My Name Is Jensen- Book Review

My Name Is Jensen by Heidi Amsinck

Genre: Thriller, Noir  
3.3 Stars 

Jensen is back home in Copenhagen and working as a journalist for Dagbladet. Her day starts with discovering a dead body that leads to more murders. She calls Henrik, the DI and her (ex) lover, to the crime scene. 

The case is nowhere easy to solve, nor is Jensen’s sinking career and messed up life. Can she unravel the mystery and solve the mystery with or without Henrik’s help? 

Will it save Jensen’s career? Is that what she wants? What makes the crime different from others? Is it a serial killer on a spree or someone with a motive? 

*Unpopular Opinion*

The blurb and the cover were so good, I grabbed the book as soon as I saw a friend add it to her TBR. Since the book was less than 230 pages, I was confident about finishing it in a couple of days. There started my trouble. It took four days to finish the book. Yeah, that too when I’ve been on a reading high. I’ll keep my review brief and to the point. 

What I like about the book: 

• The structuring of the plotline. The elements are revealed in stages. There’s no information dump anywhere. 
• Jensen is not an easy character to like, but she gets better in the second half. It’s not her prickly nature that was a problem, but her way of drifting through. 
• Almost every character is flawed. I wished even Aziz had some kind of flaw. Maybe in the next book. 
• No unexpected twists or pull the rug moments to shock the readers. 
• A female sleuth in noir who isn’t simply a rehashed version of the traditional male detective. 

What I wish could have been better: 

• A little more about Jensen to understand her better. I realized that this is the first book in the series (and another case is left unsolved for the next book), but it’s hard to root for someone who doesn’t seem fully into her own story (the lead character). 
• Too slow for a thriller or even suspense. Though there’s some sort of information or update in most scenes, the overall narrative dragged. I’m wondering if the page count is probably off by 100 pages or so. 
• Infidelity is something I don't really like. When the lead characters are part of it, it’s hard to empathize with their pain or conflict. I still admire Jensen for being so honest about it. And yeah, Henrik’s a jerk. 
• I don’t prefer sweeping political statements in fiction unless they are very much necessary. Neither do I want to spend time researching the political scenario around the world nor wonder about the author’s inclinations.  
• Jensen pretty much not bothering about the case allotted to her because she’s solving this one. And a causal statement about a death at the end. It looked like not all deaths are equal (which is, of course, very true in this world).

To sum up, My Name is Jensen is perfect for readers who like slow-burn suspense that sets the stage for a series, or at least, a sequel (I wasn’t aware of it).

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Muswell Press.  

#NetGalley #MyNameIsJensen