Irish thriller writer Tana French dominates New York Times best-of-century lists

Dublin writer Tana French has earned the distinction of being ranked as the most prolific author of great thrillers this century by The New York Times. Her works have appeared more often than those of any other crime-writing peer on two prominent lists published by the newspaper over the past week.

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an astute and wildly atmospheric portrait of loss, memory and the endless mysteries of human behaviour

French, an American-born author who has resided in Ireland since 1990, saw four of her books selected by a panel of 291 experts, including editors, booksellers, librarians, and fellow authors, for a list of the 50 best thrillers of the 21st century. Readers, given an expanded list of 100 titles, voted to include nine of French's novels, placing her alongside acclaimed writers such as John le Carré, Gillian Flynn, Kate Atkinson, and Cormac McCarthy.

Her 2007 debut novel, "In the Woods," was particularly lauded on both lists. It secured the sixth position on the readers' list and was ranked as the third-best thriller written since the year 2000 by the experts. The New York Times described the novel as "an astute and wildly atmospheric portrait of loss, memory and the endless mysteries of human behaviour."

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In Ireland, things are coded. You don’t necessarily have the code when you arrive

"In the Woods" marked the beginning of French's "Dublin Murder Squad" series, which concluded in 2016 with its sixth installment, "The Trespasser." Her more recent work includes the Cal Hooper trilogy, comprising "The Searcher," "The Hunter," and "The Keeper." These novels feature a retired Chicago detective who relocates to the fictional Irish town of Ardnakelty. French has previously spoken about how these books allow her to explore the archetype of "the stranger who blows into town," a perspective she relates to as a "third-culture kid" who grew up in various locations worldwide.

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It’s a perspective I’m interested in because I’m what they call a third-culture kid, which means I’m not really from anywhere. I grew up all over the world.