Anyone want to discuss Nicci French Frieda Klein series? Am hooked but exasperated!

[Bloodybridget]

I've just zoomed through the latest, Saturday Requiem, I actually bought it although I very rarely buy new books these days.

There's so much about the novels that drives me nuts: FK is frequently suspected of terrible crimes with very little evidence, half of London CID are her implacable enemies, she has an adoring circle of friends who drop everything to rush to her side (sometimes all of them at once) inc. Josef the Ukrainian plumber whose English has not improved since book 1, she is an uber mother figure to senior colleagues as well as to her wayward niece, and most outrageous of all, she is never sleepy and never hungry! Take her to a bar and she's on sparkling water, her idea of a treat is an olive. I just want her to crack and pick up a box of Krispy Kremes!

Anyone else?

Yes, Frieda is incredibly annoying. It has rather put me off the books.

I love the books but I get what you and the other pp mean - she is infuriating. Plus she's always in the bath...

I am always amazed at her ability to completely disrupt police investigations with apparently no consequences at all. She is clearly on the spectrum but this has never, ever been mentioned.

I love the books, but sometimes - seriously?

She's almost like a saint. Disruptive, single-minded, has miraculous insights.

I love the books but find her incredibly annoying. I want the series to be over now. Surely they can't write more than 7 books...can they?

Given they're based around the seven days of the week, I'm assuming not. I enjoy the Frieda Klein books, I just prefer some of the earlier standalone ones.

I imagine there will be one more, where presumably the hanging thread will be tied up with an extra helping of terror and tension. As I've said, I am very much addicted to the series despite my criticisms, so I'll be sorry to see the end of it.

She infuriates me too, but I keep reading them. I wonder if there will be January, February, March etc next

Oh god, that is probably just what they'll do next, FiveShelties!

Agree with everyone else. I find them absolutely compelling to read but they drive me nuts. Apart from anything else, how come Frieda has been able to leave a trail of bodies in her wake (practically everyone associated with her comes to a grisly end) without ending up incredibly emotionally damaged?

She deals with it in supervision with the even uber-er mother figure Thelma.

I read the latest yesterday (hated the ending of both story threads, horrible). She is annoying, but I am quite envious of her complete self-possession and self-control.

Not sure about the ethics of her psychotherapeutic practice at all times, boundaries are a bit wobbly, but I do love the client interactions (although not sure what the point of her new client was unless it links to the ongoing story thread).

What annoys me is how much everyone worships and adores her even though she is fundamentally a self-centred, cold-hearted cow.

All the psychotherapists seem to have wobbly boundaries - they all seem to know far too much about each others' clients. I agree her self-possession is enviable - I think I'll try her tactic of simply ignoring questions and remarks she doesn't want to respond to.

I wanted to revive this thread, because I've just finished the latest one, Sunday morning coming down. I assumed it would be the last in the series but it finishes in an open-ended way, which I was a bit disappointed by. Anyway, it turns out there is going to be one more in the series, which will presumably tie the whole thing up.

Wanted to warn other Mumsnetters in advance - don't go into this one expecting all to be resolved!

Just finished the Sunday one too and I agree hackmum, very disappointing. I said up thread that surely there can't be more than 7.

Seems I was wrong.

And she's even more annoying in this book.

Oh didn't realise the Sunday one was out now. Agree about Freida, I enjoy the stories, but my god she is annoying. Her friends are all so incredibly supportive and she barely acknowledges them most of the time. Also she appears to have no appetite, buys herself a salad and eats half of it, grrr fgs woman have a doughnut or something. Also the way she ditched Sandy, halfway through a walk and a lecture on London rivers was worthy of an aibu thread. I was hoping after Sunday Nicki French would get back to writing other books again with different characters. Some of her earlier thrillers are so much better.

Also disappointed the title wasn't "Sunday I'm in Love" following on from the song title thing

Oooh am reading this at the moment, about half way through the second book.

She reminds me of a female Fritz from the Cracker series. Bit of a cunt but almost likeable. Am enjoying them so far.

I've enjoyed reading the FK series. I made a mistake and ordered "Dark Saturday" through Amazon although it is the same book as "Saturday Requiem" by another publisher. I thought it was the next in the series and had Saturday in the title again because what will happen after Sunday? lol. I've returned it to Amazon, no problem with the refund but honestly! In my Amazon account it states under Sat Req' that other people ALSO bought DarK Saturday! I cann't be the only one surely!?

I've enjoyed reading this thread OP!

SinisterBumFacedCat: Ha, love the idea of a Frieda Klein AIBU. "AIBU to think that maybe I'm not cut out for work as a psychotherapist when it doesn't bother me that practically everyone I come into contact with ends up getting murdered?"

Presumably they've deliberately made her unlikeable for a reason. Perhaps that's it, in fact - a normal person would be completely freaked out by the fact that they leave a trail of bodies in their wake wherever they go, so they've had to make her a bit cold and unfeeling.

I loved the first one - even reread to pick up the clues I missed first time round, but increasingly I’mmfinding Frieda and annoying main character