The Nesting by C.J. Cooke

Author: C.J. Cooke

Title: The Nesting

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2020

Pages: 416

Genre: Mystery Thriller 

     Deep in a remote Norwegian forest, Lexi has found a new home with architect Tom and his two young daughters. With snow underfoot and the sound of the nearby fjord in her ears, it's as if Lexi has stepped into a fairy tale. But this family has a history - and this place has a past. Something was destroyed to build their beautiful new house. And those ancient, whispering woods have a long memory. Lexi begins to hear things, see things that don't make sense. She used to think this place heavenly, but in the dark, dark woods, a menacing presence lurks. With darkness creeping in from the outside, Lexi knows she needs to protect the children in her care. But protect them from what?

     I seem to be on a bit of a run of new authors recently. I think sometimes we need to step away from the familiar and expand not only the authors we read but also sometimes push the boundaries of the genres we read. So when I came across a copy of The Nesting I was very curious about the blurb on the back. Now I can't say I've never read any scandi noir before because if I'm honest with you I've read a whole stack of them. But the thing I would say about them is they are all very much focused on the real world. Whilst we do get the genius-level serial killers the plot always seems to be ripped from the headlines kind of a deal. So with the hint at something a little more otherworldly I was curious to see just where this might all lead to. Also, it was a great opportunity to see if C.J. Cooke was going to be another author I can add to my go-to list, ones where you don't have to think you can just grab their latest and know you will enjoy the ride.  So in many ways, this was an audition of Cooke's work could she fulfill all that I hoped for in this book? 

     When we first come to Lexi's life things are really not going very well for her. It's a life falling apart quicker than her tattered fingertips can try and pull it back into the center. To me, she seems like someone you not only feel sorry for but you kinda want to help out. Give her a good cuppa and just let her pour out all of her woes. But obviously, that's not how all this works so instead we are along for the ride where ever it may go. For our hero, life is all about to take a turn when she sees an advert for a job that otherwise she never would have come across. And with this so begins the bulk of the novel. A girl who has come from pretty much nothing being shoved into the rarefied air of a family who live well beyond our heroes means. In part, it's interesting to see how these two lives try to jell together. Tom for his part is trying his best to not only keep his family together but also complete building his new house out in a very remote area of Norwegian forests. He seems like someone who is not really at ease with showing his emotions but that may also be down in part to a man trying to come to terms with not only loss and grief but bringing in a very highly stressful situation. Either way, the author has created a great mix of conflict and unease between all the adults trapped within this household. Which could come across as a bleak environment for this tale to take place in if not for Tom's two little girls. They do add a great element of levity to the whole thing.  After all kids will be kids and they are sure to cause a little chaos where ever they go. 

     Now to say this is a pure-blooded Scandi noir tale will lead you way off into the dark. Whilst I would say there are obviously some comparisons to be made, for me this is not where this tale goes. You could also say there are elements of a domestic thriller here and once again this is in part true but also doesn't really come to cover everything this novel is. I think what Cooke has done is created her own umbrella when writing this book. I love that she has also taken elements of Norwegian folk law and weaved them into her plot. It definitely adds a really creepy element to her tale. Much like our hero Lexi, you started to question what is really taking place within the walls of this house. And maybe in part, it helps that this tale doesn't really fit into one genre or for that matter a couple. It allows us as readers the freedom to explore those elements of the tale that may seem a little out there without writing them off out of hand in something far more reality grounded. All things are possible within the world Cooke has created and to me, it's a really wonderful thing to behold. And whilst she has a setting that is truly contemporary it truly has a feeling like those folk tales of old. We get to explore elements that somehow tap into those more primordial elements of our psyche. After all, I don't think there are many of us who would not feel a little unease being in an unfamiliar house well away from civilization with a group of people we do not know. 

     When it comes to The Nesting I feel it's a novel that went well beyond what I had been expecting. As I said before Cooke has created a work of fiction that has somehow managed to bind together multiple genres. It managed to get under your skin and spread out its dark tentacles throughout your every waking thought. You are simultaneously trying to solve a sort of whodunnit all the while trying to work out if our heroes are going crazy or something is creeping out from the darkness that sits between the trees of what would seem to be an endless and mysterious forest. All in all, you should definitely grab yourself a copy and go tumbling down this rabbit hole.