What a great novel that is about the end of the cooperation of Grijpstra & De Gier in this interesting novel that is basically a showdown between the commissaris and his boyhood friend that chose for money and the better things in live and thus a life of crime.

A thunderclap preceded sudden hard-driving rain, blotting out the shots, two significant little bangs compared to the divine anger burst forth, booming in splendor. When the rain fell, Ijsbreker fell too

And so open a book about murder and corruption. That seems to take over the Amsterdam police force. A few cases get closed and some ignored because some money exchanges hands. When the commissaris returns from vacation he wants some cases re-opened and this not very well accepted. So while the commissaris gets investigated and sergeant the Gier is suspended and Grijpstra on sick leave they actually continue the investigation against a foe of the commissaris from his youth. His dark morality versus the righteousness of the good cops.

It is an interesting tale in which we see de Gier struggling against the bounds of his own morality which sends him at the end on a path of revenge and to the other side of the world. Grijpstra gets a new sergeant, Karate & Ketchup have made detectives and turtle still lives in the garden.

I had not read this book before so that changes at the end of the book took me by surprise but still felt good. The characters as written by van De Wetering have seen growth in the personalities from the first book onward and what happens at the end of this book feels right. The crusade this time is inevitable a tale about the commissaris and less about Grijpstra & De Gier but that is fine.

Janwillem van de Wetering writes interesting stories about crime and punishment that are less black and white than the average crime writer. You can recognize the zen Buddhism background of the writer and it gives the stories something special.

Looking forward to reading the next one.

This was a good book. I liked the characters and the writing style of the author. I had read the 1st and 2nd books in the series but they were very slow and I did not enjoy them however it appears that over time and with experience Van de Werering's style got more sophisticated and the story was good. The book is more a thriller than a mystery as the killer is revealed early in the book and the rest of the story is spent trying to catch him. The twist that I liked is that the villain has the edge and the police officers are at a disadvantage because their official powers are reduced and their lives are in jeopardy while the killer is able to manipulate the system. I liked the characters and enjoyed how the plot developed. I recommend this book as a different but entertaining suspense thriller.

Book #11 in the Grijpstra & de Gier series wasn't too bad at all. In this installment, there are a few things going on here:

1. The Amsterdam Murder Brigade is investigating a case that appears to be a suicide but might actually be foul play.
2. There is an investigative "witch hunt" against the commissaris, Grijpstra and de Gier.
3. An old friend/nemesis of the commissaris is being rather nasty and tries to match wits with the commissaris.

Also, if I am not mistaken, this is the first time we actually learn the first name of the commissaris' wife. I do not recall it being said in any of the previous books.

The story line was rather good, and the ending leaves a few questions unanswered. I guess I will find out if those unanswered questions are put to rest in any of the remaining books in the series.

Now, to look into acquiring a copy of the next book, #12 in the series, Just a Corpse at Twilight.

This may be the best of Grijpstra & de Grier yet and that's saying something as they're a huge hit in Europe and translating (pun intended) well into the United States. Something about the fast-paced action combined with the vague zen-like mentality of our heroes makes for a bang-up, best-seller equation. Here it's the good guys all alone and warned off the case on top of everything else, but someone must save the day. You know who! Read it! Get out of your own head a little!

Met #11, serie uit (ja, er kwamen nog wat verhalen achTeraan, en zelfs een ap-ar comebacks, tellen nu even niet) kan ik wel één keer 4 sterren geven: het is een geestige afwikkeling van een mooie overspannende plot, met vooral de dikke grijpstra in een mooie rol. De commisaris begon me na 11 delen toch een klein beetje op de zenuwen te werken, net iets te zen en te weinig vlees ende bloed.

Geen bijzonder dipe plot, het is duidelijk dat vd Wetering vooral zijn karakters veilig afgehecht wilde onderbrengen, is gelukt dacht ik. Grijpstra moet nog even offiecieel bij zijn vriendin intrekken, maar ik herinner me uit eerdere lezingen dat hij dat in een later verhaal ook doet. Eind goed al goed.

Iets zoals dit zou nu in Nederland geen markt meer voor zijn dus gelukkig was vd Wetering er klaar mee voor we in die ellende terechtkwamen, end daarmee bedoel ik de druk van de uitgevers om Young Adult, 13 delige series over draken en crossovers tussen romance en vampirisme te pennen. Bedankt Jan Willem, en rust zacht.

Sometimes it's hard to write a review of a book because there is no way to summarize what you have just read. van de Wetering writes (or wrote, he died in 2008) what he called 'zen mysteries'. Since Zen itself is a mystery, sometimes the books are an exercise in 'anarchy'. That is nothing and everything goes on at once.

Zeb Kantrowitz

When I finished this book, I had a dreamy look in the eyes that said something like: 'Yes, good book, interesting subject, nice characters, and zen sentences, all is fine about, just such a pity that the style wasn't better, that I have often been rather bored. How can that be, with a book that should have been, could have been far more beautiful?'

I chose this book for the ATY '24 prompt "Raining Cats and Dogs" because of the word "rain" in the title. I was delighted to find these lines on page 47: "It was bad weather that night. Raining cats and dogs. It's hard to make a good shot when you're being pelted with pets." The clever banter and dips into philosophy raise this police procedural to another level.

spanning en sensatie

Of the three books by this author I have read this was the weakest. The police characters are far to flippant and unfocused and the book generally had a scattered narrative. Ultimately we listen in on the Van de Wetering philosophy which left the main characters on different sides of the same coin. I simply found the literary devices employed tiresome. Maybe this book suffered from poor translation. Not his best.

I love the mundane and the zen philosophizing that goes on here--makes me recall it days later. I have to find the one with someone's Small Satori in the title--I know I thought that was brilliant.

Your basic van de Wettering. OK.