Roseanna: A Martin Beck Police Mystery (1)

Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö's first Martin Beck mystery, "Roseanna," deals with the unexpected discovery of a corpse in Motala, Sweden, when a bucket dredging machine unclogs a canal to prepare it for the spring boat traffic. On a warm and beautiful day, the bucket gobbles up not only mud but the nude body of a young woman in her late twenties. The police try to identify the victim, but since no one of her description has been reported missing, the authorities are stymied. First Detective Inspector Martin Beck of the Swedish National Police, an eight year veteran of the Homicide Bureau, rushes off to work, eager to say goodbye to his indolent wife ("Years had passed since they had really talked.") When he arrives at Motala to assist local law enforcement officials with the aforementioned case, Beck receives a gloomy report: "We haven't learned a thing [in eight days]. We don't know who she is, we don't know the scene of the crime, and we have no suspects." Beck's colleagues, Melander and Kollberg, are doing what they can to assist with the investigation, but are also getting nowhere. Although most people would throw up their hands in defeat, Beck is "stubborn and logical, and completely calm." Although he develops a terrible cold and sore throat, he continues with his routine. He and his team persist until they finally discover the name of the deceased; they then attempt to retrace her movements in the days leading up to her death. What makes "Roseanna," first published in 1965, a groundbreaking crime novel? Sjöwall and Wahlöö write in a spare, no-nonsense style, with just the right amount of detail, no theatrics, and little violence. They humanize their detectives, depicting each with his particular problems, quirks, strengths, and weaknesses. Melander has a photographic memory and smokes smelly cigars; Kollberg is chubby and addicted to rich food. Both are highly competent. The dialogue is realistic and often dryly amusing. The authors demonstrate how unromantic and tedious police work can be, often requiring an inordinate amount of time in the pursuit of leads that prove fruitless. It is only the detectives' stubborn determination to succeed that finally leads to a resolution. Those who pursue murderers pay a huge price for their dedication. They live stressful lives, with very little time to sleep or enjoy a leisurely meal. To achieve their goal, they need the ability to observe the evidence closely and interpret it correctly. Martin Beck has both of these skills; in addition, when confronted with a complex puzzle, he uses his sharp intuition and imagination to put the jumbled pieces together. He may not be physically formidable ("He was pale and looked sallow and he had dark circles under his eyes.") or heroic, but Beck is meticulous and thorough, with an ability see the whole picture. He rarely misses the forest for the trees. Sometimes the only difference between a cold case and a satisfying conclusion is a detective's

For those who have read all of Commisar Wallender's cases there are two directions to go in. One is forward, to Icelandic author Arnaldur Indridasen, another is backward in time to the mysteries of Sjöwall and Wahlöö. both paths should be taken! S & W write clearly in a psycho-sociological vein that must (as he admits) have influenced Mankell. In S & W there is less introspection on the part of Inspector Beck, and no parallel description (until the end) of the mentality of the criminal. But like Mankell, the criminal paints a clear psychological picture of why he acted as he did. I'm now reading my second S & W, have bought four. This review is based on the Norwegian translation of Roseanna.

The first in a series of ten detective novels intended to portray the decay of modern Scandinavian society though the lens of the police procedural. Written by a husband and wife team, (Sjowall and Wahloo), the books are excellently plotted and written, with an eye toward detail and realism.In this first book, the emphasis is more on introducing the characters and their methods, with very little political or social commentary. The protagonist is the hapless Martin Beck, a homicide detective with the Stockholm police force, trapped in a loveless marriage at home and stultified by inept bueracracy at the workplace. His escape from the tedium of existence is his quiet, unstated, love of police work, particularly his own methodical approach to homicide. This book introduces us to Beck, and follows his patient investigation into the rape, bludgeoning, and subsequent drowning of an American tourist named Roseanna. It is one of the best in the series; in fact, its probably one of the greatest crime novels ever written. Start with this book and read the rest of the series. You won't be disappointed.

The Martin Beck books by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo are individually brilliant and collectively stunning. It's incredible that this series isn't available in its entirety -- so many people are being deprived of a great reading experience. One can only hope that some publisher will get wise and bring them all back into print. In the way that Tony Hillerman takes you into the Southwest or Laurie King evokes the world of Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes, Sjowall and Wahloo paint a stark, but not grim, picture of modern Sweden and a great portrait of Martin Beck, an imperfect but admirable human being.

Imagine hearing this book read aloud at lunchtimes in the Hennepin County morgue: the perfect setting for hooking a young medical student on this grisly, funny, delightful series. Start with Roseanna, the first of ten books that develop the honorable, persistent, and yes, somewhat pathetic detective Martin Beck into a whole person. The setting - socialist Sweden in the 1960s - is as fully characterized as Philip Marlowe's or Easy Rawlins' L.A. And like Chandler and Mosley, the husband and wife writing team make you care about the hero and his oddball supporting cast. Only dogged police work (and a little luck) allow them to nab the murderer of an unidentified young woman whose nude body washes up on shore. Enjoy!