Type: fiction
Status: —
Author: Helen Tursten
Tags: mystery crime euro-crime
Description: Tursten's second Detective Inspector Irene Huss novel will send your gore barometer wellTursten's second Detective Inspector Irene Huss novel will send your gore barometer well into the red zone with its occasionally stomach--turning tale of necrosadism (that's murder combined with mutilation and dismemberment of the victim's parts and organs, all for the sexual satisfaction of the perpetrator). No, this isn't a gentle read, but it isn't an exploitive splatterfest, either. Tursten's heroine, a 40-year-old, hardworking cop in Goteborg, Sweden, attempts to juggle the horrors of modern life, which she faces on the job, with the challenges of a demanding family, which includes twin teenage daughters, a chef husband, and a persnickety terrier. In juxtaposing dismemberment and domesticity, Tursten brings into high relief the toll police work takes on the psyche and the difficulty of moving between dramatically different worlds on a daily basis. The case itself, jumping between Goteborg and Copenhagen, unfolds in classic procedural style, leading to an oddly unsatisfying ending that, nevertheless, has the uncertain feel of real life. Make sure Tursten is on your short list of Henning Mankell read-alikes....
2006-03-14
