Nemesis

By: Jo Nesbø

Narrated by: Thor Knai

Captured on closed-circuit television: A man walks into an Oslo bank, puts a gun to a cashier’s head, and tells her to count to 25. When he doesn’t get his money fast enough, he pulls the trigger. The young woman dies—and two million Norwegian kroner disappear without a trace.

After a drunken evening with his former girlfriend, Anna Bethsen, Police Detective Harry Hole wakes up at home with a headache, no cell phone, and no memory of the past 12 hours. That same day, Anna is found shot dead in her bedroom, making Hole a prime suspect in an investigation led by his hated adversary, Tom Waaler.

Meanwhile, the bank robberies continue with unparalleled savagery, sending rogue detective Hole from the streets of Oslo to steaming Brazil in a race to close two cases and clear his name. But Waaler isn’t finished with his longtime nemesis quite yet.

©2002 Jo Nesbø (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"Nesbo manages the unlikely feat of exploring the inner life of his lead character in the thorough and compelling manner one associates with, say, Ruth Rendell, while at the same time juggling multiple, interlocking plot strands as dexterously as David Hewson. No doubt about it: Nesbo belongs on every crime-fiction fan’s A-list." ( Booklist)

Unwinding story to the end

What did you love best about Nemesis?

I am enthralled by the way Jo Nesbo unreels a story from start to finish with barely a hint of

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Yes of course. All of the books in this series do that, by winding back and forth and up and down. You have to stay on your toes to keep up.

Have you listened to any of Thor Knai’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No and actually I prefer Robin Sachs to do the performance for the Harry Hole series. Thor was ok, but Robin Sachs really brings it to life.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Neither- It is a book that just leaves you wanting more.

Any additional comments?

For some reason I cannot find a book 6 in this series. It skips right from Book 5 to Book 7 & 8. Is there a book 6 that may have been written by someone else or am I just overlooking something?

Great book, monotone reading

What three words best describe Thor Knai’s performance?

I really liked the book, but Mr. Knai's performance left something to be desired. He was very monotone in his reading, and the character voices were not differentiated enough to be able to follow back and forth dialogue very well.

Not Nesbo's Best

Difficult to follow. Seemed a bit convuluted. Only finished due to past novels. If I had listened to this book first, I would not have listened to another of his books.

Still undecided, but driving on.

I'm still not a fan of the main character, Harry Hole (pronounced like Hoola); and BTW, I'm not sure if the pun is intended or not. After all, the books were originally written in Norwegian.

There must be something here, 'cause I keep using my credits on this series. For those who don't know, Harry is a bit damaged as a human being, but his heart is in the right place. If you are a fan of detective fiction, think Jesse Stone.

The story lines are good to maybe even clever, so I'll give the next in the series a go. I enjoyed the narration in this one. I wasn't captivated by Thor Knai, but the work is easily competent or better. It's not at all necessary to experience the series in order, at least up to this point. There are a couple of references to earlier cases, but nothing that would be a spoiler for the earlier books or prevent your enjoyment of this one. So, if this sounds like your thing, pick any of the series up to this point, and give Nesbo a try.

Great, but why changing the narrator

Great story as always by Nesbo, but I would have liked to have Robin Sachs or John Lee as a Narrator ... as in the former books

Texas Drawl?

Would you listen to Nemesis again? Why?

The narration is poorly directed. I've listened to other Jo Nesbo books and loved them. The previous narrator used a Norwegian accent when appropriate. This narrator here has given a Texas drawl to one of the characters??? So no, I wouldn't listen again, not because of the story though.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Harry for sure.

Always interesting! Keeps you guessing!

Met my expectations. Narrator did a great job. Sometimes hard to keep up with the names because they are from another country.

POOR NARRATOR

American narrator does not fit with novel. I have grown accustomed to the Norwegian narrator

The Nemesis

I really liked this book except for the narrator. The previous Jo Nesbø books I read/listened to had much better narrators and the narrator really enhances my enjoyment of the story. I look forward to ‘reading’ the next book in the Harry Hole series

Very poor performance

The narration was not as good as other books by the same author.
It was mainly mono tone and difficult to follow.
The story was very good undermined by performance