Calling Out for You [Paperback]

Starred Review. Fossum may not be well-known outside a select circle, but that could change with the publication of this outstanding contemporary police procedural, the fourth Inspector Sejer mystery to be translated into English (after 2006's He Who Fears the Wolf). Insp. Konrad Sejer is faced with a baffling crime when the battered body of a woman surfaces in a field outside the town of Elvestad. She's soon identified as Poona Jomann, the new wife of Gunder Jomann, who traveled to India in search of a life partner. Gunder's sister's injury in an auto accident kept him from meeting his bride at the airport, leaving her to travel to their new home alone, a journey that ended in murder. With a skill few can equal, Fossum deftly paints the provincial inhabitants of Elvestad, coupling those poignant word portraits with a whodunit and an insightful but fallible detective. The ending is not one most readers will expect, but it perfectly suits the tale of sad, little lives and the tragic consequences of chance. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

*Starred Review* Over the course of a few days, Norwegian bachelor Gunder Jomann experiences both euphoria and utter despair. In India, he meets and marries Poona, the woman of his dreams. He returns to his tiny village of Elvestad, with his new bride scheduled to arrive in a matter of weeks. A family emergency delays Gunder on the day Poona arrives. Tragedy ensues before they can reconnect; she is found brutally murdered less than a mile from her new husband's house. Who in tranquil Elvestad could commit such a heinous act? Shy, contemplative Chief Inspector Konrad Sejer knows that evil lurks deep within even the most seemingly innocent souls. With his baby-faced partner, Jacob Skarre, he methodically follows but a handful of clues. As time passes, the list of suspicious characters grows. There's muscle-bound Goran, whose affable manner belies his might; local café owner Einar, who harbors a general dislike for humankind; and Linda, an attention-starved teenager who dispenses half-truths and lies. This fourth in the Inspector Sejer series showcases the crisp prose and unsettling scenarios that have made Fossum (When the Devil Holds the Candle, 2006) one of Europe's most successful crime novelists. Like a Scandinavian winter, this potent psychological thriller chills right to the bone. Block, Allison --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

“Inspector Sejer belongs alongside the likes of Adam Dalgliesh and Inspector Morse — a gifted detective and a troubled man.”
–Boston Globe

Inspector Konrad Sejer is on the trail of a violent killer in small-town Norway.

Gunder Jomann, a quiet, middle-aged man from a peaceful Norwegian community, thinks his life has been made complete when he returns from a trip to India a married man. But on the day his Indian bride is due to join him, he is called to his sister’s bedside at the hospital. A local taxi driver is sent instead to meet the bride at the airport, but returns without her. Then the town is shocked by the news of an Indian woman found bludgeoned to death in a nearby meadow.

Inspector Sejer and his colleague Skarre head the murder inquiry, cross-examining the townsfolk and planting seeds of suspicion in a community that has always believed itself to be simple, safe and trusting. For what can only have been an unpremeditated and motiveless act of violence, everyone is guilty until proven innocent.

Praise for Karin Fossum’s crime novels:
“Like the best Rendell, this unsettling novel tackles the reasons people commit crimes and the devastating effect it has on the protagonists’ lives.”
—Good Book Guide

“Fossum’s presentation of her characters is marked by an intelligence and compassion that is not often found in the pages of crime fiction.”
—Sunday Times


From the Paperback edition. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Karin Fossum made her literary debut in Norway in 1974. The author of poetry, short stories and one non-crime novel, it is with her Inspector Sejer mysteries that Fossum has won greatest acclaim. The series has been published in sixteen languages.

Chapter 1 The silence is shattered by the barking of a dog. The mother looks up from the sink and stares out of the window. The barking comes from deep in the dogs throat. All of its black, muscular body quivers with excitement. Then she sees her son. He gets out of the red Golf and lets a blue bag fall to the ground. He glances toward the window, registering the faint outline of his mother. He goes to the dog and releases it from its chain. The animal throws itself at him. They roll on the ground, sending the dirt flying. The dog growls and her son shouts affectionate curses in its ears. Sometimes he yells at the top of his lungs and smacks the Rottweiler hard across its snout. At last it stays down. Slowly he gets to his feet. Brushes the dust and dirt from his pants. Glances once more at the window. The dog gets up hesitantly and cowers in front of him, its head down, until he allows it to come and lick the corners of his mouth, submissively. Then he walks to the house and comes into the kitchen. Good God, look at the state of you! The blue T-shirt is bloodstained. His hands are covered in cuts. The dog has scratched his face, too. Never seen anything like it, she says and sniffs angrily. Leave the bag. Im doing a load of laundry later. He folds his scratched arms across his chest. They are powerful, like the rest of him. Close to two hundred pounds and not a hint of fat. The muscles have just been used and they are warm. Calm down, he tells her. Ill do it. She cant believe her ears. Him, wash his own clothes? Where have you been? she says. Surely you dont work out from six to eleven? Her son mumbles something. He has his back to her. With Ulla. We were babysitting. She looks at the broad back. His hair is very blond and stands upright like a brush. Thin stripes have been dyed scarlet. Its as if he were on fire. He disappears down the basement stairs. She hears the old washing machine start up. She lets the water out of the sink and stares into the yard. The dog has lain down with its head on its paws. The last remnant of light is disappearing. Her son is back, says hes going to take a shower. A shower at this hour? Youve just come from the gym? He doesnt reply. Later she hears him in the bathroom, sounding hollow in the tiled space. Hes singing. The door to the medicine cupboard slams. Hes probably looking for a bandage, silly boy. His mother smiles. All of this violence is only to be expected. He is a man, after all. Later, she would never forget this. The last moment when life was good. It began with Gunder Jomanns journey. Gunder went all the way to India to find himself a wife. When people asked, he did not say that that was why he had gone. He hardly admitted it to himself. It was a journey to see a bit of the world, he explained when his colleagues asked. What an outrageous extravagance! He never spent anything on himself. Hardly ever went out, never accepted invitations to Christmas parties, kept himself busy either wi --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.