If you are like me, you read the book In the Woods, also by Tana French, and loved it. Maybe, like me, you got to the end of that book, read the last page, closed the book, and then looked around for more of French’s writing. If so, then here is your wish come true. The Likeness is the next book in what I hope is just the beginning of a series. It does stand alone really well. You don’t absolutely have to read In the Woods before you pick up The Likeness, but, readers who skip the first one will miss out on some background information.

The main character in this book is Cassie Maddox, who was one of the detectives in the last book, working on Operation Vestal, with her partner, Ryan. Now, it’s six months later, and Cassie has left the Murder Squad, to work in a department that mostly handles domestic disturbances. She and Sam, (who also worked on Operation Vestal), are very clearly a couple, and all seems to be going well. Except, of course, that Maddox is rather bored working with domestic disturbances, and her head is still full of thoughts about what happened in the last book.

Out of the blue, a murder happens, and Cassie is called to view the body, despite the fact that she isn’t working murder cases any longer. A young woman, (who might be anywhere from twenty three, to twenty six or so), has been found in an abandoned home, in the middle of nowhere. It’s clear the woman has been stabbed, and it is also obvious that someone moved the body, and took the time to lay her out, and completely disturbed the crime scene in the process.

There are two remarkable things about this dead woman. One, she is the “spitting image” of Cassie. It’s freaky how much they look alike, despite the fact that this woman is not a relative of Cassie. The other bizarre coincidence is that the ID the woman was carrying identifies her as “Alexandra Madison”, the same name Cassie used back when she was working undercover. The name Cassie was using when she, herself, got stabbed.

Much debate goes on from here. Cassie’s boss, Frank, (who got her into working undercover in the first place), wants Cassie to go back undercover, as “Lexie”, to find who the killer is. What could be more perfect, than to have the double of the murder victim return to the crime? And Cassie and “Lexie” are darn near identical. Sam, of course, is terrified that Cassie will get hurt, or even, killed, and is set against her going undercover again. Cassie takes a lot of time, weighing the odds, fighting with both Frank and Sam about her options. But, as a reader, it’s no surprise that she eventually gives in to her own curiosity, and becomes “Lexie”.

There are few suspects in this case. The best suspects are the four college students who Lexie lived with. Daniel is calm, controlled, and the one who inherited the house they all live in. Abby is cute, and brilliant. Justin is sweet, and nervous, and gentle. And Rafe is the life of the party, and stunningly handsome. The five of them, (including Lexie), are tighter than most friendships ever become. They are intimate in ways that even most families are not. They all spend nearly every waking moment together, in shared activities. They all lean their heads on each other’s shoulders, and prop their feet in each other’s laps. They even share drinking glasses. There is no television in the house, and they all read books together, or play cards, or fix up the house. They seem incredibly content, and mostly ignore the rest of the college, (and the town it resides in), who strongly dislike the odd quintet.

French has made each member of this little family absolutely fascinating. I found myself thinking about this group when I was at work, or driving, or otherwise not able to read the rest of the book. What would they be doing, right now, if they were real? How much do they really know about Lexie’s death? What would make them do that, when they seem so happy together? I wondered what it would be like to be a part of that idyllic, self-created, family unit. It seemed peaceful. I wanted to go explore the huge house with them, and see what treasures could be uncovered. One of the marks of a truly great book, in my opinion, is if I find myself thinking about “the world” inside the book long after I stop reading. This book captured more of my attention than most books do, and, with how much I read, that is no easy feat to accomplish.

Cassie starts off her undercover work simply hoping that no one finds out that she isn’t really “Lexie”. Slowly, and without her even realizing it, Cassie finds herself actually becoming Lexie. She craves the serenity, the security, and the stability the small group brings to each other. She also starts wondering about just who “Lexie” really was, and what she would want Cassie to do. Was Lexie trying to tell her something? Could she give Lexie some peace, if she finds out what she wants? Before she knows it, Cassie has lost her objectivity on this case, which Frank is more than happy to point out. But, Cassie doesn’t think so, and continues on. Things become more complex from here, both within the case, and outside it. Lines are crossed, motives are muddied. The books builds up to a superbly intense ending, that leaves the reader wondering, right up until the last second, what will happen next. By the end, most questions are answered, and the reader gets a little of the “what happened next?” that I know I was wondering about. I look forward to more books by Tana French.

In the 1980’s, three best friends, all twelve years old, go into the woods adjacent to their Dublin neighborhood. Two are never to be found again. The third, Adam Ryan, returns covered in blood, and in a state of shock. What happened to the two missing children? No one knows.

Twenty years later, the body of another twelve year old is found, in the exact same woods. The girl is found lying on top of an altar stone, in the middle of an active archeological dig. No one knows what happened to this girl, so detectives Rob Ryan and Cassie Mattox are investigating. Rob has a secret, that only his partner Cassie knows. He is actually Adam Ryan, the boy who emerged from the woods all those years ago.

The story lines in this book branch off and intertwine, separate, and come back together again in unexpected places. It’s a forrest of details. Ryan is trying to remember just what happened in the woods when he was twelve, while working on this new case at the same time. In the process, he is slowly losing his mind. Cassie and Ryan are trying to keep their superiors from discovering exactly who Ryan really is, to avoid getting thrown off the new case. There is a deep friendship developing between Cassie and Ryan, and for much of the book, things kind of hang in the air, waiting to bloom or wither.

Then you have the new case. The body turns out to be Katy Devlin, a local “celebrity”, known because she is an amazing ballet dancer, who was about to attend a specialized school for dance. Many of the details about the way her body was found are questionable, making the case that much tougher to solve. Katy’s father is involved in a group that is trying to prevent the local government from putting a roadway through the woods, directly over where the archeological site sits on. There is a lot of tension between those who want the roadway, and those who are opposed to it, and this makes everything more complex. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Every new lead, each new clue only makes things more tangled. I had no idea what was coming next, or what to believe, until the very end.

Lurking beneath all of this, is something dark, unnamed, and sinister. Is there something supernatural in the woods, or is it just a figment of the imagination of the people who live near it? Or, is it just in Ryan’s mind?

I really enjoyed the way French writes. She paints a picture of the perfect summer day at the beginning, which completely drew me in. She describes everything in the book so well, from the way the sky and the woods looked, to how the cigarettes so many of the characters smoked smelled, to how hot or cold the temperature in the rooms was. I could almost hear the difference between Ryan’s British private school accent, and everyone else’s variety of Irish brogue. You feel like you are there, sitting on Ryan’s shoulder, living it all right along with him. Very compelling.

Readers who are looking for a thick mystery to dive into will love this book. I happen to really enjoy the Irish and British point of view the story takes place in, but, I can see where some American readers who only read books by American authors might have some difficulty assimilating at first. Even so, keep reading, it’s totally worth the mild culture shock. If you love French’s writing as much as I did, you will be delighted to know that she has another book out soon, called The Likeness, which I am dying to read.