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Faceless Killers (Paperback)

by Henning Mankell (Author)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
List Price: CDN$ 17.99
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Product Description

From Amazon.com

If you remember with pleasure those dark and gloomy Martin Beck mysteries by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo, you'll be glad to plunge into the first of Henning Mankell's Kurt Wallender mysteries to appear in English. Wallender's personal life can occasionally seem more depressing than even a provincial Swedish detective should be asked to bear, but his investigative skills are strictly first rate. And Mankell's story of the brutal murder of an elderly farm couple uncovers an unusual aspect of life in modern Sweden--a streak of fear and prejudice against the many newcomers from Africa, the Middle East and Eastern Europe who have sought asylum there. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.


From Publishers Weekly

In his first appearance in English, Swedish bestselling author Mankell combines thriller-quality entertainment with a depiction of anti-foreigner prejudice in Sweden, painted here as a very chilly place indeed. Since his wife walked out on him, Kurt Wallender, a middle-aged cop in the small town of Lenarp, has drowned his sorrows in opera and far too much liquor. Such consolations can't help him absorb the scene at the Lovgren farm, where elderly Johannes Lovgren has been brutally beaten and stabbed to death and where his wife, Maria, is found barely alive with a noose around her neck. Rydberg, a police force old-timer, says the noose's unusual knot and the word foreigner, which Maria uttered before she died, are important. Wallender puts those clues on the back burner when he learns that Johannes, ostensibly a simple farmer, had a secret life involving wealth and connections unknown to his wife. However, a leak to the press complicates the investigation by arousing anti-immigrant feelings, some of which are expressed in anonymous threats. Mankell is clearly a skilled writer, and his portrait of Wallender (who periodically slides beneath respectability) is effective. But he provides essential information only at the last minute, which makes the solution feel more like an appendix than a conclusion. Also, American readers may find odd Mankell's bundling of his upright anti-racism message with broad notions of what constitutes acceptable social control.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Customer Reviews

22 Reviews
5 star:
 (8)
4 star:
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3 star:
 (6)
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Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (22 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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3.0 out of 5 stars Realistic police procedural novel, Nov 6 2009
This book is definitely different from the police novels I've read in the past. The majority of the ones I've read had been rather fast paced filled with lots of intrigue and twists that I'm racing through the novel at an alarming rate. This one was very different. It wasn't fast paced but it was steady and although a little slow at times, it actually got me interested as the criminal investigation went on. It was a gradual procedure, and not one that would take overnight to solve. It had its exciting moments, but moments where you had to sit down and reflect as to what was going on, and it was a much different kind of police procedural novel I have ever seen so far. It was a good balance of careful analysis and examination mixed with intrigue and action. The plot did a good job of drawing you into the crime and having you also reflect and examine on how to solve it. I felt just as frustrated like Kurt was feeling when it felt as if he kept on reaching dead ends and cold trails that would lead nowhere in solving the crime.

The thing I liked the most was the character in Kurt Wallander. He's very real and three dimensional. He had his own issues to solve and it involved a total different story arc on its own aside from the murder case so you're not entirely focused on the mystery. You also got to see the "human" side of Kurt as well which I enjoyed and very much liked. It gave the story a much more realistic feeling to it and not something sensation or "Hollywood" about the entire plot. Kurt had his own faults too and so did his colleagues. I also liked how the story also focused on the secondary characters as well (especially his partner Rydberg, who also has major problems of his own). It was great to see realistic almost "fleshy" characters in the book.

I guess what I didn't really like was I'm not used to this style of writing, so I was really expecting this big flash bang sensational ending where I would be left speechless. This book isn't meant to be that way. The case was closed, and solved and that was that. No big gunfight. No SWAT team. No hostages. No Channel 6 news helicopters flying overhead (har har). It was simple, clean cut, and done. Then again the entire book was like that; clean and to the point. It was like one giant puzzle being put together and having the satisfaction of having it completed on time. Nothing celebratory or excitement just job done, go home and relax. I suppose that's how it's really done and if so, then it's another good job at keeping the story realistic.

Would I read the books following this? sure, why not? it's a short read and I don't regret picking this book up. Although it's not exciting as I hoped it would be, it held my attention enough to keep me going, as I was curious as to who did it and why. Secrets were exposed, and closure was met, and all loose ends were tied. It was well done and complete.

Overall, don't be looking for grand excitement in this one. Just a good realistic police detective novel. It's realistic, and interesting as it takes you along a journey through Sweden and their way of life. It's definitely worth giving it a try if you're up for something mellow and a more on the serious side of the police force.
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4.0 out of 5 stars A Policeman's Lot is Not A Happy One, Jun 1 2004
By John R. Linnell (New Gloucester, ME United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
It is always fun to find a new author to enjoy. I discovered Henning Mackell while discussing books with a friend who's reading interests are even more divergent than mine over cocktails in Bermuda. Not only did she suggest I read the author, she gave me the book to read the next day. A day and a half later I was a fan.

Kurt Wallender is not your typical police detective and this is not your typical whodunit. It starts with a next door neighbor in a farming community noting that the sound of the night was different. The next door neighbor's horse was not whinnying. Looking more closely it appearred that the kitchen window was open on a very cold night. Looking more closely, it was clear that it was smashed in. Inside he discovers that the couple have been brutally attacked - the husband has sustained wounds that the M.E. says any four kinds of them would have killed him. His wife is alive, but barely. She has a noose arround her neck. Pretty violent stuff for a poor Swedish farming commmunity.

Kurt Wallender has his own problems. His wife has left him. His teen age daughter has gone also. He is drinking too much and dreaming x-rated encounters with a black woman. He is acting chief and mounts the investigation into what seems to be a random crime with no purpose other than to kill.

Despite his personal problems, he is a first rate detective and you are drawn along quite easily into what it must be like to really be in this line of work. It is a profession that has much less glamor than many novels give it, but it is also a profession that has exacting standards, required methods and sometimes when all else fails, luck and hunches help.

The news of the case horrifies people and when word leaks out that the wife said the word "foreign" before dying, it opens a dark underside in the Swedish populace. Immigration in Sweden is a hot topic and refugees are held loosely in encampments. Threats start to come in against the refugees. One is assaulted. One is killed and a second hunt begins in parallel with the first. A Swedish KKK is on the loose.

This is a well told story which will hold your interest and I suspect also interest you in the sequels which follow with Detective Wallender. What more can you ask for?

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5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Police Procudural, May 21 2004
By Jingo Izgo "NYC reader" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
I really enjoyed this book. it is a fairly straightforward plot, but it is interesting nevertheless, and not without some twists and turns. character development is good; i certainly cared about Wallander. the best thing about this book is the haunted character of Wallander, the realistic nature of the story and its impact on the characters, a bit of swedish life and culture, and, best for me, its inside account of police procedure. i absolutely recommend this one for lovers of Rankin, Connelly, Connolly, Pelecanos, etc.
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 		 Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting character with a simple plot
This first book in the Kurt Wallander series revolves around a very simple plot. The "mystery charm" is not really there, but the main character, Kurt Wallander, is so... Read more
Published on Nov 30 2003 by Sebastian Fernandez

5.0 out of 5 stars First in an Excellent Series ...
I started reading Henning Mankell's Kurt Wallander series this past autumn, and I've enjoyed all six that I've read. Read more
Published on Aug 12 2003

4.0 out of 5 stars Recommended
This is the first of Mankell's Kurt Wallander series and, in the course of reading, one comes across plenty reasons to persevere with the others. Read more
Published on May 30 2003 by snalen

4.0 out of 5 stars Foreignewrs are not Welcome
A couple of farmers is murdered on their farm. When found, the wife is still barely alive and her last word is "Foreigner". Read more
Published on April 17 2003 by lvkleydorff

3.0 out of 5 stars Swedish life introduction.
As reading "Faceless Killers", I remembered a non-fiction "Even in Sweden" (Allan Richard Pred), both treats of same theme, immigrants. Read more
Published on Feb 1 2003 by tadachan

4.0 out of 5 stars Clever plot and well-developed characters
If you like police procedurals with real people instead of a plot with cardboard characters, Henning Mankell is your guy. Read more
Published on Jan 29 2003 by Keith Nichols

4.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing, atmospheric, compelling
This is a fairly straightforward story: an elderly couple are brutally murdered, and through sheer determination, and a bit of good luck, the police, headed by the central... Read more
Published on Jan 22 2003 by A. Butterfield

3.0 out of 5 stars Cliche-driven despite the good reviews
I came to this book with high expectations given the numerous positive reviews it had received. Whilst it has a good plot and narrative pace, overall, I was disappointed by the... Read more
Published on Dec 28 2002 by Theodor Adorno

3.0 out of 5 stars The Killers weren't faceless
Much praise is given to this book, yet I like to say it is a sure remedy for insomnia sufferers. Yet, even though the book lacks in the art of spellbinding presentation, I cannot... Read more
Published on Nov 19 2002 by Gerburg Frick

5.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant surprise
Kurt Wallander is inspector of police in south Sweden. He is confronted with the double murder of an elderly couple. Read more
Published on Aug 18 2002 by Linda Oskam

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