Liz Loves Books.Com.

Publication Date: Available Now from Sphere.

Source: Publisher review copy

Thorkild Christensen stares down at his murdered wife, Karen, and realises he knows almost nothing about her. How did she fill her days? Where did she really go every Thursday? Detective Thea Krogh is determined to find out as she immerses herself in town life. Yet Karen’s secrets elude her at every turn.
And then a second woman is shot dead.

Well, “Scandi Crime” as it is known – in this case Danish Crime – is a genre I am only just dipping my toe in the water with at the moment although I absolutely devour all the tv adaptations that come my way and always think, hey I should be reading these books. Up until now my main experience has been through The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, so when The Preacher by Danish writer duo Dagmar & Kenneth dropped through my door, I was very excited to read it – and boy was that a book and a half!

Following a variety of characters we are immersed into a police investigation into the deaths of two women – Thea Krogh lead investigator is stumped, there seems to be no motive or reason, but as we delve deeper, a truly horrifying picture emerges. Together with Thorkild Christensen, vicar and husband to one of the victims, Thea finds herself on the trail of a truly dangerous mind…

Some brilliant and evocative writing, a terrific sense of place and really intelligent character building gives a superb reading experience – highly addictive, often scary, yet with a stark realism to it especially with regards to  the ebb and flow of the investigation itself, the whole thing had an edge and an ambience that really appealed to me as a reader. I adored Thorkild even though he was often a bit daft (and in my head he will ALWAYS be “the vicar”) and Thea is a really wonderfully drawn character as far as getting you involved goes. Add to them a supporting cast that all bring their own, often strange reasoning to events and you have a real character driven page turner.

The cover blurb describes it as “Electrifying” and really I can’t put it better than that myself – emotionally charged, the mystery element is also superb with subtle little twists and turns, hints and clues, always always driven by the characters experiences and interpretations, clever plot building at its best. Racking up the tension as we go, never QUITE sure where it is going to lead you and with a truly villainous villain sat right at the heart of it, if you are a lover of Crime Fiction this is like all your birthdays have come at once.

Excellent stuff. Highly Recommended!

Happy Reading Folks!