The Inner Circle: A Mystery

Mari Jungstedts tredje deckare tar oss med på arkeologiska utgrävningar på Gotland där en av deltagarna försvinner mystiskt.
En häst får sitt huvud avhugget och handlingen leder in på fornnordiska ritualer och fler mord begås.
Anders Knutas och Johan Berg jobbar med morden i sina olika yrken medan vi får följa med. De möts då och då och inte alltid är deras relation den bästa.
Johans och Emmas förhållande är också tidvis jobbig.

Boken är bra och det har säkert krävts mycket forskande av författarinnan för att få till arbetet med de arkeologiska utgrävningarna trovärdiga. Jag gillar boken och författaren växer i mina ögon. :

Note to self: put Gotland on my list of dangerous places never to be visited! (My list includes St. Mary Mead, and Midsomer and neighbouring villages - what does yours include?)

For a summer vacation spot, the small island of Gotland is very perilous. In this, the third in Mari Jungstedt's Anders Knutas series set on this island, the author continues strands begun in the earlier novels. For example, the story of journalist Johan Berg and Emma who have now progressed to having a baby.

The main story was well told and the elements came together quite well. The interaction between the police investigation led by Knutas and the press, represented by Berg, is a bit formulaic and predictable, with Berg releasing details ahead of when the police show more want to. I didn't come away feeling that I knew Knutas much better
though. There was a little humour with someone from Knutas's past joining the investigation team and insisting on calling him "Knutie". You could feel the thunder in the air!

Another aspect I found interesting is that when some of the interviews need to be conducted in English, Knutas has to use another team member to conduct the questioning, because his own English is inadequate. This adds to his level of frustration with the lack of progress in the investigation. As his own family go off to the mainland for their summer holidays and he has to stay behind Knutas becomes even more frustrated.

So, this is a good read, but make sure you read the earlier novels first to get the best out of the continuing stories. show less

I got confused which is nothing, absolutely nothing, new. But one night, for some reason, I plucked THE INNER CIRCLE by Mari Jungstedt from the stacks, and started reading. Then I got quite convinced I'd already read the book. So I went to check and found UNSEEN, which I then re-read, ending up very struck by the similarities between the two plots. Which got me wondering if there were similarities in all of them, and as I had a number of the books to hand, I thought I'd read them in order and see what was going on.

Still managed to screw up the order completely. Sigh. Oh, and THE INNER CIRCLE was also published as UNKNOWN just to add to the confusion.

So, anyway, I read UNSEEN, then THE INNER CIRCLE / UNKNOWN, then THE KILLER'S ART and show more finally UNSPOKEN which got me to the end of the books that were here, waiting to be read. Having spread this little exercise out over a couple of months, I was still struck by the similarities - sometimes in plot elements, always in the ongoing personal elements, and overwhelmingly in the way that the journalistic aspects take precedence over the police investigation, although the last part does seem to moderate a little in the final book - UNSPOKEN.

It comes as absolutely no surprise that the author of these books has worked as a journalist as that viewpoint is undoubtedly the strongest in all of these books. Whilst that aspect is obviously written with authority, it does rather skew the investigative aspects of the various cases. The personal complications of this particular journalist's personal life, absolutely did not help this reader as the whole thing lurched too much into melodrama for my liking. Add to that a rather journalistic, rather than storytelling author style and I will admit I was struggling.

A struggle obviously not helped by the idea of reading all of the books in rapid succession. I could really see the similarities after the second book, and the increasing predictability, and to be frank, tediousness of the personal life was increasingly boring and vaguely irritating. I definitely remember reading UNSEEN the first time round (of course I do, the similarities between it and UNKNOWN were what sent me off on this quest after all), and whilst I was not overly impressed at the time, I wasn't put off completely either. By the end of all four books though I have to confess I was increasingly underwhelmed with the series. Not one that I'd avoid, but not one that I'd shunt to the top of the pile by default.

http://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/unknown-aka-inner-circle-mari-jungstedt show less

Inspector Knutas is back in action, and so is the journalist Johann Berg, whose relationship with a woman who lives on Gotland grows more complex. This time, the series of crimes starts out with the beheading of one of the local Gotland ponies and conrinues with a murder at an archaeological site. My favorite of this series, so far -- fortunately there are several still waiting to be translated into English.

The third book in Jungstedt's series set on the island of Gotland. A horse is found murdered, then later a young woman -- are the two connected? And if so, how? These, and others, are the questions that Inspector Anders Knutas must answer. Jungstedt's novel is a gripping mystery -- it took me all of three days to read it. The plot is strong, and though we're given hints and insight into the murders and murderer, then signs only become clear when Jungstedt wants them to. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as I have her others. I can't wait for the rest to be translated into English.

Inspector Anders Knutas #3. (Author has also written The Inspector and the Sea) This is the first in the series I have read. Interesting story involving Norse rituals and archaeologist finds on Gotland, home of the largest Viking finds in the world. A student archaeologist, the professor who runs the did and a town councilman are murdered, decapitated horses heads are found at the sites of two of the murders. Knutas is joined by colleagues from the national murder squad and is helped by journalist Johan Berg.There is a back story about Berg's personal life. Not especially well written (maybe it's the translation), writing style reminiscent of Camilla Lackberg, but the story line draws you i.

I didn't enjoy this as much as the first two in the series. Felt a little stilted (maybe the translation?) and the plot was average towards the end.