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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
My favorite of the Wallander series thus far. Lovely depictions of his relationships with his dying father and adult father.
The intricate web Mankell has woven through this book is predictable only in the way that you figure out something precisely two beats before Wallander does (aside from the killer, of course). His penchant for writing from both criminal and inspector points of view continues in this installment, and is probably one of the reasons I'm enjoying this series.
Still finding it difficult to swallow the weird "Sweden used to be idyllic but now it's going to hell" view the policemen have in these books -- is that really how Sweden was in the 90's? The steady increase in female characters in important and authoritative roles is nice, though again, it's never done without some comment about how "times have changed".
Still finding it difficult to swallow the weird "Sweden used to be idyllic but now it's going to hell" view the policemen have in these books -- is that really how Sweden was in the 90's? The steady increase in female characters in important and authoritative roles is nice, though again, it's never done without some comment about how "times have changed".
READ IN DUTCH
Sidetracked was one of my favorite Wallander books, most of all because I found it was very compelling. It has all the things we have come to expect from Scandinavian literature, gloomy flawed police officers and social criticism. Mixed with this is a murder investigation that kept the pace flowing. I liked the Wallander series in general, but this one is a personal favorite.
Sidetracked was one of my favorite Wallander books, most of all because I found it was very compelling. It has all the things we have come to expect from Scandinavian literature, gloomy flawed police officers and social criticism. Mixed with this is a murder investigation that kept the pace flowing. I liked the Wallander series in general, but this one is a personal favorite.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Wallander is “just some guy” but I love him for it. Liked his relationships with his daughter and father. Chilling imagery of burning alive, face paint, and scalping.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Trafficking
brutal Scandinavian police procedural, story unfolds in a very engaging way, Wallander himself is the best part of this series
This series and getting more and more addictive ... I found the first book (Faceless Killers) a little dreary, but all the others have been incredible.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Scandinavian mysteries, man. They're so...literal. Matter of fact. i can never tell if the sense of distance is due to the way they're translated or a cultural writing style, like the circular loops of Latin American novels.
But as a Latvia fan, I'm a sucker for any series where the main character is dating Baiba Liepa. This one was fascinating in that we knew so much about the murderer (but not everything!), so we even knew when the detective was meeting him. A really different and interesting twist on the standard mystery.
I was of two minds about the prologue. Part of me was like, seriously? You have to take this terrible thing and make me feel even worse about it? But then again, when you write about an "issue"--in this case, human trafficking--it is maybe too easy for the reader to think, "Oh, that's terrible, those sure are bad guys doing that." But to find out how dearly cherished one victim was, to see how thoroughly her spirit was broken despite being born into love and devotion--this makes the political personal again. We all know trafficking is wrong; but it is easy to forget that each single individual caught up in it has a story.
But as a Latvia fan, I'm a sucker for any series where the main character is dating Baiba Liepa. This one was fascinating in that we knew so much about the murderer (but not everything!), so we even knew when the detective was meeting him. A really different and interesting twist on the standard mystery.
I was of two minds about the prologue. Part of me was like, seriously? You have to take this terrible thing and make me feel even worse about it? But then again, when you write about an "issue"--in this case, human trafficking--it is maybe too easy for the reader to think, "Oh, that's terrible, those sure are bad guys doing that." But to find out how dearly cherished one victim was, to see how thoroughly her spirit was broken despite being born into love and devotion--this makes the political personal again. We all know trafficking is wrong; but it is easy to forget that each single individual caught up in it has a story.
It dragged a bit through the middle, but the ending was quite exciting.
Kurt Wallander ziet verlangend uit naar een rustige zomervakantie. Een alarmerend telefoontje van een boer verstoort echter zijn plannen. De boer vertelt dat zich in zijn bloeiende koolzaadakker sinds enkele dagen een meisje verborgen houdt. Als Wallander poolshoogte gaat nemen en tussen het koolzaad op haar af loopt, schieten opeens overal vlammen op.
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