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lavina_l's review against another edition
2.0
This installment in the Martin Beck series was slow going. All the action bookends a social commentary on Sweden in the 1960s, and I had a hard time investing in any of it.
obione_tdg's review against another edition
3.0
Come molti dei precedenti: non malvagio, molto scorrevole, solito colpo di fortuna degli investigatori per trovare il colpevole che peggiora lievemente il risultato globale.
barbarab's review against another edition
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Ein Klassiker bland svenska deckare. Inget särskilt med den men ett gediget hantverk. Det var länge sen jag läste en sjöwall/wahlöö så det var intressant att komma tillbaka till dem och se hur de såg på samhället för 50 år sedan. Mycket är sig likt.
leighryks's review against another edition
4.0
I’m continuing to enjoy this series with is set (and written) in 1970s Sweden. They’re police procedurals that can be somewhat dry and stark, but they are flashes of humor. Compared to most modern crime novels, these cases are not very sensational or graphic. Though called the “Martin Beck” series, it really follows a group of police officers who work together, don’t always like each other, and who are evolving over the course of the series. I worry that I make this sound too boring. Its not a thriller; its a crime novel following the solution of what by more modern standards is an ordinary murder solved by ordinary people and quite well done.
mira_fitz's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
First and foremost, Murder at the Savoy is a deeply critical love letter to (boring and overly bureaucratic) police procedure and Scandinavian culture. Simply showcasing everything honestly, from the heat of the stranded city in the summer to the deeply rooted issues of class struggle in Stockholm, is what makes this book feel earnest and authentic, without feeling as if it is preaching their ideology to the masses.
There's always a concern when reading a book that is part of a continuous anthology-- that you will miss important context that the author(s) don't care to explain in later books -- especially when you start somewhere in the middle or end. Thankfully, whether it be because of the nature of the mystery genre or how the authors of Murder at the Savoy chose to present this novel, this book didn't feel as if I was missing out on anything. Everything is re-explained, re-referenced. The reader is continuously given refreshers on characters and their place in the story, which in a book that is a character driven as this one, is welcome.
I generally get tired of novels that read as though they're just long form movie pitches; it seems to be a plague in the Young Adult genre and a symptom of capitalism at best. Yet, Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö do this without any ulterior motive and without seemingly trying. Every chapter reads like a collaborative script, with certain scenes feeling like an improv exercise between characters that was just transcribed afterwards. The dialog is gripping and entertaining at every turn, and if you want an insular example, just read chapter 3, which is genuinely one of the most charming interrogation scenes I've read, if an interrogation can be characterized as such.
It's a nice feeling to be able to figure out a mystery as it unfolds in a novel, but in a plot where the plot seems simple and obvious from the get go, you are constantly surprised and forced to change your perspective of every aspect of the investigation. One moment you feel as though you are being guided to a clear answer, or even a linear investigation plot, and yet it is not only the blockades of characters withholding information, but also the politics and bureaucratic nature of the justice system. Waiting for warrants and subpoenas, not being able to divulge important information what would compromise the witness, the process of collecting and finding evidence, even the sheer incompetence of other officers are all things that are touched upon with a thoughtfulness and care that is cast to the side in modern crime fiction in place of artificial excitement and intrigue.
Even though this novel is also constructed in a similar manner, it is so deeply rooted in reality that even waiting around until sundown outside a suspect's house sans cellphones feels exciting and suspenseful. Regardless of your political affiliation, any critique of a political affiliation or ideology is done with a certain care and respect, which considering how many characters' perspectives you muddle through with all their differing outlooks, is an organizational and narrative feat.
Not a single character feels particularly out of place or cast aside, and all of their methodology when it comes to solving the titular murder feels reasonable and thought out. It's refreshing for the genre and time period for every character to be competent at their jobs, and for their respective levels of experience to be expressed so clearly by their actions and thoughts. If any name gets confused, or descriptions get mixed around, the characterization so clearly differentiates them that I would have barely noticed an editing error in the dialog, if at all.
Regardless of how gripping the plot or characterization is, the writing does become a victim of the time period in its characterization of sex workers and women. We rarely get any internal dialog from our singular female main character, and it often comes of as "I'm-not-like-other-girls" down to her being a short brunette recovering from her victimhood compared against a continuous string of tall, blonde Scandinavian women who all seem to either be vindictive and shallow, or perpetual victims with no agency. Normally, it's something easily ignored when a book is made "in a different time", but when something is revered for its progressive leftist politics, the villainization of women who are powerful and who choose to be sex workers, while still treating its one female protagonist as the ever loved "Cool Girl", it loses some points in my book; even disregarding the ever convenient plot point that the female protagonist works to “sniff out” and arrest prostitutes and escorts with no empathy for whatever choices may have lead them to that point.
None of this should detract from the general reading experience. It is an entertaining read that can be divorced from the actual mystery, but cannot from its (now) historical and socio economic commentary, as it can read as a modern autofiction novel of an ever changing and broken Stockholm of the past. I look forward to reading more of the Martin Beck series. 4 stars.
There's always a concern when reading a book that is part of a continuous anthology-- that you will miss important context that the author(s) don't care to explain in later books -- especially when you start somewhere in the middle or end. Thankfully, whether it be because of the nature of the mystery genre or how the authors of Murder at the Savoy chose to present this novel, this book didn't feel as if I was missing out on anything. Everything is re-explained, re-referenced. The reader is continuously given refreshers on characters and their place in the story, which in a book that is a character driven as this one, is welcome.
I generally get tired of novels that read as though they're just long form movie pitches; it seems to be a plague in the Young Adult genre and a symptom of capitalism at best. Yet, Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö do this without any ulterior motive and without seemingly trying. Every chapter reads like a collaborative script, with certain scenes feeling like an improv exercise between characters that was just transcribed afterwards. The dialog is gripping and entertaining at every turn, and if you want an insular example, just read chapter 3, which is genuinely one of the most charming interrogation scenes I've read, if an interrogation can be characterized as such.
It's a nice feeling to be able to figure out a mystery as it unfolds in a novel, but in a plot where the plot seems simple and obvious from the get go, you are constantly surprised and forced to change your perspective of every aspect of the investigation. One moment you feel as though you are being guided to a clear answer, or even a linear investigation plot, and yet it is not only the blockades of characters withholding information, but also the politics and bureaucratic nature of the justice system. Waiting for warrants and subpoenas, not being able to divulge important information what would compromise the witness, the process of collecting and finding evidence, even the sheer incompetence of other officers are all things that are touched upon with a thoughtfulness and care that is cast to the side in modern crime fiction in place of artificial excitement and intrigue.
Even though this novel is also constructed in a similar manner, it is so deeply rooted in reality that even waiting around until sundown outside a suspect's house sans cellphones feels exciting and suspenseful. Regardless of your political affiliation, any critique of a political affiliation or ideology is done with a certain care and respect, which considering how many characters' perspectives you muddle through with all their differing outlooks, is an organizational and narrative feat.
Not a single character feels particularly out of place or cast aside, and all of their methodology when it comes to solving the titular murder feels reasonable and thought out. It's refreshing for the genre and time period for every character to be competent at their jobs, and for their respective levels of experience to be expressed so clearly by their actions and thoughts. If any name gets confused, or descriptions get mixed around, the characterization so clearly differentiates them that I would have barely noticed an editing error in the dialog, if at all.
Regardless of how gripping the plot or characterization is, the writing does become a victim of the time period in its characterization of sex workers and women. We rarely get any internal dialog from our singular female main character, and it often comes of as "I'm-not-like-other-girls" down to her being a short brunette recovering from her victimhood compared against a continuous string of tall, blonde Scandinavian women who all seem to either be vindictive and shallow, or perpetual victims with no agency. Normally, it's something easily ignored when a book is made "in a different time", but when something is revered for its progressive leftist politics, the villainization of women who are powerful and who choose to be sex workers, while still treating its one female protagonist as the ever loved "Cool Girl", it loses some points in my book; even disregarding the ever convenient plot point that the female protagonist works to “sniff out” and arrest prostitutes and escorts with no empathy for whatever choices may have lead them to that point.
None of this should detract from the general reading experience. It is an entertaining read that can be divorced from the actual mystery, but cannot from its (now) historical and socio economic commentary, as it can read as a modern autofiction novel of an ever changing and broken Stockholm of the past. I look forward to reading more of the Martin Beck series. 4 stars.
antij's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It has a bit of a Holmesian set-up, an assassination of a powerful industrialist during an after-dinner speech who could this criminal mastermind be? Mansson is even set-up as our quirky lead detective with his love of toothpicks making him almost a swedish Kojak. Or Beck, our supposed main character, being brought in somewhat late in the game as the genius crime-stopper. But, as with all the books in this series, it turns out to be anything but.
han_cat's review against another edition
5.0
The seriously fabulous thing these authors do is make a bleak police procedural that illustrates the difficulty and ultimate lack of satisfaction in police work yet its so flipping gripping! So atmospheric and full of social detail.
piccoline's review against another edition
5.0
Whew. The Beck mysteries just keep getting better. This one is tough, though, for how clearly it outlines a modern reality that still exists, and is indeed rampant. Ah, what a disgusting and immoral system we inhabit...
I can say no more, so as to avoid spoilers. But, wow. Nice work on this one, [a:Maj Sjöwall|6547|Maj Sjöwall|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1263914856p2/6547.jpg] and [a:Per Wahlöö|6546|Per Wahlöö|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1263914785p2/6546.jpg].
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Comment specific to more recent American editions: be sure to skip the marketing-department-driven prefaces and forewords. They're not *all* garbage, but they can give away certain aspects of the mystery novel you are about to read. If you must, read them when you're done with the novel.
I can say no more, so as to avoid spoilers. But, wow. Nice work on this one, [a:Maj Sjöwall|6547|Maj Sjöwall|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1263914856p2/6547.jpg] and [a:Per Wahlöö|6546|Per Wahlöö|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1263914785p2/6546.jpg].
----------------
Comment specific to more recent American editions: be sure to skip the marketing-department-driven prefaces and forewords. They're not *all* garbage, but they can give away certain aspects of the mystery novel you are about to read. If you must, read them when you're done with the novel.
sarahsadiesmith's review against another edition
4.0
This instalment of the Martin Beck series isn’t quite as good as the ones that came before (or the ones that came after). But ‘isn’t quite as good’ doesn’t mean it’s not a worthwhile read, Reese Witherspoon isn’t quite as good an actress as Meryl Streep yet I still love the both of them. I will also fight you if you are mean about the Witherspoon, the same sentence has already been uttered with regard to wee Streepsy.
The crime this book revolves around is the casual murder of a prominent industrialist, who is shot while having dinner at a business meeting in the Savoy, the killer jumps out the window and subsequently disappears as they tend to do. We actually tend to have more sympathy for the murder than the murdee as the story progresses. I very much enjoy when an author is able to subvert our preconceptions about good and evil as Sjöwall and Wahlöö manage to do so adeptly here.
The novels in the series thus far have offered a social commentary on Sweden, and little jibes about the inefficiency of the political system and the impact this has upon the welfare of the population economically but also with respect to their mental wellbeing. Further to that they have delved a little into the idea of who is responsible for crime, this idea comes to the fore in this novel and increasingly so in the remaining five novels of the series, I’ll write more about that in their reviews however as its more a strong undercurrent in this story as opposed to the wave that carries the other novels forward.
This review is a little bit of a stopgap as I have four more to write this morning and they could get a tiny bit repetitive, especially as each time I’ll want to say how much I love all the characters and each novels only serves to increase my understanding of their motivations and appreciate the nuanced way Sjöwall and Wahlöö convey their interactions and also development. It would appear yet again I’ve gone and said that here. Oh well.
If it’s not apparent by this stage I very much recommend this series, this not quite a good story is still a solid 4 out of 5 so really I’m splitting hairs trying to say it is anything less than the others.