Kristian London

For me, this thriller was just compelling enough to finish -- it did not live up to its interesting premise. It's set in Finland, but most of the characters are members of Finland's small Jewish community, including the detective who tells the story. That leaves room for conflicted loyalties, complex motives, cultural ambiguities -- all those things that can lend depth and interest to a thriller. The depth is pretty shallow, however, and the interest was just enough to keep me reading to the end. There's little Finnishness about the book (the main thing we hear about the country is that it is cold) There's a bit more Jewishness, and some sense of what it's like to operate in a very small community where everybody knows everybody. But if this causes the detective any conflict, it's not obvious. And the motivating force in the story isn't really character, it's far-away machinations by business people and politicians. At some point I may read the first story in the series, but I'm not in any rush. Would be give it two stars, except for the strongish characterization.… (meer)