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rowingrabbit's review against another edition
4.0
Once upon a time there were 3 homeless teenagers who became best friends as they struggled to survive the mean streets of Stockholm. At first all Eva, Jorma & Katz had in common was the daily hunt for their next hit of heroin. But eventually the trio found something even more addictive to sustain them….trust.
But all “good” things must end & they went their separate ways. Years later, all 3 are still in Stockholm but living very different lives. They don’t know it yet but a series of seemingly random events are about to bring them back together.
Eva is now a prosecutor investigating cross-border financial crimes. She’s working with colleagues in the Balkans who believe mafia money is flowing to Sweden to be laundered. The big question is: who’s on the receiving end?
Jorma is in a bit of a tight spot. He’s tried walking the straight & narrow but the truth is, it’s boring. So when a buddy asks for help pulling off an armed robbery, he jumps. To say it doesn’t go well is an understatement.
Katz (following events in the last book) has all the work he wants as an independent translator & IT security expert. He’s been clean for 10 years but when an old friend dies in mysterious circumstances, he finds himself drawn back into the life he left behind.
Initially the book alternates between the 3 separate POV’s so we get pulled into the lives of these characters. Each has a compelling story & as they pick away at their individual investigations, a subtle tension begins to build as they start attracting the wrong kind of attention. The connections are not immediately clear. Peripheral characters slip in & out of story lines, making you wonder who can be trusted & who’s hiding behind a clever facade.
As the story lines converge, the horrific scope of the criminal network begins to emerge. These people play for keeps & the game turns deadly as they get closer to the truth. The MC’s run into some dicey situations & this is where some suspension of disbelief will be required. They catch some lucky breaks to be sure but 2 things save the story: how much you want them to succeed & how badly you want some of these despicable people to pay.
This is definitely Scandi noir. The backdrop of Stockholm’s seedier streets is enhanced by descriptions of the addicts’ lives & the powerful opportunists who abuse them. It’s a disturbing read at times. But the author’s depictions are not gratuitous, rather it’s just that he doesn’t shy away from reality. The atmosphere becomes darker as things go from bad to worse, a descent that is mirrored by the changes in Katz.
This is a guy who shouldn’t be alive. He’s a lapsed Jew who lost his parents too young & never really recovered. There’s a suppressed anger buried inside him & when Jorma & Eva are threatened, it’s almost a relief to let it out.
Although this can be a stand alone, I recommend starting with [b:The Boy in the Shadows|23615659|The Boy in the Shadows|Carl-Johan Vallgren|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1416949319s/23615659.jpg|26746850] . There are references to events in that book & knowing the characters’ backgrounds makes for a richer reading experience with this one. The ending made my jaw drop & now I’m wondering where the author will take us in book #3.
But all “good” things must end & they went their separate ways. Years later, all 3 are still in Stockholm but living very different lives. They don’t know it yet but a series of seemingly random events are about to bring them back together.
Eva is now a prosecutor investigating cross-border financial crimes. She’s working with colleagues in the Balkans who believe mafia money is flowing to Sweden to be laundered. The big question is: who’s on the receiving end?
Jorma is in a bit of a tight spot. He’s tried walking the straight & narrow but the truth is, it’s boring. So when a buddy asks for help pulling off an armed robbery, he jumps. To say it doesn’t go well is an understatement.
Katz (following events in the last book) has all the work he wants as an independent translator & IT security expert. He’s been clean for 10 years but when an old friend dies in mysterious circumstances, he finds himself drawn back into the life he left behind.
Initially the book alternates between the 3 separate POV’s so we get pulled into the lives of these characters. Each has a compelling story & as they pick away at their individual investigations, a subtle tension begins to build as they start attracting the wrong kind of attention. The connections are not immediately clear. Peripheral characters slip in & out of story lines, making you wonder who can be trusted & who’s hiding behind a clever facade.
As the story lines converge, the horrific scope of the criminal network begins to emerge. These people play for keeps & the game turns deadly as they get closer to the truth. The MC’s run into some dicey situations & this is where some suspension of disbelief will be required. They catch some lucky breaks to be sure but 2 things save the story: how much you want them to succeed & how badly you want some of these despicable people to pay.
This is definitely Scandi noir. The backdrop of Stockholm’s seedier streets is enhanced by descriptions of the addicts’ lives & the powerful opportunists who abuse them. It’s a disturbing read at times. But the author’s depictions are not gratuitous, rather it’s just that he doesn’t shy away from reality. The atmosphere becomes darker as things go from bad to worse, a descent that is mirrored by the changes in Katz.
This is a guy who shouldn’t be alive. He’s a lapsed Jew who lost his parents too young & never really recovered. There’s a suppressed anger buried inside him & when Jorma & Eva are threatened, it’s almost a relief to let it out.
Although this can be a stand alone, I recommend starting with [b:The Boy in the Shadows|23615659|The Boy in the Shadows|Carl-Johan Vallgren|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1416949319s/23615659.jpg|26746850] . There are references to events in that book & knowing the characters’ backgrounds makes for a richer reading experience with this one. The ending made my jaw drop & now I’m wondering where the author will take us in book #3.
diggitalot's review
3.0
Svart svart svart är den undre världen i Stockholm. Kanske kommer jag att minnas den här boken men några saker kanske man helst vill glömma.
juniperusxx's review against another edition
3.0
Varjopojan päiväkirjamerkinnässä olen käyttänyt sanoja 'maskuliininen' ja 'testosteroni', vähän samaan suuntaan ajatukseni polveilivat tämänkin kirjan kohdalla. Olisikohan dekkarimakuni ajautumassa pehmeämpään ja enemmänkin psykologisen trillerin suuntaan, kun nämä huume-, ihmiskauppa- ja pornoteollisuusaiheet tai väkivalta eivät nykyisin oikein iske?
tui's review against another edition
2.0
Ihan ok, ei mitenkään ihmeellinen eikä Varjopojan tasoinen.
raven88's review against another edition
4.0
What begins as a seemingly ordinary crime heist novel, The Tunnel quickly evolves into a multi-layered and very enjoyable Sweden set thriller, driven by the archetypal social analysis, and strong characterisation that defines Scandinavian crime fiction. As the individual stories of its three main protagonists and friends, Jorma, a career criminal, Katz, a reformed drug addict, and Eva, an emotionally troubled woman who works for the police, play out, Vallgren draws us into a sordid world of sex trafficking and violence.
For me, Vallgren’s portrayal of these three contrary, but nonetheless totally appealing characters, is the lynchpin for the enjoyment of the book, and I found myself utterly engaged with them throughout. There is a nice sense of balance in their characterisation as they are not all paragons of virtues, finding themselves susceptible to their own singular vices and desires, and with Katz in particular Vallgren is given the opportunity to explore Swedish society, and to draw on the Jewish roots of his character to spin the story off in another direction. The central plot is unsettling, bleak and exposes the seedy underbelly of drug addiction and the sex industry, and the manipulation of those who find themselves caught up in, or profiting from this nefarious trades. I also liked the ending that is not neatly tied up with a bow, but instead is quite bleak and uncertain. Vallgren is the closest writer I have found to Cilla and Rolf Bjorland (Spring Tide, Third Voice) who also specialise in social realism, and troubled-but-empathetic characters, and will now be hastily backtracking to read the first book by him, The Boy In The Shadows. A top Scandi-noir recommendation from me.
For me, Vallgren’s portrayal of these three contrary, but nonetheless totally appealing characters, is the lynchpin for the enjoyment of the book, and I found myself utterly engaged with them throughout. There is a nice sense of balance in their characterisation as they are not all paragons of virtues, finding themselves susceptible to their own singular vices and desires, and with Katz in particular Vallgren is given the opportunity to explore Swedish society, and to draw on the Jewish roots of his character to spin the story off in another direction. The central plot is unsettling, bleak and exposes the seedy underbelly of drug addiction and the sex industry, and the manipulation of those who find themselves caught up in, or profiting from this nefarious trades. I also liked the ending that is not neatly tied up with a bow, but instead is quite bleak and uncertain. Vallgren is the closest writer I have found to Cilla and Rolf Bjorland (Spring Tide, Third Voice) who also specialise in social realism, and troubled-but-empathetic characters, and will now be hastily backtracking to read the first book by him, The Boy In The Shadows. A top Scandi-noir recommendation from me.