A review by gabmc
The Redeemer by Jo Nesbø

4.0

What does it say about me that I love to read dark Scandinavian crime novels. This one is very dark - both figuratively and literally as it's set in the days leading up to Christmas when there are only a few hours of light each day. One of the main characters is the Norwegian Salvation Army and the first victim is one of its members. Harry Hole and his team discover that they are after a ghost: despite the murder taking place on a busy street corner where the victim and his fellow SA soldiers are singing Christmas carols, hardly anyone saw the gunman. Those that did see him gave very different descriptions of him. The single feature that more than one person agree on was a red scarf. This sole clue leads Harry all the way to Croatia without telling his new boss. Sadly Bjarne Moller, Harry's boss of many years has retired leaving Harry with a new Chief Inspector, Gunnar Hagen. On his retirement, Bjarne gifts harry with a very expensive watch. The ticking of the watch is a theme running through the story and at one point Harry throws the watch out of the window because the ticking is annoying him so much. Harry discovers that a hitman has been hired from Croatia, but his intended victims and who hired him are all part of the mystery.