Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell is #1 in the Kurt Wallander Series. It opens with the brutal, but unseen, murder of an older couple, Maria and Johannes Lovgren, in a rural area of southern Sweden. The police detective is intelligent and tenacious but also troubled by an irascible father, a pending divorce, an estranged daughter, and a drinking problem. The investigation is against a growing anti-immigrant sentiment.
The murder investigation uncovers layers of mysteries. The police, led by Wallander, track down each lead often feeling they were close to solving the case (“The stones were starting to burn under Kurt Wallender’s feet.”) until they hit a dead end. Eventually, they find a different direction and the process repeats. These investigative ups and downs keep the story moving.
There is a second murder that is solved more directly. The jumble of the two murder investigations and Wallander’s chaotic personal life keep the book moving very briskly.
However, once again, I am left to wonder why so many detectives are single and troubled. Wallander, who rarely sleeps, struggles with his father wandering around in the middle of the night believing he’s on the way to the train station. His daughter appears unexpectedly, but never at a time or in a place where he can talk to her. He communicates with his wife, but never productively. Beyond this, he struggles with drinking, his poor diet, and weight gain.
Without spoiling anything, one clue, which is often mentioned, is left unanswered at the end.
“He shuddered. He had no answers. Ans that made him uneasy”
I was also uneasy. Did Mankell intend to solve this part of the mystery and the narrative ran away from him? Or did he always intend this as a red herring? A second similar clue is addressed, but in a way to indicate that it wasn’t really important either.
If you want a fast-moving murder mystery in a foreign, but vaguely familiar, setting, this is a good choice. Fast read with a minimum of sex and violence.
Check out https://amazon.com/shop/influencer-20171115075 for book recommendations.
No comments:
Post a Comment