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Reader2307

The Bat Man

Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2017

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Harry Hole is a Norwegian detective who has been sent to Australia to solve the shocking murder of a B-list Norwegian television presenter. From the start Hole can tell that something is off about this case. Something is simmering just beneath the surface. If only he could focus on the case instead of the pretty redhead he just met. If only he could focus on the case instead of being tempted to fall off the wagon.

I enjoyed this book because Hole is a flawed yet lovable character that you can not help but root for. He is intelligent and has an interesting backstory. I also enjoyed how many other characters Nesbo gave us and how dense the suspect pool was. I figured out who the killer was pretty early on but was still keen to finish the book because I wanted to see how Hole would catch them. I also really enjoyed Nesbo's vivid descriptions of Australia. Nesbo's Australia felt very well researched and also well understood.

I am late to the party with the Harry Hole series and because of this I am able to read them in order as all the books in the series have now been translated. I am aware that quite a number of loyal fans more familiar with the series are of the opinion that this is the worst book in the series and advise newbies to give it a miss. Admittedly, it's not the best detective novel I have ever read but it is entertaining and I am looking forward to watching Nesbo and Hole develop as author and character respectively.

fra7299

A tad over the top and convoluted

Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2018

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This was my first venture into the world of Harry Hole. As other reviewers have noted, there is quite a deal of talk about how The Bat, and the subsequent next in the series, Cockroaches, were less than stellar in comparison to the series as a whole.

In The Bat, Harry is dispatched to help solve the murder case of Inger Holter, a young Norwegian woman. With the backdrop of Australia, Harry and his investigative team attempt to trace down evidence and clue that lead to the identity of the murderer.

Many reviewers who dislike the book complain about the incessant asides from characters about Australian travel or culture that seem a tad too forced. While characters seemingly breaking into spontaneous monologues about myths, legends or folklore was a bit distracting, it was not my biggest complaint. My biggest complain stems from a rather lackluster leading character in Hole--who comes across as unsympathetic and without much substance-- and a rather ridiculous direction to the novel. By all means a character can have faults (in fact, this is what gives them substance), but I felt a sense of indifference to Harry the further I read into this book. As far as the direction the book takes, it ventures into an absurd level of over the top action/violence that borders on silly and a general convolutedness that seemingly takes over the novel in the final stretches. And the ending alone, I mean, come on.

Something tells me the overall negative consensus for this book could be due to either a translation issue with this book, or simply that Nesbo was trying to find his footing with this character and the series.

At any rate, as the novel wore on, I like it less and less. I’ll probably have to wait before trying to pick it up again, but I do hear good things about The Snowman.

There’s certain bleakness to The Bat, but not a bleakness that has much dimension. It’s just bleak, period.

Cupcake

The addiction, It's official now.

Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2018

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Going from book 7 to book 1 there is a noticeable difference in writing style. The Bat is nowhere near as polished or compelling as The Snowman BUT it does give some vital background info on our beleaguered protagonist and just how deep his dysfunction goes.

Nesbø's penchant for developing relationships and characterizations is here too with Birgitta, Andrew and Joseph. Harry, when he connects with someone he develops a bond, usually pretty quickly but I find that's what I like about him. It seems anomalous to a hardened cop who puts himself in the line of fire time and time again but it humanizes him, makes him relatable somehow.

Harry's been sent to Australia to liaise with Sydney police after a Norwegian girl is murdered. I've never been to Australia but the way Nesbø makes Sydney integral to the narrative was very appealing as was all the Aboriginal folklore. True, some of them seem like non-sequiturs that didn't really contribute to the plot but I can't say they weren't interesting.

The case doesn't have the panache of The Snowman nor is it as captivating as I would've liked and I'm starting to notice a pattern that I'm hoping doesn't become formulaic in the end, but I'm invested in the hot mess that his Harry Hole.

So I'm anxious to see Nesbø's writing evolve with this series.

J. Hume

Strike Out!

Reviewed in the United States on December 21, 2019

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Another reviewer said this novel is excruciating, and I agree with that description. Harry Hole is tedious and unlikeable, and the novel plods along. It was translated into English in 2012, but it was first published in 1997, and I found this book, all of the descriptions of people and intereactions between people, very dated. Many people liked this book, but I'm not one of them.

Jerry D. Rhoades

obsessed homicide cop with a dark and terrible secret in his past has become so familiar as ...

Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2017

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The trope of the tortured, alcoholic, obsessed homicide cop with a dark and terrible secret in his past has become so familiar as to elicit eye-rolling when I come across it again. But Jo Nesbo's first Harry Hole novel (although not the first released in the US) manages to rise above cliche. Harry is sent from the Oslo crime squad to sunny Australia to investigate the rape and murder of a Norwegian expatriate who was once a minor celebrity back home. There he encounters an Aboriginal police detective, a cross-dressing clown, and a winsome Swedish barmaid, among other interesting characters. Once revealed, the villain proves suitably chill-inducing, Harry battles the bottle as much as the killer, and all in all, it's a satisfying read. I've only read one other Hole novel, The Redbreast, which was frankly better than this. But this is still pretty good. Recommended.

Top reviews from other countries

Paul S

A good introduction to the Harry Hole crime stories, but not as good as some of the later novels in the series.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 20, 2017

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This is the first of the Harry Hole crime stories. While it provides a good introduction to Harry Hole, I am pleased this was not the first of the Harry Hole books I have read as I may not then have gone on to read any of the later ones, such as ‘The Redbreast’ and ‘Nemesis’ which in my opinion are much better than this one.
This story is set in Australia where Harry has been sent to participate in the investigation of a young, blonde Norwegian woman who has been murdered. Harry soon finds out that the local police would rather he was an observer than an active participant in the investigation. However, it soon becomes obvious that there is a serial killer on the loose with a penchant for young blonde women and a preference for only conversing with Harry. At this point one realises the plot is more complicated than it originally appears.
In places the story reads like a travelogue with long passages describing places visited and Aboriginal culture & folklore. In some respects this is quite clever as we view the locations through the eyes of a visitor rather than a local. However, some of the Australian characters are a little stereotyped, which I found disappointing. Harry Hole’s personality is as volcanic as that seen in the later novels and apart from the travelogue passages the story unfolds at quite a pace. There are plenty of red herrings to keep armchair detectives actively seeking clues as to the identity of the serial killer. There are also some light humorous moments that are reminiscent of what happens when tourists visit a new country for the first time.
Overall, well worth reading but many of the later books in the series are better.

Lynda Kelly

In No Rush To Read Another

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 13, 2017

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It seems Jo Nesbo is the go-to Nordic writer everybody needs to read before any other. I've read a lot more before getting to him and in fairness, enjoyed them more, too !! This story is set in Australia, which I understand isn't usual and therefore I will try the next in the series because all the stories peppered throughout got a little annoying after a while and so much was lost in translation, but not the Norwegian, the Australian !! I had to keep looking up what they were on about and that really started to irritate me !! So I have hope that future stories are less of a trudge.
Harry seems to be a little too much of a cliche for me as well. He's nothing I've not already read, really. All in all I was pretty disappointed.
It surprised me to learn that the Norwegian and Swedish languages are that similar. I couldn't find a meaning for rubio, though. He capitalised the word indigenous all the time when it isn't as a rule although Aboriginal is. White's was used in place of white at one point but that was it for errors-pretty terrific.
I was lost or confused a few times in this, however. I didn't understand why a pathologist kept calling Harry Mr Horgan, I was baffled by the halibut story and the lizard one as well. It all got very tedious. If I'd not got as far as I'd had into it I'd have packed it in.
I loved some of the characters he met along his way-Andrew, Joseph and especially Birgitta. I'll try one more though I won't be in any great rush, I'm afraid.

Mandrek Larl

Stereotyped flawed cop ticks all the boxes in weak cod anthroplogical serial killer-thriller ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 9, 2018

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I'd not read any Jo Nesbo books before so thought I'd start at the beginning and made the mistake of assuming that this book was going to be good, after all Jo Nesbo seems to have been dominating the book charts for years, but I was sadly disappointed. The central character, Harry Hole is a painting by numbers stereotypical, really unlikeable, flawed cop squared and squared again - loner, alcoholic, misogynist, fraud, liar etc etc. yes he ticks all the boxes; and while the story is a fast paced serial killer-thriller with HH chasing around Sydney and the east coast of Australia the storyline is weak, the characters and in particular the women are undeveloped; and cover to cover this reads more like a pitch for a film plot (JN must have had hopes of hitting the big bucks when he wrote this) than a finished book. It is only the Australian anthropology which rescues the story, although JN's cod-anthropological psychology brings little to the story but without it this would have been a very short book.

So all in all this is a very disappointing book; and that leaves me with a dilemma. Is this just the product of first novel nerves and inexperience, or are all the HH books this bad? Do I persevere and discover why JN consistently hits the book charts or just cut my losses now? Answers please.

Mrs Gees

Not a pleasant read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 12, 2021

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Our Book Group had picked Jo Nesbo as a novelist to be discussed. We were to read different books by him for a discussion.
At the beginning of the lockdown period I started reading Nemesis but didn’t finish it and when we had our first meeting I thought I should perhaps start off with his first book The Bat. At first I thought it might be interesting as it was set. In Australia and Herry Hole was introduced. However I grew increasingly unhappy about the story and the character of Harry Hole. I did dutifully finish reading it but could not recommend it to anyone. The Norwegian policeman was a complicated character who drank to excess and did not respect women and even the actual crime was not easy to follow. The Aboriginal characters were uninspiring and the only plus that I could give was to the revelation of the terrible way Aboriginal children were separated from their families.
I don’t think I shall be in a hurry to read any other books b him. We have not yet had our group discussion so others may well disagree with m.

Dunroving

Very disappointing, and not really Nordic Noir

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 11, 2020

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Being a big fan of Nordic Noir television and movies, I have started venturing into Nordic Noir fiction. I kept coming across the Harry Hole novels as "the" Nordic Noir books to read. How disappointed I was to read the first in the Harry Hole series. It was trite, poorly written and very amateur. What makes it Nordic Noir? Well, the author is Scandi, the murdered woman is Scandi, and the main character is Scandi. Apart from that, not much about the story was reminiscent of the feel of Nordic Noir. It was set in Australia and if anything was Australian noir.

The book seemed more like a poor attempt at Raymond Chandler. Too many implausibilities in the story - I know fiction requires us to suspend disbelief, but it still needs to make sense and be plausible.

I've read elsewhere that other books in the series are much better than The Bat, but to be honest, I don't really feel inclined to find out.

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