It was a crime of senseless violence. On a cold night in a remote Swedish farmhouse, an elderly farmer was bludgeoned to death, his wife left to die with a noose around her neck. As if this didn’t present enough problems for Ystad police inspector Kurt Wallander, the dying woman’s last word, his only tangible clue, was “foreign.” If publicized, it could be the match that would inflame Sweden’s already smoldering anti-immigrant sentiments.
In this case, unlike the situation with his ex-wife, his estranged daughter, or the young prosecutor who has piqued his interest, Wallander finds a problem he can handle. He quickly becomes obsessed with solving the crime before the already tense situation explodes—though it will require all of his talent to do so.
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"Great example of one of my favorite genres - police procedurals. This is the first in the series of books featuring Kurt Wallandar. These take place in Sweden and are filled with descriptions of daily life there. Wallandar is a complicated man - desperately lonely, with fractured ties to his closest family, yet he's gifted at digging the truth out of reluctant witnesses and suspects. You can't help liking Wallandar, feeling sorry for him and yet sometimes his awkwardness is too painful to witness." — Celia (4 out of 5 stars)
"Great example of one of my favorite genres - police procedurals. This is the first in the series of books featuring Kurt Wallandar. These take place in Sweden and are filled with descriptions of daily life there. Wallandar is a complicated man - desperately lonely, with fractured ties to his closest family, yet he's gifted at digging the truth out of reluctant witnesses and suspects. You can't help liking Wallandar, feeling sorry for him and yet sometimes his awkwardness is too painful to witness."
“An especially satisfying crime novel, like those of such past masters as Georges Simenon, Nicholas Freeling, and Sweden’s own Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö.”
“Inspector Wallander has established himself as one of the best of recent detectives…Tightly plotted.”
“Intelligent, moving and topical, this is a thriller of the very best kind.”
“An exquisite novel of mesmerizing depth and suspense.”
“A well-crafted police procedural…The story moves along at a brisk pace and comes to an exciting climax.”
“Combines thriller-quality entertainment with a depiction of antiforeigner prejudice in Sweden, painted here as a very chilly place indeed.”
“[A] brilliant US debut…The author goes well beyond the narrow police procedural in creating a full-bodied Wallander and in casting light on the refugee problem in contemporary Swedish society.”
“Mankell’s work mixes compelling procedural details with strong social consciousness…A superior novel—and a harbinger of great things to come.”
" My first Henning Mankell book it is well written and the reader very competent "
" Really enjoyed my first Wallander novel - so much so decided to read another. "
" There was good characters and an interesting story. For a book about Sweden, it seemed rather common. I didn't feel like I was reading about a foreign place. It did have the feel of the locations that show up in British novels but I thought there would be more exotic about it. What was exotic was the manner which the story unwinds. It was not the typical American mystery procedural. "
" He may be a Swedish mystery author, but he is not Steig Larsson! Oh well. "
" Quick read yet satisfying crime novel by a Swedish writer, although no comparison to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. "
" It's fine. This shit's all getting overdone. "
" when I should be reading other things... "
" I've read these out of order. Perhaps because of the lack of chronology in my reading, I have enjoyed observing how tightly Mankell watches over his characters and their environments over the years and over the volumes. Because of this, Wallander really does live for me, long after I've closed the book. "
" Finally I've read the first in the series. Surprisingly sparse language compared to the later titles, although as usual the most intriguing character is Kurt's father. "
" I wanted to read these books after seeing the series on PBS. I loved the book & although wallander is whit depressing I like the intricacies of the crime story. "
" i'm excited for the kurt wallander crime series - the first book i really enjoyed reading in the first half. towards the end if felt rushed and anticlimactic. "
" Henning Mankell deserves the reputation. Good book. I think I like Jo Nesbo's books better, though. Need to try another Nesbo to compare! "
" not the same as Steig Larsson...should not be compared to the The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Was expecting more - especially with that comparison. "
" It was entertaining enough, but the only commonality i could see between this book and the Lisbeth Salandar series is that it was set in Sweden. No character development and a grim outlook on the future. "
" I've become hooked on the Henning Mankell novels. "
" Solid first book in a series. It follows what must be closer to police reality - following one lead, coming to a dead end, following another, gaining info, then hitting a brick wall, then chipping away again. "
" Great stuff. Love the flawed main character. Very satisfying read! "
" Love the entire Kurt wallender series, which I first found on PBS but of course the books are better! If you like police procedurals with some great character portraits and can handle reading some unfamiliar Swedish place names, the series is a great read. "
" Well paced crime thriller with plenty of twist and turns to keep the reader guessing what happens next..the premise of this novel is quite different from conventional crime thrillers..overall a decent novel.. "
" I wanted to like this more than I did, but it seemed like there was a ton of filler and excess 'junk' in the story. I just couldn't get myself to like it all that much. "
" Ending not the best but a good mystery none the less. "
" Read part of this then had to it return to Library. Watched BBC production with Kenneth Branagh, instead. It seemed true to book. Kenneth Branagh is Wallander. "
" A very stark, chilling thriller in every sense of the word. For me, epitomizes Scandinavian literature in its minimalism and bleakness. "
" good mystery. The story line flowed smoothly and the ending was climatic. "
" Oddly, I read the first Kurt Wallander mystery, the last. Knowing what comes to many of the characters, it was sad. I'm on my last novel, Depths, and that, will be that, until something new comes out. "
" The first Kurt Wallander book; he's now a Scandinavian detective icon. Gritty police work by a flawed detective in a stark environment. Good enough to make me want to read the next one. "
" This was my first Henning Mankell book, and I was underwhelmed. Just not a page-turner, which is what I anticipated when I started the Kurt Wallander series. I'm now reading his novel "Sidetracked" and it's much better. "
" I really enjoyed this book. What got me interested in reading Mr. Mankell was an Entertainment Weekly peice about how the latest Wallander book was the last in the series. All I need to do now is start reading the other ones. I don't think that I'll be disappointed. "
" Slow, slow, oh, and did I say slow read. I really wanted to like this author, but I'm afraid it's not gonna happen. I wasn't a fan of the main character, Wallander, either. Can't love every mystery/thriller I read so it's on to something else. "
Henning Mankell (1948–2015) was Sweden’s most-read author worldwide. His novels, which include the bestselling Kurt Wallander mysteries, have been translated into thirty-seven languages with more than thirty million copies in print worldwide. He has received the Crime Writers’ Association’s Macallan Gold Dagger and the German Tolerance Prize and has been a three-time finalist for the Los Angeles Times Mystery/Thriller Book Prize.
Dick Hill, named a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine, is one of the most awarded narrators in the business, having earned several Audie Awards and thirty-four AudioFile Earphones Awards. In addition to narrating, he has both acted in and written for the theater.
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