She's Never Coming Back

It didn't really come as much of a surprise that somebody has taken up the "girl in the cellar" storyline, although in SHE'S NEVER COMING BACK the victim is an adult woman, kidnapped on her way home from work, held in the cellar of the house opposite her own home.

Talking about this book is going to be a balancing act, as without giving away too much, there was just so much about it that simply did not work, that actually worried me. Worried me to the point where I got my partner to sit down and read it as well, so that we were then able to discuss the concerns that, in the end, we both shared.

I don't think it's giving too much away to suggest there's something profoundly "film script" about this book. From the initial kidnapping, the show more perfect family and picturesque location that Ylva lives in, through to the use of a camera to allow her to see snippets of her family life, the book is clearly telegraphing the look, and the feel of a film. Whilst that's not necessarily always a bad thing, in this case there were a number of elements of the plot that just seemed too strongly geared towards the "film", with so many things left unexplained when there was plenty of space for explanation.

The characterisation of the victim was, not to put too fine a point on it, decidedly dodgy. An adult woman, known to have been unfaithful to her husband in the past, there was some subtle undercurrent throughout the book that seemed to be drawing the reader's attention constantly to her sexual past, veering dangerously close to victim blaming. Having said that, there were a lot of extremely disconcerting female characterisations going on. The women in this book all seemed to be either morally ambiguous, sainted angels or barking mad. Not that many of the male characters fared a lot better - they were sooks, ineffectual, complicit (and in one very notable case, complicit in the face of professional expertise that should have had him running for the straight-jackets, the hills or both).

Nothing in the motivation for the kidnapping, or in the manipulation and cruelty once Ylva was captive made much sense. The motivation was unconvincing, the supposed execution of the plan for her fate flew in the face of the "blueprint" being followed, and there were simply too many daft or missed opportunities, over the top or flat out unbelievable actions and way too many convenient lapses to allow even a smidgen of willing suspension of disbelief. Instead, there were so many glaring holes in the plot and inconsistencies in the characterisations that these readers became increasingly incredulous and profoundly frustrated and annoyed. Annoyed to the point where the evening after finishing the book we found ourselves carefully working through the "blueprint" and how you would go about addressing the requirements properly. Thankfully we don't have any neighbours to freak out and there's no chance we'd ever be able to dig a cellar through the quartz layer around these parts, as I doubt it would have been an easy conversation or stack of notes to explain to the local constabulary.

Perhaps it's more a book for somebody looking for a film-styled thriller, with some carefully choreographed graphic cruelty and sexual violence, a blatantly manipulative happy ever after ending, built around a very current day scenario. It was a undoubtedly a very quick read. But for this reader (actually these readers) there were so many aspects of the plot and characterisations that were simply too far a stretch to be believable, plausible, justifiable or palatable. show less

One day, as Ylva is heading home after work, she gets in her neighbor's car who offers a ride and she is never seen again. She is being held by this couple who are from her past and who plan to make her pay for her actions many years ago. She is held for a year and a half in a soundproof basement right across her own home; where her husband and daughter wonder what has happened to her. A really quick read that grips you from the first pages and sneaks in a couple of darn good twists that will make you go "huh??!!".

I've not read very much by the sudden influx of Scandi-writers (yet) and the few books that I have tried have been decent but not entirely memorable, so it's safe to say I approached this with a fair bit of trepidation. The summary on the back sounded fairly appealing though and of course the plaudit that it is a `Swedish Thriller Phenomenon' was a draw in itself. I was keen to see if this would warrant such an accolade and I have to say that I can be a bit picky in whether or not a thriller actually thrills me as well!

The premise of this book was really good and sounded intriguing; when Ylva seemingly disappears after a night out with her colleagues, her husband Mike isn't overly concerned at first. However, as more time passes he show more becomes worried, as well as the prime suspect in her disappearance. Unbeknownst to both him and the police however, Ylva is very much alive- and close by- infact she is being held hostage in a soundproofed basement directly opposite her own house, with a camera rigged up by her captives so she can see exactly what is going on with her own family...

I have to say that the plot of this book was compelling and it did hold my attention after a fairly slow beginning and what I initially thought would be a cast of too many characters. The writing is pacey with just the right amount of suspense to keep the reader going- you really want to know what is going to happen to Ylva as well as why she has found herself in the predicament she is. As the story slowly unravels with little twists and turns you can imagine the torture she is going through at being trapped but having to witness the outside world through a TV monitor and particularly the actions of her husband and young daughter surviving without her.

Characters are well drawn and believable. Ylva's back story and past actions were interesting and added a nice dimension to the tale, as well as Mike's paranoia and weaknesses. I loved Sanna and her little quirks and foibles which were emphasised all the more when Mike was left on his own with her.

I have however given this book four stars and not five because I did think that some of the scenes were a little bit gratuitous and thrown in just for the sake of it when perhaps the reader could have used their own imagination. Also, I would have liked to have read a bit more about the psychological impact that being held captive was having on Ylva, as opposed to the extracts at the top of the chapters instead.

Overall, this was a compelling, absorbing thriller and definitely worth a read. As an aside, as `Hans Koppel' is a pseudonym, I would very much like to know who this writer really is so I could read more by him/her under their real name in future!

*This review also appears on Amazon.co.uk* show less

This was a very quick book and a fairly entertaining one. I am glad that the rap and torture in the book was not too intense I am really not a fan of that on any level. The story is quick and to the point. Sometimes too quick. would of liked to see more of the searching for answers to where his wife Ylva is. Good read if you want a quick story that is violent and you do not want to feel sorry for the one in trouble cause she had it coming.

I don't read mysteries really so thought I'd give this one a try as it looked kind of interesting and looked like a quick read. I guess it wasn't that bad. Held my interest. Was a bit shocked in parts but I guess that's because I'm not used to these type of books. Early on I thought the writing was average but I got used to it by the end. Maybe it was just the translation that wasn't so great? Fine for a quick read though. I'm not exactly hooked on mysteries because of this book but I'll try another one sometime.

I really liked this book. Did I find it "amazing" as the 5 stars requires, no but I know I'm a little unfair being as how the book took place in Sweden and when I first started it I couldn't even tell you if the names were male or female and I feel out of sorts when I don't know where they are talking about when they say things like "just outside Helsingborg".

Aside from that, the book is about a wife, Ylva, who doesn't come home one day, just vanishes. She leaves a husband, Mike and daughter, Sanna grieving, trying to understand what happened to her and after so long just assume she's dead. What they don't know is frightening. She's being held captive by the neighborhood (who is harboring a grudge), in a sound proof room in their show more basement where her only link to the outside world is a video camera set up to record her own house where she can see Mike and Sanna coming and going.

The book did get my heart racing and it did keep me quite entertained (even though not funny at all). I didn’t care for the ending, I wish this was a book that had an alternate ending that I could also read.

I will definitely recommend!! Thank you NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this! show less

Ylva Zetterberg verdwijnt als zij vanuit haar werk onderweg is naar huis. Wat haar man niet kan vermoeden is dat Ylva verblijft op een steenworp afstand van zijn huis. Samen met zijn dochtertje probeert hij de verdwijning van Ylva te verwerken en weer verder te gaan met hun leven. Langzaam maar zeker komt de waarheid stukje bij beetje aan het licht.

Dit spannende debuut leest op topsnelheid weg. Heerlijk om in één ruk uit te lezen. De verhaalopbouw komt vlot op gang en blijft ook de hele tijd de lezer intrigeren. Het taalgebruik is makkelijk, de personages komen prima tot hun recht en ook de diverse verwikkelingen uit heden en verleden werken naar een ontknoping toe. Met deze thriller heeft het Scandinavische continent weer een prima show more schrijver in hun gelederen! show less