14. Sun Storm by Åsa Larsson

I’m not sure if that name is male or female. But I think, maybe, it’s pronounced like “oosa”. That’s how I say it in my head anyway.

I liked this book a lot. Not sure how the title fits with the rest of the book though. It was probably called something else in Sweden, something like Terrible Church Murder. hee.

I enjoyed the mystery, I really loved that it had two main characters (good guys) who don’t even know each other (i can’t think of another mystery book I’ve read that’s had that), and I thought it had excellent pacing. I also enjoyed the fact that it did not have a love story going on in it, not really, anyway. I think a lot of American crime fiction writers feel compelled to add love/sex in their books and lots of times it adds nothing to the story. There was no filler in this.

In very short, Rebecka Martinsson is a financial lawyer who returns to her small village of Kiruna when she learns one of her friends from her old church days has been murdered. She helps the sister of the victim (there’s a weird relationship there. i couldn’t for the life of me figure out if Rebecka had a thing for Victor or for his sister Sanna. There was an ambiguous anger going on.) who becomes the main suspect. Crazy things happen.

The other main character (at least I think of her as a main character) is inspector Anna-Maria Mella. She’s pregnant with her third or fourth child and is working with her partner Sven-Erik to solve the murder. She’s not supposed to be working because she’s almost due, but anyway. I thought Anna-Maria and Rebecka would work together to solve the mystery but they don’t really. They remain like aquaintences.

I’m assuming (uh oh) that it was translated by a British person. I’m not criticizing, just stating.

Great book. I’d recommend it to anyone who likes crime fic.

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