The Stonecutter

Book Review by Reader Maid

My friend Reader Maid likes to read international crime fiction, and I like to read her reviews.

Reader Maid feels international crime authors provide insights and perspectives into their countries yielding societal, cultural, and artistic information that you don't find in a travelogue.

The Stonecutter - Camilla Lackberg

"The Stonecutter" begins when a fisherman pulls young red-haired Sara's lifeless body out of the water along the coast of Fjallbacka, Sweden. At first, it appears the headstrong daughter of Charlotte and Niclas, who have just recently moved to Fjallbacka, has accidentally drowned. But the autopsy reveals that the water in Sara's lungs is not seawater, but bath water.

Now Detective Patrik Hedstrom must conduct a murder investigation among warring neighbors and less-than-happy couples, as well as navigate the political backwaters of the Tanemshede Police Department, a substation of Goteberg, where his incompetent boss, Chief Mellberg, longs to return. In addition, Patrik is the new father of a baby girl and his wife is close friends with the victim's mother, Charlotte. It's all a bit overwhelming for the exhausted detective who finds the investigation has become far more personal than his previous cases.

This third title, an English translation from Swedish author Camilla Lackberg's Fjallbacka mystery series, presents a far more dense narrative landscape than the previous two novels, "The Ice Princess" and "The Preacher." The structure consists of alternating time periods that shift between a story in the past and the present-day account of the murder investigation, but the tie between the two narratives is not revealed until the end.

There are also multiple side stories dealing with the lives and relationships of the various characters. Collectively, it all makes for a somewhat cluttered plot. But Lackberg knits it all together in the end. Although the killer's motivation may seem a bit preposterous, "The Stonecutter" is still a good whodunit police procedural with interesting characters, both new and familiar, in a cozy setting with more than enough mystery to go around.

This review is based on the HarperCollins digital edition.