The Accidental Further Adventures of the Hundred-Year-Old Man … a review

Two coffins gets mixed up. At a 12 year old Swedish girl’s funeral arrives a black coffin with red Swastikas and yellow fire flames. And a neo-Nazi goon who is mourning his Nazi brother receives a blue coffin with white clouds and little bunnies along the side. The Nazi is pissed. I must admit, this book made me snort so many times that beverages kept going the wrong way and choking me! And that’s exactly what I expected from this sequel.

Like its predecessor,  this book is a fantastic work of modern humour. A number of heads of state feature – including the US, Russia, Germany and North Korea. Our 101 year old protagonist and his good-for-nothing pal take them on a ride – but all is well in the end of course, as the 400 kilos of nuclear uranium is where it is the safest. I will admit, I was hoping both Nicola Sturgeon and Jacinda Ardern would also have cameo appearances – so here’s hoping for yet another book from Jonasson!

This book is a very easy read, it is effortless although long. If like me, you need a light read during this seemingly endless lockdown, then I highly recommend this book. Its light-hearted approach to modern day politics is exactly what we all need to lighten up and laugh a little. Or a lot! Enjoy, and stay safe x

Unwanted …a review

It’s been a while since I finished a book. The main reason for that is, I was reading one during journeys, another one in bed, and yet another one at other times. Anyway, this book, I got it on my Kindle because it is by a Swedish author, Kristina Ohlsson. My experience with the Millenium trilogy and then again with the Hundred year old man book has told me that when it comes to crime fiction, the Swedes know how to make a plot work, obviously, when translated well.

I wasn’t disappointed. This first time author put a woman on the police force. Not as a love interest, but an actual contributor to the investigation. Dead kids are cropping up all over Sweden, branded by their killer as ‘Unwanted’ and it is up to Alex, Peder, and Fredrika to figure out who’s behind the murders.

The book is long, it spans over the period of one week and the chapters are divided by days, as one would guess. But each day is very long, so I’d have liked the chapters broken up a bit more, sort of like Robin Cook, when he divides them up by time of day. But aside from that minor fact, the storyline is good! The plot is predictable, but the way it is written makes one want to keep reading anyway. It is the best kind of train read. No dry courtroom scenes, no therapy sessions, just hopping on from one bit of Sweden to another. This woman will go a long way with her later works for sure!