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The Man Who Went Up in Smoke: A Martin Beck Police Mystery Audiobook
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(3.00) - 1,704 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
His holiday with his family has just begun, but a phone call sends Martin Beck packing off to Budapest, where a boorish journalist has vanished without a trace. With the aid of the coolly efficient local police, who do business while soaking at the public baths, Beck must troll about in the Eastern Europe underworld for a man nobody knows—while he is at the risk of vanishing along with his quarry.
The Man Who Went Up in Smoke gives us the dedicated Beck at his most engaging: indulging in the sumptuous Hungarian cuisine, longing for a decent cigarette, and evading a predatory nymphet, even as he pursues a case whose international boundaries grow with every new clue.
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"Cripes, these are good. And good translations, too. This is the second one I've read by this married couple and they each had an inevitability about that that I really like. Like Inspector Maigret, Martin Beck is incredibly competent and the book follows him step-by-step as he solves this puzzle of a crime. I like knowing that the detective will solve the case rather than stumble on its solution by accident."
— Kate (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Martin Beck is a man driven to solve puzzles, with a small tragic intuition swimming deep in his mental waters that will surface suddenly to give a muted howl and then dive down again.”
— New York Times -
“They changed the genre. Whoever is writing crime fiction after these novels is inspired by them in one way or another.”
— Henning Mankell, author of Firewall -
“Enormously satisfying.”
— Washington Post Book World -
“If you haven’t read Sjowall/Wahloo, start now.”
— Sunday Telegraph -
“The depth of Tom Weiner’s masculine timbre accurately brings the flawed, depressed Beck to the mind’s eye. Weiner’s oft-used monotone is reminiscent of early noir cinema, and he skillfully employs a lightness of tone when vocalizing women’s voices.”
— AudioFile
Awards
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Winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Mystery
The Man Who Went Up in Smoke Listener Reviews
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" Another Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo thriller starring Martin Beck. Scandanavian as can be. "
— Linda, 2/5/2014 -
" I have always enjoyed these authors (husband and wife). I read it long ago. "
— Gaile, 2/5/2014 -
" Tried my best to like the book and it did have some qualities but lagged in the end and my attention waned. "
— Russell, 1/25/2014 -
" I love Scandanavian mystery writers. Their books grasp me from the first page and don't let go until the last, but for some reason, I can't get into Maj Sjowall. I leave his books less than thrilled yet I keep trying with other books of his. Hmmmm. "
— Naomi, 1/24/2014 -
" I didn't find this as engaging as Roseanna perhaps because the body doesn't show up until the end. Also the differences between the two writers began to show and I developed a preference. Will persevere with the series. "
— Stephen, 1/10/2014 -
" Surprisingly good novel, one would expect after more then 40 years this would be outdated, well apparently this Swedish couple was ahead of their time. Will read them all. "
— Maarten, 12/30/2013 -
" This shows how Martin Beck keeps plugging away at how things happen. If he keeps plugging away he will eventually figure it out. "
— Kenneth, 12/28/2013 -
" Avvincente e un po' anomalo questo giallo che vede Martin Beck varcare i confini della Svezia. "
— Arianna, 12/24/2013 -
" Perfect police procedure, like many Swedish crime novels. Martin Beck is just a real person doing a real job, and the book is ultimately satisfying. "
— Lee, 12/22/2013 -
" Good but I was as frustrated as the protagonist that he didn't get to enjoy his family vacation camping on a little Swedish island. I guess I want to find a book about that. "
— Jenine, 11/10/2013 -
" I had planned to read the ten mysteries written by this pair of Swedes, but....I don't like this type of mystery--no women except patient or not patient wives, no story except the crime. I like broader mysteries. "
— Paulette, 10/5/2013 -
" The story moved too slowly. I kept waiting for something good (or bad) to happen. Wouldn't recommend this book, but might try the author again. "
— Tomi, 11/9/2012 -
" The ten book series written by this couple is a masterwork. Any masterpiece has its slight flaw. Unfortunately, this one is it. Read the others first, and then come back to this one if you need another fix. "
— Michael, 4/17/2012 -
" Good read. Quick and easy to follow except for the Swedish names which I had trouble with...a bit. "
— Elizabeth, 11/26/2011 -
" pretty interesting. it's definitely more banal than most mystery/police/psychofcriminal novels... but there is something really endearing about martin beck and his coworkers. "
— Brook, 10/16/2011 -
" I enjoyed this second book but I felt that there was less interaction between the main characters in the book than in the first one "
— Rosemary, 8/2/2011 -
" I do like this series... "
— Stuart, 3/19/2011 -
" The Vintage editions have the best covers I've seen, with great introductions form a host of interesting writers. But the translations seem to be a bit lacking. I need to try another translation to compare, but not been impressed with the two Vintage translated Beck mysteries I've read so far. "
— Barrie, 11/21/2010
About the Authors
Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö, wife and husband team, wrote ten Martin Beck mysteries, virtually creating the modern police procedural. In addition to the many short stories and novels he wrote, Mr. Wahlöö, who died in 1975, wrote numerous radio and television plays and was a reporter for several Swedish newspapers and magazines. Maj Sjöwall is also a journalist and poet. She lives in Sweden.
Tom Weiner, a dialogue director and voice artist best known for his roles in video games and television shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Transformers, is the winner of eight Earphones Awards and Audie Award finalist. He is a former member of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.
About Tom Weiner
Tom Weiner, a dialogue director and voice artist best known for his roles in video games and television shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Transformers, is the winner of eight Earphones Awards and is an Audie Award finalist. He is a former member of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.