Having seen plenty of Jo Nesbo books about and often having been told to read the series I finally took the opportunity to read book 1. A strong start for a dark noir thriller series and I can see why so many people have enjoyed it. I am disappointed in myself for not enoying it more but I think this is just about my preferences rather than anything I can point to about the book or the writing.

I received this book as an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Now I've read a couple of books from the Harry Hole Series and devoured them, especially The Snowman, so was excited to go back to the beginning and read the debut of the series. In all honesty, I'm glad I had never read them in order as if I had started with this one, I wouldn't have carried on with the series!

This just left me feeling a bit deflated, a tad disappointed, a bit 'meh' as my teenagers would say.

Harry Hole finds himself dispatched to Australia where a Norwegian girl has been found murdered. Harry is tasked with assisting the Australian Police.

Now whilst Australian and aboriginal history is interesting to read and learn, I didn't understand the need or it's relevance to the story.

As a debit novel we obviously need background, who Harry is, his life in general but what was with the random throw backs to his past relationship? They seemed to come at really strange times!

The language and narrative felt rather stilted, wooden even and the abrupt changes to focus in each chapter just made me shake my head alot.

To be blunt, I wish I had stopped reading at around 50 pages, life's too short to waste on words that don't make you happy.

With thanks to netgalley and Random House UK, Vintage for the ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this novel. Although it was first published some years back it had passed me by so now is the time to rectify that.
This is the first in the Harry Hole series and it did not disappoint. I will not repeat reviews of others who detail the synopsis......suffice to say, give it a go !

DNF at 60%, literally no idea at this stage what is going on, maybe I am in the minority, but just cannot continue unfortunately.

Apologies-when I requested this I didn’t immediately realise it was the first in the series that I read several years ago. Great series that improved as it developed.

Yet another exciting story from Jo Nesbo , but out of the normal for Scandi-noir it is set in Australia , where Harry Hole (or Holy as he becomes known locally) is sent to help the investigation in to the murder of a young Swedish girl . He is assigned to work with Joseph , of Aboriginal descent . The pair investigate and find a likely suspect , but it seems Joseph knows more than he is letting on and starts guiding the investigation in another direction. Harry falls off the wagon and becomes involved with a girl Briggita that he meets in a bar . Set in Sydney and Nimbin , both areas I have visited it was more readable knowing the area's he mentions . Harry eventually finds who Joseph has been leading him to and a confrontation ensues.

"The Bat" by Jo Nesbø is the first novel in the amazing "Harry Hole" series.
Unfortunately, the books were not published in the correct order in my country, so I ended up reading the whole series piecemeal. I had been following (and enjoying) Harry Hole's investigations for quite a few years when I finally managed to get hold of this--his very first adventure.
I can only say, it was worth the wait!
Seeing a younger, less jaded Harry Hole in action was a treat.
The fast-paced, action-packed plot, the flawed, all-too-human characters, and the unusual Australian setting kept me glued to the page from beginning to end.
Now I'm looking forward to reading Jo Nesbø's next masterpiece!

A brilliant and tantalising crime novel from Jo Nesbo. This time our hero is despatched to Australia to help find the murderer of a Norwegian national. There are many twists and turns as the suspects are narrowed down.
Of particular interest is the Aboriginal culture skilfully woven into the story. There are strong Australian characters as you would expect. All emersed in the punishing climate of Australia. A great read.

I have already read several of the Harry Hole series by Jo Nesbo and was hesitant to go back to the first. However, I found this one as good as all the rest and well worth reading if you enjoy a cozy murder mystery!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC copy.

After reading some other books in the series it was good to finally reading the first book. Not the best of the series but definitely worth a read as the books get better and better.

I have been dying to read this book for so long and I am pleased to say it did not disappoint. Absolutely gripping, I could not put it down..

Firstly I would like to praise Don Bartlett who made available this novel in English from the original Norwegian. The Bat is a great novel and the translation isn't at all clunky. Set in Australia, our Norwegian detective on temporary secondment to Australia's finest, tries to bring to book someone who murdered a Norwegian national. Along the way he meets Birgitta, a Swede, and forms a relationship with her, so too does he strike up a real friendship with Andrew Kensington, a detective assigned to 'buddy' with him. Andrew is an Aboriginal Australian.
Sadly, things fall apart for Harry Hole (our Norwegian detective) when he discovers Andrew's body hanging from an electrical cable. It breaks him and he returns to the bottle after many years of sobriety. A drunken session with a local prostitute doesn't go down well with his girlfriend Birgitta and she storms out of their realtionship. There is some reconciliation later which doesn't end well for her when she agrees to be a lure for the killer.
The travelling fair / show in Australia is an attractive device for authors such as Jo Nesbo and also Shelley Burr with her excellent thriller called Wake. I thoroughly enjoyed this detective thriller and I will give it five stars despite the potential flaw with the suicide and fuse incident. Let me explain:
To stage a suicide such as Andrew's would be almost impossible.
The average male Aboriginal Australian's height is 165cm, maybe add another 5cm for an improved diet. A light bulb has to clear the head of anyone passing under it, so we'll put that at 2m above floor level. Andrew was described as broad shouldered and as a boxer would have a muscular neck giving him say a 46cm collar. The flex was wound three times round his neck and the bulb rested on his upper chest. That makes for about 158cm of flex. So, if we add 2m and 158cm we get 3.58m. As he was close to the ceiling we can get an idea how high the ceiling was. Andrew was say 1.7m tall so he would have to have been raised 1.88m to get the flex round his neck and tied off. That is a lot higher then even a bar stool. More like a step ladder. Bearing in mind he was drugged too, his assailant had an impossible task.
The fuse:
House wiring normally requires a number of circuits each with their own fuse or circuit breaker. Lights are on a lighting circuit and have a low value fuse/breaker and a computer would plug in to a power circuit which would have a much larger fuse/breaker. To have the coincidence of the lights and computer not working would require the overall fuse/breaker to be out. In the case of a fuse, this would be ridgedly held as it carries all the household current and a loose one woud cause a fire. A thread would not pull it out.

I've read a few of the Harry Hole books but I have never read the first one. Loved reading Harry's first book and seeing how the character started out. Fab storyline and well written. Definitely a must read.

Harry Hole is a Norwegian detective, seconded to Australia as a young Norwegian girl has been murdered there. However, as the case develops it becomes clear that a serial killer is on the loose.

Harry has a lot of personal baggage that begins to surface as he explores Australia's underworld. The result is an interesting story with many twists to keep the reader guessing.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK and Vintage for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Overall good read, but not the most gripping for me personally. I've read one other in this series,(and another different book by this author) and it would appear they improve as they've gone along 🤔 Definitely worth a read and work through the series from the beginning.

I was thrilled to finally get the chance to read Jo Nesbo's first Harry Hole novel. The plot is engrossing with well-developed characters. I can't wait to read the next in the series and read more Jo Nesbo in the future. Highly recommended!!

The first book I have read by this author , it will not be the last. I liked this book very much. Harry Hole, the main detective, is a Norwegian. In this book he is in Australia , after a Norwegian girl was found murdered. Harry soon builds up relationships with the police and locals in Sydney and you get a good idea of the life there from the descriptions. Although Harry is a good detective, it becomes obvious that his life has not always been plain sailing.There are lots of characters in the book, but the main ones do stand out.
I liked the writing style on the whole, though at times it is a bit convoluted.
Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House UK, Vintage for an ARC of this title.

I love Nordic-noir and am a true Jo Nesbo fan.

Reading his first novel for the second time, it was fascinating to see how Nesbo started to set out the foundations for the Harry Hole character. It is not the best Hole story, as it meanders, and sometimes it loses sight of the murder of the Norwegian lady.

However, it does begin to flesh out Harry Hole, someone many would love to hate. He comes complete with many quirks and character flaws, making him just like us. It is also from where much of the underlying humour in the book arrives.

As the storyline develops, it becomes apparent that a serial killer is on the loose, and Harry gradually gets to identify that. However, I think Nesbo skirts thinly around how that is achieved.

The setting and the location of the story and the inclusion of cultural context may seem off to some, but it lends a more exotic setting than what becomes more typical fare for Harry Hole stories.

I read several hyper-critical reviews of the story after I finished it, and maybe some of what people highlight does relate to translation issues.

However, we each have our preferences, and for me, I enjoyed the book, though it was not Jo Nesbo’s best work.

Reading the first Harry Hole book last, good story great characters highly recommend this book.
I received this book from the publishers via Netgalley for a review

I have read several Harry Hole books but somehow missed the 1st one. So when I got the opportunity to read this I jumped at the chance.
I have grown to love this character and this the 1st in the series gave me some missed background. Having said that, it isn’t important to read them in order as they can all easily be read as stand alone.
The writing style is easy to follow, characters are believable and you can’t help but to be drawn to them, either to love or to despise.
In this book enigmatic Harry is called in to solve a rape and murder of a Norwegian citizen in Australia. He travels to support the Australian detectives as they search for the killer
I highly recommend this and all Jo Nesbo books

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this title