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A review by kikiandarrowsfishshelf
Borderline by Liza Marklund
5.0
ARC; Via Netgalley
Nordic crime fiction does tend to be rather dark and have depressing characters. It is successful in part because of its mood. It is difficult for an American to image a Nordic version of Poirot or Miss Marple. Nordic fiction goes good with hard liquor.
But Liza Marklund doesn’t quite flow this pattern in her Annika Bengzton series. In fact, of the female Nordic mystery writers I have read (which I will admit is few), the books on a whole tend to be a little less dark, a little more bright.
Not that it’s all sunshine and roses. Not that’s roses.
In this installment of the Annika Bengzton series, Annika finds herself as the news instead of reporting the news when her husband Thomas is taken hostage in Africa. While Annika with the help of Thomas’ boss Jimmy tries to get her husband back, her co-workers at her newspaper deal with what could be a serial killer murdering house wives in Stockholm.
What stops the book for simply becoming a run of the mile Nordic crime book are Annika’s relationships with her children and those around her. Annika may not be the most socially apt personal in the universe. She’s a bit too blunt, a bit too pessimist, a bit too judgmental, a bit too driven – yet for all those flaws she comes across as far more believable than many other detectives. She’s isn’t as far off “normalcy” (whatever that is) than Lisbeth Salander, from a far more famous Swedish series (which gets a mention in this book btw). While her relationship with her husband, Thomas, is not the best, her relationship with her children is a loving and close one. Considering how many Nordic mysteries have fathers suffering the guilt or effects of a bad relationship with children, this makes for a nice change. Also is the fact that despite Annika’s societal clumsiness she does have friends, and in fact, is able to seemingly add to that, adeptly, small list in this installment. Annika’s relationship is so refreshingly every day that it is a wonder.
The use of the two plots- the kidnapping and the possible serial murder is rather interesting. Another different aspect is the inclusion of Thomas’ voice every so often as Marklund illustrates how he is dealing with his captivity. And it isn’t a Hollywood version of a kidnapping, things are messy and unpleasant. Thomas, who has never been the most sympathetic character in the series, actually comes across as sympathetic, even if you think he is a douche. What is interesting in the kidnapping plot is not only Annika’s reaction to being the news and how she uses it, but also the amount of effort and detail that goes into her resolution. Furthermore, the plot is more timely and terrifying because it is so based in reality. Marklund also includes some political debate – in particular about race and kidnapping - that make the plot more fleshed out and more realistic.
The serial killer plot concerns mostly the other workers at Annika’s paper, though she does make a secondary appearance in this plot as well. What makes this interesting is the close up view of the newspaper in the modern world as it struggles along with blogs, webcams, and whatnot. There is a debate about news versus sensationalism that plays out over the course of the story. If you loved the last season of HBO’s The Wire, the secondary plot in this book is right up your alley. The emphasis on and the theme of journalistic ethics also appears in the kidnapping plot but more in relation to Annika and her status as a reporter.
There is not a wasted word or scene in this book and it is what it says it is - a thriller. It’s a shame that Annika is not as popular or as famous as her Nordic compatriots, for she is far more interesting.
Nordic crime fiction does tend to be rather dark and have depressing characters. It is successful in part because of its mood. It is difficult for an American to image a Nordic version of Poirot or Miss Marple. Nordic fiction goes good with hard liquor.
But Liza Marklund doesn’t quite flow this pattern in her Annika Bengzton series. In fact, of the female Nordic mystery writers I have read (which I will admit is few), the books on a whole tend to be a little less dark, a little more bright.
Not that it’s all sunshine and roses. Not that’s roses.
In this installment of the Annika Bengzton series, Annika finds herself as the news instead of reporting the news when her husband Thomas is taken hostage in Africa. While Annika with the help of Thomas’ boss Jimmy tries to get her husband back, her co-workers at her newspaper deal with what could be a serial killer murdering house wives in Stockholm.
What stops the book for simply becoming a run of the mile Nordic crime book are Annika’s relationships with her children and those around her. Annika may not be the most socially apt personal in the universe. She’s a bit too blunt, a bit too pessimist, a bit too judgmental, a bit too driven – yet for all those flaws she comes across as far more believable than many other detectives. She’s isn’t as far off “normalcy” (whatever that is) than Lisbeth Salander, from a far more famous Swedish series (which gets a mention in this book btw). While her relationship with her husband, Thomas, is not the best, her relationship with her children is a loving and close one. Considering how many Nordic mysteries have fathers suffering the guilt or effects of a bad relationship with children, this makes for a nice change. Also is the fact that despite Annika’s societal clumsiness she does have friends, and in fact, is able to seemingly add to that, adeptly, small list in this installment. Annika’s relationship is so refreshingly every day that it is a wonder.
The use of the two plots- the kidnapping and the possible serial murder is rather interesting. Another different aspect is the inclusion of Thomas’ voice every so often as Marklund illustrates how he is dealing with his captivity. And it isn’t a Hollywood version of a kidnapping, things are messy and unpleasant. Thomas, who has never been the most sympathetic character in the series, actually comes across as sympathetic, even if you think he is a douche. What is interesting in the kidnapping plot is not only Annika’s reaction to being the news and how she uses it, but also the amount of effort and detail that goes into her resolution. Furthermore, the plot is more timely and terrifying because it is so based in reality. Marklund also includes some political debate – in particular about race and kidnapping - that make the plot more fleshed out and more realistic.
The serial killer plot concerns mostly the other workers at Annika’s paper, though she does make a secondary appearance in this plot as well. What makes this interesting is the close up view of the newspaper in the modern world as it struggles along with blogs, webcams, and whatnot. There is a debate about news versus sensationalism that plays out over the course of the story. If you loved the last season of HBO’s The Wire, the secondary plot in this book is right up your alley. The emphasis on and the theme of journalistic ethics also appears in the kidnapping plot but more in relation to Annika and her status as a reporter.
There is not a wasted word or scene in this book and it is what it says it is - a thriller. It’s a shame that Annika is not as popular or as famous as her Nordic compatriots, for she is far more interesting.