Once upon a time......

Once upon a time I was sitting in an airport departure lounge and finishing the book I was reading. I hate flying. I am terrified. Truly terrified and so I need something to keep me from my impending doom. I suppose hard drugs would have worked but that's just not my thing so all that was available to me was alcohol and books and I had lost one of those soothers with the novel finished. I headed to the bookshop in the airport looking to top up my addiction.

But it is an "airport bookstore" and apart from generic rubbish and bestsellers there was nothing for a "thoughtful" reader. "lol- apart from "Eat, Pray, Love" and being a man, I would rather face a fiery death than read that.

With few choices (suitable for me) available I settled upon the "least bad" option. A crime novel translated from a Swedish author.

I really enjoyed the book. I cannot tell you what book it was, but it was by Camilla Läckberg. and I was hooked. Scared shitless about flying but trying to focus on the book which was good enough that it made the flight seem shorter. A huge credit to the book. I enjoyed it so much that I have continued reading Swedish crime writers ever since that day.

Which brings me to my review of "The Katherina Code" by Jorn Lier Horst" my recent foray into Scandinavian crime literature. Those that are television watchers rather than readers may know the hero of the story "Wisting" though this book has not yet been featured in the BBC 4 television series. When it is you are in for a treat. I think what I enjoy most about the Wisting series is that he is not a "superhero cop" he is just a normal man trying to do his job. He is slow, thoughtful, and running over evidence all the time to find the true culprit. If you enjoy a crime drama, written and placed well (credit to the translator here) with a slow but enjoyable pace, cleverly written, I would be buying this book. Excellent crime drama.