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A review by meloches
Block 46 by Maxim Jakubowski, Johana Gustawsson
5.0
Well, I am going to cut to the chase people. Block 46, by Johana Gustawsson, absolutely blew me away. This book will end up being one of my favourite reads of the year. Hands down. No questions.
This book wears so many hats; it truly is a book for everyone. Fans of historical fiction will love its general premise rooted in the Second World War and the Holocaust. Suspense and mystery fans will devour its ominous tone, it’s red herrings and intricate, meticulously weaved storyline. Thriller fans will be impressed with the pace, the jaw-dropping plot twist, and the creepy nature of the serial killer character.
In this story, multiple things are happening right from the first pages. In 2014, in Sweden, a body of a woman is discovered and investigators begin to hunt down the perpetrator. Not far, in England, the bodies of young boys are being discovered in shallow graves, the work of another serial killer. Emily Roy, an RCMP (yeah Canada!) and a profiler on loan to the Scotland Yard begins working alongside true crime writer Alexis Castells to investigate these cases. Meanwhile, the novel flashes back and forth to 1944 to Buchenwald Concentration Camp where Enrich Ebner is suffering in the midst of the Holocaust.
Continuously throughout my reading, I was torn. Normally something stands out for me in a book. There is a narration I am biased towards, a character I prefer or someone’s story I wish to hear more of. This novel left me with none of those feelings. Each story I wanted to absorb fully. Each narration I devoured and each character brought something so deliciously dark and disturbing to the text. As far as I am concerned, Gustawsson is a literary genius.
I do not want to say any more for fear of spoiling any of this plot, but I will say one thing: if you are going to read one novel this year. Make it Block 46. I am still reeling.
5/5 stars. Can I rate a book a 6?
This book wears so many hats; it truly is a book for everyone. Fans of historical fiction will love its general premise rooted in the Second World War and the Holocaust. Suspense and mystery fans will devour its ominous tone, it’s red herrings and intricate, meticulously weaved storyline. Thriller fans will be impressed with the pace, the jaw-dropping plot twist, and the creepy nature of the serial killer character.
In this story, multiple things are happening right from the first pages. In 2014, in Sweden, a body of a woman is discovered and investigators begin to hunt down the perpetrator. Not far, in England, the bodies of young boys are being discovered in shallow graves, the work of another serial killer. Emily Roy, an RCMP (yeah Canada!) and a profiler on loan to the Scotland Yard begins working alongside true crime writer Alexis Castells to investigate these cases. Meanwhile, the novel flashes back and forth to 1944 to Buchenwald Concentration Camp where Enrich Ebner is suffering in the midst of the Holocaust.
Continuously throughout my reading, I was torn. Normally something stands out for me in a book. There is a narration I am biased towards, a character I prefer or someone’s story I wish to hear more of. This novel left me with none of those feelings. Each story I wanted to absorb fully. Each narration I devoured and each character brought something so deliciously dark and disturbing to the text. As far as I am concerned, Gustawsson is a literary genius.
I do not want to say any more for fear of spoiling any of this plot, but I will say one thing: if you are going to read one novel this year. Make it Block 46. I am still reeling.
5/5 stars. Can I rate a book a 6?