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In this unique book—mixing true crime, political assassination, espionage, and journal entries—Jan Stocklassa recounts events surrounding one of Sweden’s most baffling cold cases. On the evening of February 28th, 1986, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was out with his wife, when he was shot in the back and died. The assailant fled the scene and police were forced to cobble together eyewitness accounts, though they remained quite flimsy. Struggling journalist Stieg Larsson took up the case when he was roused from bed and began trying to piece together what he knew. Sightings and evidence from the scene led some of believe that Victor Gunnarsson might be a likely suspect. Gunnarsson was well-known to Larsson, who had a history of working to uncover and topple those on the political right with his strong articles. However, Gunnarsson’s guilt soon wavered and the country was clueless as to what might have happened. Larsson used his intuitive nature and some friends in the British press to help him scope out new leads, including some ties to other right-wing organisations. Larsson’s primary focus was a man with strong ties to the South African government, at the time still strong in their apartheid movement, something that Palme had been vocally against during his time in Swedish politics. When the case went cold and Larsson could go no further, he turned to writing what would become his most popular Millennium Trilogy, for which he is best known by many readers. When Larsson dies soon thereafter, Jan Stocklassa was given all his research on the Palme case and thus began a resurgence in the fact checking and pushing for answers. In the latter portion of the book, Stocklassa moves away from laying out what Larsson offered up and followed new and decisive leads to find a killer in a case that had long gone cold but was never far from the minds of Swedish officials. Using these leads and some of his own dabbling into new technology not available at the time, Stocklassa offers readers a new suspect with strong evidence to support the claims. In an investigation that Stieg Larsson began on March 1, 1986, Jan Stocklassa may have finally locked-in an answer, though the authorities have yet to act on everything in this book. Highly entertaining as well as informative, Stocklassa (and Larsson) presents loads of prevalent information and leave the reader with a strong sense that the case might finally have an answer. Recommended to those who love a good true crime mystery, as well as the reader who wishes to learn much about Stieg Larsson before any talk of dragon tattoos came to light.
I was eager to read this book as soon as it crossed my radar. There is much to learn about the case, especially since I knew nothing about it from the outset. Stocklassa does a wonderful job of laying out the basics and using Stieg Larsson’s early notes and work to give the reader the proper context. From there, through a series of formats, the reader is plunged into the middle of the investigation. Stocklassa admits to using first-hand documentation, which further strengthens the Larsson angle of the entire investigation. The case is full of suspects and branch-off possibilities—much like a strong murder mystery—with espionage and the murder of many in a variety of political and social situations, going to show that South Africa was keen to rid itself of dissenters and those who sought to criticise. Even when Stocklassa took over the case himself, there were so many loose ends and trying to tie them off proved difficult for anyone, even a seasoned journalist. The themes brought up throughout make a strong case for a new suspect, one who could likely be convicted. That being said, when dealing with cases that have gone cold for so long, as well as the need to apply for extradition, the waters become murkier, even if the truth shines strong. In a book full of information, Stocklassa mixes journal entries, press clippings, private musings, and evidence analysis to prove a point and make a strong case. With brief chapters, the momentum of the case is not lost on the reader who may worry about being drowned in minutiae. Sweden appears keen to close the case out, as there is still a Palme Investigation taking place, albeit on a smaller scale. A wonderful piece of true crime that reads like a spy novel at times, which will educate the reader with any interest in the subject.
Kudos, Mr. Stocklassa, for such a wonderful piece that not only revives the case of Olof Palme, but also helps readers see a Stieg Larsson before he became a household name in Scandinavian crime thrillers. I know he would be proud of the work you put into this book.
Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/248185-a-book-for-all-seasons
I was eager to read this book as soon as it crossed my radar. There is much to learn about the case, especially since I knew nothing about it from the outset. Stocklassa does a wonderful job of laying out the basics and using Stieg Larsson’s early notes and work to give the reader the proper context. From there, through a series of formats, the reader is plunged into the middle of the investigation. Stocklassa admits to using first-hand documentation, which further strengthens the Larsson angle of the entire investigation. The case is full of suspects and branch-off possibilities—much like a strong murder mystery—with espionage and the murder of many in a variety of political and social situations, going to show that South Africa was keen to rid itself of dissenters and those who sought to criticise. Even when Stocklassa took over the case himself, there were so many loose ends and trying to tie them off proved difficult for anyone, even a seasoned journalist. The themes brought up throughout make a strong case for a new suspect, one who could likely be convicted. That being said, when dealing with cases that have gone cold for so long, as well as the need to apply for extradition, the waters become murkier, even if the truth shines strong. In a book full of information, Stocklassa mixes journal entries, press clippings, private musings, and evidence analysis to prove a point and make a strong case. With brief chapters, the momentum of the case is not lost on the reader who may worry about being drowned in minutiae. Sweden appears keen to close the case out, as there is still a Palme Investigation taking place, albeit on a smaller scale. A wonderful piece of true crime that reads like a spy novel at times, which will educate the reader with any interest in the subject.
Kudos, Mr. Stocklassa, for such a wonderful piece that not only revives the case of Olof Palme, but also helps readers see a Stieg Larsson before he became a household name in Scandinavian crime thrillers. I know he would be proud of the work you put into this book.
Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/248185-a-book-for-all-seasons