A review by kawther
The Absent One by Jussi Adler-Olsen

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I picked this up because I enjoyed the Netflix adaptation, Dept. Q, and found that after I was done, I wanted to consume another story with a similar mystery vibe. When I found out it was a whole series following the main character, Carl Morck, and his investigation of cold cases, I thought great, I’ll read the second book! 

Well, bad idea. For starters, the story was not really a mystery where we don’t know who committed the crimes. It’s pretty much clear from the outset who the culprits are, and the rest of the story just provides more information on their backgrounds and pasts. This may be a style some are happy with, but I I think a large portion of the fun I have reading mysteries are from that constant guessing of who did it, analysing motives, and coming up with my own theories. With this book, you get none of that.

But honestly, that’s not even why I gave this book a 1 star - it was the racism. Was it overt? No. But the fact that all the brown and black characters were there to serve the white characters was probably even worse in some ways! And, the only brown character who is not in this position is Carl’s sidekick, Assad, who is a Syrian Muslim. Now, Assad’s portrayal wasn’t bad. But naming him Assad was just incredibly distasteful - it comes across as the author wanting to add a sprinkle of diversity but wasn’t bothered to look for another name other than the widely known name of a dictator. I’m sure the creators of the Netflix show thought the same thing because Assad’s character is renamed.

All in all, this just proves that adaptations can be better than books, and that I should just wait and hope Dept. Q gets renewed for another season!