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jdwek's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
4.5
Very dark and moody, with a very terse and realistic style. Feels like real case notes at points and the way in which it depicts its lead detective Martin Beck as a dogged everyman plodding through the case, working it out through hard work and determination is a refreshing change from much other detective fiction that essentially riffs off Sherlock Holmes.
ekarneback's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
krobart's review against another edition
3.0
Although the pace is much more leisurely than you would find in an American mystery novel, the novel still builds up a fair amount of suspense. Sjöwall and Wahlöö, the husband and wife writing team, set the standard for this type of mystery to come.
See my complete review here:
http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/the-man-on-the-balcony/
See my complete review here:
http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/the-man-on-the-balcony/
ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
3.0
Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö are credited with having created the first series of police procedurals. Originally published in Sweden between 1965 and 1975, the series feels both like an artifact of that time and surprisingly modern. This is the third in the series, and is based on actual events.
Children had a great deal more freedom to roam fifty years ago, and during the long, sunlit summer evenings in Stockholm it wasn't unusual for a child to go out alone to a park after dinner. Until, that is, an elementary school girl is found murdered in a local park. Finding the murderer becomes an endurance test, with hundreds of leads being called in. The lead detective, Martin Beck, knows that solving the crime will require both skill and luck.
Reading a crime novel that takes place in the 1960s was an education. The detectives talk about the new computer system as cutting edge, and rely on newspapers and land-line telephones. And yet the emotions and basic skills are the same as in today's police procedurals; the officers are emotionally drained by the case and it's solution is based on the detectives' ability to remember details and dogged determination.
Children had a great deal more freedom to roam fifty years ago, and during the long, sunlit summer evenings in Stockholm it wasn't unusual for a child to go out alone to a park after dinner. Until, that is, an elementary school girl is found murdered in a local park. Finding the murderer becomes an endurance test, with hundreds of leads being called in. The lead detective, Martin Beck, knows that solving the crime will require both skill and luck.
Reading a crime novel that takes place in the 1960s was an education. The detectives talk about the new computer system as cutting edge, and rely on newspapers and land-line telephones. And yet the emotions and basic skills are the same as in today's police procedurals; the officers are emotionally drained by the case and it's solution is based on the detectives' ability to remember details and dogged determination.
kcfromaustcrime's review against another edition
4.0
Harper Perennial have recently started republishing the Martin Beck series by Sjowall and Wahloo - originally written between 1965 and 1975. (The full series as at this book, is outlined below.) These books are often included in lists of the great classics of crime fiction. They integrate a wide range of social and cultural issues alongside their crime fiction base, making some very pointed observations and statements about Swedish society at the time that they were written. Even allowing for the way that they mirror society, as seen through the author's joint eyes at that time, they also stand up incredibly well in current day terms - there is no sense that they have become dated or antiquated in any way and the message is as relevant and pointed today as it was when they were written.
THE MAN ON THE BALCONY is the fourth in the series being released by Harper, and it covers the confrontational subject matter of the violation and murder of a number of very young girls. Their bodies are found in the parks of Stockholm, and Police Superintendent Martin Beck and his team have only two possible witnesses - one is a 3 year old boy and the other is a mugger who has to be identified, and then made to talk. Stockholm society is becoming increasingly tense, the police are increasing unable to identify any possible suspects, and the investigation drags until a lucky coincidence is recognised for what it is.
Alongside some very caustic social observation in THE MAN IN THE BALCONY, is a team of police that grate up against each other when the pressure is on - their own lives exist in and around their jobs. The effect of the murder of young children affects each one of them in a different way depending upon their own life experience. The effect of the murders on the parents, and on the families of their friends is subtly different for each person encountered, but equally raw and illustrative. The great thing about this team is that they are all human - with problems at home, problems in adjusting to changes in their own lives, problems handling the reactions of the people affected by the murders and problems handling their own reactions. They are also able to put all of that aside and pull together when they finally have a direction in the investigation.
THE MAN ON THE BALCONY reminds the reader that it is possible to bring a multi-layered, character driven, soundly plotted book in a short package. There's also a willingness to use a different style of resolution - in THE MAN ON THE BALCONY the police get lucky and a coincidental comment leads them in the right direction.
Each of the Harper Perennial titles incorporates an introduction written by a well known Crime writer of current times - THE MAN ON THE BALCONY is introduced by Andrew Taylor. He discusses the effect that the books of Sjowall and Wahloo had on his own writing career and that adds an extra layer to the book. Combine that with a PS section at the end including further analysis, and interview with Maj Sjowall, a summary of the next titles in the series and a "If You Liked This...." section and this is a wonderful (and greatly overdue) repackaging of one of the all time great Crime Fiction series.
Full list of titles available from Harper Perennial:
Roseanna
The Man Who Went Up in Smoke
The Man on the Balcony
The Laughing Policeman
The Fire Engine that Disappeared (June 2007)
Murder at the Savoy (June 2007)
THE MAN ON THE BALCONY is the fourth in the series being released by Harper, and it covers the confrontational subject matter of the violation and murder of a number of very young girls. Their bodies are found in the parks of Stockholm, and Police Superintendent Martin Beck and his team have only two possible witnesses - one is a 3 year old boy and the other is a mugger who has to be identified, and then made to talk. Stockholm society is becoming increasingly tense, the police are increasing unable to identify any possible suspects, and the investigation drags until a lucky coincidence is recognised for what it is.
Alongside some very caustic social observation in THE MAN IN THE BALCONY, is a team of police that grate up against each other when the pressure is on - their own lives exist in and around their jobs. The effect of the murder of young children affects each one of them in a different way depending upon their own life experience. The effect of the murders on the parents, and on the families of their friends is subtly different for each person encountered, but equally raw and illustrative. The great thing about this team is that they are all human - with problems at home, problems in adjusting to changes in their own lives, problems handling the reactions of the people affected by the murders and problems handling their own reactions. They are also able to put all of that aside and pull together when they finally have a direction in the investigation.
THE MAN ON THE BALCONY reminds the reader that it is possible to bring a multi-layered, character driven, soundly plotted book in a short package. There's also a willingness to use a different style of resolution - in THE MAN ON THE BALCONY the police get lucky and a coincidental comment leads them in the right direction.
Each of the Harper Perennial titles incorporates an introduction written by a well known Crime writer of current times - THE MAN ON THE BALCONY is introduced by Andrew Taylor. He discusses the effect that the books of Sjowall and Wahloo had on his own writing career and that adds an extra layer to the book. Combine that with a PS section at the end including further analysis, and interview with Maj Sjowall, a summary of the next titles in the series and a "If You Liked This...." section and this is a wonderful (and greatly overdue) repackaging of one of the all time great Crime Fiction series.
Full list of titles available from Harper Perennial:
Roseanna
The Man Who Went Up in Smoke
The Man on the Balcony
The Laughing Policeman
The Fire Engine that Disappeared (June 2007)
Murder at the Savoy (June 2007)
emjay2021's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. This is the first of the classic Swedish Detective Martin Beck mysteries that I’ve read. It was a pretty good, if disturbing, book to start with. (Content warning: the cases involve sexual abuse and murder of children.) This is a very realistic police procedural; it accurately describes the tedium, grunt work, and lucky coincidences that go into solving crimes. The detectives are all kind of tired and overworked and some are real jerks, but they are all in terrified overdrive trying to catch the murderer. The crimes are senseless and heartbreaking; the victims’ families are ordinary people.
The writing by the husband and wife team is spare and workmanlike but very competent. No flowery prose here, but Sjöwall and Wahlöö paint a pretty clear picture of 1960s Stockholm, both geographically, socially, and culturally. It was interesting to observe the different culture not just of Sweden but of a time a half century ago, when men dominated the workforce and women were called girls. The past really is a different country! Also, though it was written in 1967, I could see the DNA of many modern detective series, most strikingly of course Henning Menkell’s Wallander, but also Ian Rankin’s Rebus and Jo Nesbø’s Harry Hole.
The plot is tight and the mystery satisfying, but I’m only giving it 3.5 because the writing is a bit too detached for my taste. Still, I’m sure I’ll read more of this series.
The writing by the husband and wife team is spare and workmanlike but very competent. No flowery prose here, but Sjöwall and Wahlöö paint a pretty clear picture of 1960s Stockholm, both geographically, socially, and culturally. It was interesting to observe the different culture not just of Sweden but of a time a half century ago, when men dominated the workforce and women were called girls. The past really is a different country! Also, though it was written in 1967, I could see the DNA of many modern detective series, most strikingly of course Henning Menkell’s Wallander, but also Ian Rankin’s Rebus and Jo Nesbø’s Harry Hole.
The plot is tight and the mystery satisfying, but I’m only giving it 3.5 because the writing is a bit too detached for my taste. Still, I’m sure I’ll read more of this series.
saltycorpse's review against another edition
2.0
Man on the Balcony does a great job showing the 'old school' anatomy of a police investigation but leaves out entire blocks of information they would have on the killer has the book gone on just twenty more pages.
marco5599's review against another edition
4.0
For those that like a little realism in their crime solving. And realism is what you get with this perp and outcome. Still classic and meticulous policework, but faster paced than the previous Becks. Not much room for personal life here, this one has more focus on the case, more pressure and a little more action. It also dips its toes in some social issues. More of that in future parts, if I'm not mistaken. Oh, and our grumbling and moping heroes have to deal with something of a computer now. The times they were a-changing. Four star read. Obviously.
smemmott's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Murder, Child death, and Sexual assault