THE DAY OF THE JACKAL by Frederick Forsyth.
This is a classic - a great experience. I'm frequently smiling at the smart and unexpected actions. Leading the investigation is homicide detective Lebel. He is short, rumpled, quiet, unassuming, and blinks a lot when criticized. There are no scenes with his wife, but we hear that he is henpecked. Don't expect a charismatic hero. This is a humble man doing smart things in a methodical manner. I loved the nuanced characters. I was sympathetic to some of the bad guys and disliked some of the good guys. Jackal is a bad guy but he does not humiliate or do despicable things to people. He just kills anyone who threatens him. I admired his intelligence and competence. The OAS guys are bad guys, but they have idealistic motives, even though warped. They're not out to kill masses of people. They just want to kill one guy.
Government officials learn that the OAS hired a foreigner to assassinate the French president. The killer's code name is Jackal. They cannot talk to the OAS because they are hiding in another country. Lebel is brought in to lead the search to find the Jackal. I'm shaking my head thinking where does he start? What can he do? And then I am so impressed with the method of investigating and uncovering clues. On the other side, I was impressed and intrigued with many smart things the Jackal did.
CLASSIC WRITING STYLE:
I love this method of writing - classic. There is no jumping around in time. Things are told in a logical and linear method. In many cases when a new character is introduced, a short background is given showing his motivations, and then the current day story continues. This works well. And all scenes have natural endings. The author doesn't stop a scene in the middle of a sentence. (Stephen King are you listening?)
MAINTAINING SUSPENSE:
I am frequently annoyed with other authors who leave scenes before a natural end and jump to another character, place, or time. For example, Mary walks into a room, hears a noise, and is hit. The next sentence is about another character in another place. This is not story suspense. It's manipulation to create artificial suspense. I am angry at the author. My anger takes me out of the story. Forsyth does suspense perfectly in this book. For example, Lebel gets a clue about the Jackal. I feel hopeful. POV switches to Jackal who is doing things according to plan. He hears that Lebel learned something, so Jackal changes his plan and does something different. I'm impressed. POV then switches to Lebel's guys who arrive at Jackal's location but don't find him because Jackal left an hour earlier. I'm thinking oh no what will they do next? Even though the POV is switching, the actions flow in a logical time line. The result is a chess game - watching each player respond and make his next move. This is a perfect way to maintain suspense throughout the book.
CAUTION MINOR SPOILER:
I had only one complaint. I wanted to see revenge and consequences for Jacqueline and the man she seduced. It probably happened but I didn't get to see it.
END SPOILER.
NARRATOR:
The narrator Simon Prebble did a fine job.
DATA:
Unabridged audiobook reading time: 13 hrs and 21 mins. Swearing language: moderate, only two or three times. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: about 5, mostly referred to, not much detail. Setting: primarily 1963 France, England, Belgium, and Italy. Book copyright: 1971. Genre: suspense thriller. Ending: Excellent and feel good.
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Top reviews from other countries
Amazon Customer
Book received in good condition, lives up to the hype
Reviewed in India on April 19, 2023
Amazon Customer
Reviewed in India on April 19, 2023
The book manages to captivate the reader and you keep wondering on who's side are you on - the immaculate planner or the discerning, unassuming detective who's career is on the line. And till the end of the book, the reader is kept guessing on whether the assassination would happen or not and there is no time to think on what you really want to happen coz you will be too busy turning the pages with xx wpm to see what happens. The day of the jackal is over.
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