The Return: An Inspector Van Veeteren Mystery (3)

Nesser is a new writer for me. I've read two of his books and have enjoyed both of them. I am looking for more. He writes beautifully. His lead character is a dour, extremely intelligent, thoughtful guy--fairly unique to this genre of detectives. His plot is full of interesting twists and for those who pride themselves on figuring out "who done it" after the first chapter, Nesser will fool you.

Another excellent example of mystery writing that does NOT depend on sex, violence and four letter words to tell a story that keeps you wondering about the outcome. You soon feel you know Van Veeteren and the conditions he works under as if they are old friends. You really feel the chill and damp of Scandinavian winters.

Hakan Nesser's "The Return" is another of the good Swedish police procedurals translated for consumption by the English speaking market. On the whole, the novel is a compelling read diminished only by Nesser's shallow development of his characters except for the victimized villain. The author has a penchant for commencing chapters with riveting plot action without identifying his characters. While this makes the action suspenseful, is can also cause confusion. The storyline revolves around an inquest conducted by Chief Inspector Van Veeteren and his squad of detectives in the Maardam police department. A decapitated corpse also missing hands and feet was discovered wrapped in a carpet by a pre-schooler in a wooded area during a class outing. Immediately the investigation was two pronged. Exactly who was the victim and who was his murderer? Adding depth to the storyline Van Veeteren was being operated on for a colon resection owing to cancer. He would conduct the investigation in part from his convalescent bed. The detectives soon discover that the victim was one Leopold Verhaven. The notorious Verhaven, once a world class middle distance runner, had served two separate 12 year prison terms for the murders of two young women he was romantically involved with. As Van Veeteren looks back at the evidence from the previous killings he gets the feeling that Verhaven might hane been innocent. Using unorthodox means, Van Veeteren and his minions take great pains to uncover the identity of Verhaven's murderer, speculating that this person also committed the crimes that Verhaven was implicated for.

Inspector Van Veeteren is the real gem in this budding series of police procedural novels written by Swede Hakan Nesser. Van Veeteren is the classic chief inspector--crotchety, brusque, prone to flashes of insight gained from mundane life, and a soft spot for his junior partner. Whether he's driving around listening to Monteverdi or grousing about his upcoming surgery, the inspector manages to make the book funny and interesting. Nesser somehow manages to write just a little bit differently about life and happiness, and he injects reality into his characters that make them endearing. The plot is not all that gripping, but Mr. Nesser moves the storyline along nicely without getting bogged down in meaningless descriptions or red herrings. At the end of the day, however, the characters make the book. Van Veeteren is the center, but his coworkers and associates are ones you'd like to get to know. Using his native Sweden makes Nesser's books even more interesting to the US audience that is just learning to love this author worthy to share the table with Henning Mankell.

This one is up with the best from any country but retains its Scandanavian flavor. While Henning Mankell is perhaps the more famous author in this country, Nesser deserves a place among the top international mystery writers. A very good story with developed characters that make you care.