made assumptions at the start of the book that turned out to be wrong. Deliberate move Enger?
I guessed (part) of the ending pretty early on. I actually turned the page down so I could see if I was right later in the book (I know, folding pages, I apologise). I was right, but not totally and it didn't spoil my enjoyment of the book. There were so many twists and turns that I half changed my mind during just about every chapter - very cleverly written!
One of my favourite characters was policeman Yngve, and I thought Enger dealt with his grief beautifully. Yngve wasn't an 'on the edge cop' that he could so easily have been and I found his ending beautifully hopeful. Unexpected in a Scandi crime novel.
Social media was a strong presence in the book almost becoming another character in the story. The added complexity of teenagers gossiping, social media 'truths' and videos streaming must be hellish to contend with (both as a writer and as an investigating policeman.) Yet this is now real life and it's great that authors are starting to incorporate it into thrillers.
Despite the gritty plot there were moments of humour and even a reference to Six Stories! Did you spot it? One thing I did find surprising was how easily Ida seemed to disappear from the story. I really thought after her promise/threat to Even, that Mari's best friend would push things further and make life a whole lot worse for him. She didn't, unless I missed it? This slight loose end however didn't spoil things in a story line already jammed full of intrigue and secrets.
All in all it's a brilliant cross over with strong lead characters and a plot that kept on unravelling right to the end. All your assumptions will be wrong and you will wonder just exactly how many skeletons those closest to you have in their closets.
You did right to listen to your wife Enger. What has she come up with next?
My thanks got to Orenda Books via Anne Cater's Random Things Through My Letterbox website who provided me with a copy of the the book in exchange for an honest review.
Thanks so much for your Blog Tour support today x
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