The Stonecutter

"Maybe, one day, we might be identifying Agatha Christie as 'the British Camilla Läckberg.'" -- The Washington Post

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I haven't read any Agatha Christie, was she a horrible writer as well? Or did The Washington Post just "phone in" the review / praise since someone at the Post clearly didn't read this book.

If I could write 10,000 synonyms for "whining" – whine, whiner, whined, complain, complaining, whinge, whinging, etc. – and multiplied that by 4-5 generations then that would be the ultimate summary of this book. (Or maybe I am just looking at it the wrong way around, maybe the writing IS genius because no other writer could pull off 500 pages of nonstop bitching.)

On top of the endless self-pitying, there is not one single show more likeable character in the entire book. This long, monotonous story was neither clever nor engaging, and I would call it downright formulaic; nothing I haven't read dozens of times before.

However, I did learn something. Now I know why so much crime fiction comes out of Scandinavia; if I had to live in a dark wasteland filled with empty, meaningless lives and mean, vengeful souls like Sweden, I would be murdering people left and right too. show less

First Line: The lobster fishery was not what it once was.

Detective Patrik Hedström and Erica Falck are celebrating the birth of their first child... or they would be if Erica weren't on such an emotional roller coaster. Patrik loves mother and baby dearly, but lately he's glad that work takes him out of the house-- even if it's the suspicious drowning death of a little girl he and Erica knew well. The more people Patrik interviews, the more clues he puts together, the more he becomes aware of the fact that a long-buried secret is lurking in the fishing village of Fjällbacka, Sweden.

Camilla Läckberg's series featuring Patrik and Erica is a favorite of mine, even when I put the clues together quickly, as I did in this book. The reason show more for this is the fact that Läckberg has created a book (and a series) that goes well beyond a mystery that must be solved.

The mystery does play an important part in The Stonecutter. The investigation into the death of the little girl is absorbing, and it is interspersed with even more intense chapters concerning a man and wife from several decades in the past. These two separate stories intersect and prove what one character tells another: "I've thought about this, and we can't keep living with a secret. Monsters live in the dark." Quite scary monsters, as it turns out.

Even though I did deduce the killer's identity quickly, I wasn't put off one little bit. This is because the home life of Patrik and Erica is central to the book. They are intelligent, likable characters that are easy to care about, and often the problems that they are dealing with in their private lives find themselves woven into the ongoing investigations. The theme of coping with motherhood is integral to the book, and Erica as a new mother, has a role to play in the story's outcome. Even Erica's sister, a mother in an abusive relationship, is heard as a faint and troubling chorus in the background.

I recommend Läckberg's series for its setting in rural Sweden, for its intricately plotted mysteries, but most of all for its cast of meticulously drawn characters. It's Läckberg's characters that will keep me returning book after book after book. show less

The Stonecutter is the third book in the Patrik Hedstrom mystery/thriller series by Camilla Läckberg. I haven’t read the previous two books but I don’t think there are any spoilers for them in this review.

Listening to the audio book was great fun. David Thorn, the narrator, had a very dramatic British accent complete with rolling “R”s. It was really interesting hearing all of the Swedish people and place names correctly pronounced because they usually sound nothing like they are spelled. For instance, Patrik is pronounced “POOR-trig”.

The character development in this book is outstanding. This book has an ensemble cast and Läckberg has given each character as much attention as if they were all main characters, with each show more character having a detailed back-story. Because of this, I was continually going back and forth on who I thought killed Sara and was second guessing myself until the very end. It was great. I was worried that with so many characters with unfamiliar (to me) names, that I would have a hard time keeping track of them on audio since I couldn’t flip back and forth like with a paper book. However, the names were all different sounding enough that I didn’t have any problems.

In addition to the main present day plot of Sara’s murder, there is a subplot about a stonecutter that starts in the 1920s. It’s apparent that it will somehow tie into the present day story but it’s not revealed until late in the book. It was really a second mystery trying to figure out how it would eventually be weaved in to the primary story and I was surprised by how it did.

Even though I haven’t read the first two books in this series, I didn’t have any trouble jumping right in. It doesn’t quite stand alone because one of the subplots ends in a cliffhanger that is no doubt the focus of the fourth book. The mystery of Sara’s murder is solved in this book though.

From what I’ve read, Camilla Läckberg is immensely popular in Sweden and after reading The Stonecutter, I can see why. I highly recommend this book, especially for fans of Nordic crime novels. show less

It’s tragic when a Fjällbacka fisherman hauls in the body of a drowned child. It’s even more tragic when the medical examiner determines that the drowning wasn’t accidental. The evidence points to murder. The girl’s mother, Charlotte, is a friend of new mother Erica Falck, whose partner Patrik is the police detective assigned to the murder. The present-day murder investigation is interwoven with the story of a stonecutter and his family. The two threads will eventually connect.

Although I liked the first two books in the series, they had problems with pacing, or maybe with translation. Läckberg and her translator hit their stride in this third book in the series. The pacing is much improved, with less awkward dialog. I still show more don’t like Läckberg’s habit of withholding information from the reader for several pages after a character learns of it.

The character development and story arcs that span several books in the series make this a series to read in order. Even so, this might be a good place for readers new to the series to start since the writing has improved. Once a reader is hooked on the series, they can always go back to the beginning to fill in the gaps. show less

I do a rotating display at the library on genres and authors. This last month I featured Scandinavian authors. I've read many of the authors I featured, but Camilla Lackberg was new to me.

The Stonecutter is the third book in her series set in Fjall­backa, Sweden that features Detective Patrik Hedstrom.

A local fisherman hauling in his nets draws up an unexpected and grisly catch - the body of a young girl. When Patrik is called to the scene, he is horrified to realize he knows the girl. Further investigation reveals that the drowning was no accident.

The present day chapters dealing with Patrik's investigation are alternated with chapters detailing a story beginning in 1923, set in the same village. The two narratives seemed to have no show more connection to each other whatsoever in the beginning, but I was fascinated by the older story as well. More and more of the past is revealed with every chapter and I started to get an inkling of where the two narratives might meet. I quite enjoyed having the story slowly but deliciously pieced together. Lackberg has done an excellent job with her plotting - it's intriguing and inventive.

Although Patrik is the lead protagonist, there are other recurring characters that are just as well drawn and developed. Patrik's girlfriend Erica has just given birth to their first child and is having great difficulty coping. His colleagues at the station run the gamut - from keen to lazy to dangerous. The townsfolk are a mixed bunch - all with secrets it seems. I enjoy a series that lets us 'know' the characters and see their lives evolve from book to book.

Lackberg's mystery is excellent, but I also appreciated the depth with which she explored the psyches of all involved - both police and suspects. The theme of relationships is explored in many forms - especially that of parent/child. These explorations were the most frightening parts of the book. There are sub plots never fully wrapped up as well, which was okay - the ending has only left me eager to read the next in the series - The Gallows Bird. A great read and a new addition to my list of must read mystery authors. show less

A skilful plot which kept me wanting to read on. The gradual convergenece of the historical story, beginning in the 1920s with the present day time line was well done, and added to the suspense. I did work out who did it just before the end. But the desire to rush on to the end was tempered by the sheer, untempered misery and unhappiness of every character in the book. The bleak, rainswept lanscape of a Scandinavian autumn was a good metaphor for the book as a whole. I enjoyed the book enormously, but I am going off now to read the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes to cheer myself up!

The best book in he Fjallbacka series IMHO. Great, detailed character and moving fates shown in the context of an unusual crime. Ine of the best skandinavian crime story I've ever read.