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Honden van Riga by Henning Mankell
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Honden van Riga (1992)

by Henning Mankell

Series: Kurt Wallander (2)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
3,8111093,213 (3.63)274
Fiction. Mystery. HTML:

In this case, only Wallander's obstinate desire to see that justice is done brings the truth to light.

On the Swedish coastline, two bodies, victims of grisly torture and cold execution, are discovered in a life raft. With no witnesses, no motives, and no crime scene, Detective Kurt Wallander is frustrated and uncertain he has the ability to solve a case as mysterious as it is heinous. But after the victims are traced to the Baltic state of Latvia, a country gripped by the upheaval of Soviet disintegration, Major Liepa of the Riga police takes over the investigation.

Thinking his work done, Wallander slips into the routine once more, until he is called suddenly to Riga and plunged into an alien world in which shadows are everywhere, everything is watched, and old regimes will do anything to stay alive.

.
… (more)
Member:verbaljam
Title:Honden van Riga
Authors:Henning Mankell
Info:De Geus Spanning (Paperback)
Collections:Your library, Thrillers
Rating:*****
Tags:fictie, thriller, Zweeds, Zweden

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The Dogs of Riga by Henning Mankell (1992)

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» See also 274 mentions

English (87)  Spanish (6)  Italian (3)  French (3)  Swedish (2)  Catalan (2)  Dutch (2)  German (2)  Finnish (1)  Norwegian (1)  All languages (109)
Showing 1-5 of 87 (next | show all)
This was my first wallander book and I plan on trying at least one more. I am not a fan of political intrigue in general, but this was still enough of a police procedural for me to enjoy it. Could do with a bit of humor, though that is not usually what you get from the cold country writers ( )
  cspiwak | Mar 6, 2024 |
Los perros de Riga
Henning Mankell
Publicado: 1992 | 245 páginas
Novela Policial
Serie: Inspector Wallander #2

Una fría mañana de febrero, un bote salvavidas queda varado frente a la costa sueca. Dentro yacen los cadáveres de dos hombres que, como confirma el inspector Kurt Wallander, han sido asesinados días atrás. Aquejado de estrés, con problemas de salud, lleno de remordimientos por desatender a su anciano padre y sin haber encajado bien la separación de su mujer, Wallander, una vez abierta la investigación, debe hacer de tripas corazón y posponer sus buenos propósitos de cuidarse más. Al averiguarse que los dos hombres asesinados eran letones, Wallander no tiene más remedio que viajar a Riga. En la turbulenta Letonia de 1991, en pleno proceso de restablecimiento de la democracia, Wallander se introduce en los ambientes de la oposición clandestina. En medio de esa atmósfera sórdida, conoce a Baiba Liepa: intriga, amor y conflictos de toda índole provocarán que su vida dé un inesperado vuelco.
  libreriarofer | Sep 24, 2023 |
It is the winter of 1991 and a life raft containing the bodies of two men, dressed in expensive suits, wash up on a beach in Sweden. Kurt Wallander and his team are tasked with solving the crime. During the investigation it soon becomes clear that the victims are Latvian criminals who have been murdered in a gangland hit. When a Latvian police officer who was assisting on the case is murdered Wallander travels across the Baltic Sea to Riga where he is plunged into a frozen, alien world of police surveillance, corruption, barely veiled threats and lies.

This is the second book in the series and is almost in a different genre from the first. Whereas 'Faceless Killers' saw Wallander trying to solve a crime and revolves around police procedure, 'The Dogs of Riga reads more like an espionage novel in the style of John Le Carrė. Whilst there are still leads to be chased down and things to be discovered, much of this book is about clandestine meetings and giving an insight in to the lives of the people who must live in a police state.

Whilst I didn't find this novel as enjoyable as 'Faceless Killers, Mankell’s gritty, minimalist, noir writing style is still interesting. Mankell also manages to capture and convey varying feelings and sentiments about the fall of communism, the end of the Cold War, and the collapse of the Soviet Union without indulging in long ideological debates.

Overall I found this is a decent read and a solid espionage thriller and makes this a book not to be missed as we see the continued development of Wallander’s character although I don't understand his tendency to fall in love in every book, given his general disillusionment. ( )
  PilgrimJess | Aug 8, 2023 |
The plot is more intricate than Faceless Killers. Otherwise, mostly further character development of Wallender. Not particularly compelling. ( )
  ghefferon | Jun 17, 2023 |
When a life raft containing two dead men washes up on the shore in his small Swedish town, detective Kurt Wallander is called in to investigate. It is immediately obvious the men have been murdered, and in the process of identifying the victims it’s determined they are from Latvia. Due to the international nature of the case, Wallander gets assistance both from Stockholm and from the Latvian police. Kurt is hoping to turn the case over to Latvian authorities, but instead he is dispatched to Latvia when these two murders lead to further loss of life. He is very much out of his element, with very little understanding of the culture and the operations of a post-Soviet police force. It’s nearly impossible to tell who is on the right side of the law. Twists and turns ensue, and Kurt finds himself in personal danger more than once. The resolution relies somewhat on a well-known trope, but was still satisfying. I enjoyed this enough to continue reading the series. ( )
  lauralkeet | Jan 26, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 87 (next | show all)
Una fría mañana de febrero llega un bote salvavidas a la costa sueca arrastrado por la corriente. Dentro encuentran los cadáveres de dos hombres que, como confirma el inspector Wallander, han sido asesinados hace días. Aquejado de estrés y de intensos dolores de pecho, con remordimientos por su anciano padre y sin haber encajado bien la separación de su mujer, Kurt Wallander, una vez abierta la investigación, debe hacer de tripas corazón y posponer sus buenos propósitos de cuidarse más. Al averiguarse que los dos hombres asesinados eran letones, Wallander no tiene más remedio que viajar a Riga, donde se introduce en los ambientes más corruptos, gobernados por bandas criminales.
added by Pakoniet | editLecturalia
 
Set against the chaotic backdrop of eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Mankell's intense, accomplished mystery, the last in his Kurt Wallander series (Firewall, etc.), explores one man's struggle to find truth and justice in a society increasingly bereft of either. Here the provincial Swedish detective takes on a probably fruitless task: investigating the murders of two unidentified men washed up on the Swedish coast in an inflatable dinghy. The only clues: their dental work suggests they're from an Eastern Bloc country; the raft is Yugoslavian. But their deaths mushroom into an international incident that takes Wallander to Riga, Latvia, and enmeshes him in an incredibly dangerous and emotionally draining situation, battling forces far larger than the ""bloodless burglaries and frauds"" he typically pursues in Sweden. In Riga, Wallander must deal with widespread governmental corruption, which opens his eyes to the chilling reality of life in the totalitarian Eastern Bloc: grim, harrowing and volatile. Wallander's introspection and self-doubt make him compellingly real, and his efforts to find out what happened to those men on the life raft makes for riveting reading. There's a pervasive sense of Scandinavian gloom, in Wallander and in the novel, that might be difficult for some American readers, but this is a very worthy book-a unique combination of police procedural and spy thriller that also happens to be a devastating critique of Soviet-style Communism.
added by VivienneR | editPublisher's Weekly
 

» Add other authors (26 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Henning Mankellprimary authorall editionscalculated
Anna GibsonTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Berf, PaulTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Puleo, GiorgioTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Sirges, BarbaraTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Thompson, LaurieTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Fiction. Mystery. HTML:

In this case, only Wallander's obstinate desire to see that justice is done brings the truth to light.

On the Swedish coastline, two bodies, victims of grisly torture and cold execution, are discovered in a life raft. With no witnesses, no motives, and no crime scene, Detective Kurt Wallander is frustrated and uncertain he has the ability to solve a case as mysterious as it is heinous. But after the victims are traced to the Baltic state of Latvia, a country gripped by the upheaval of Soviet disintegration, Major Liepa of the Riga police takes over the investigation.

Thinking his work done, Wallander slips into the routine once more, until he is called suddenly to Riga and plunged into an alien world in which shadows are everywhere, everything is watched, and old regimes will do anything to stay alive.

.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Synopsis for the Dutch edition: 
"Op een winterse dag spoelt een rubbervlot met twee dode mannen aan op de zuidkust van het Zweedse Skane. Na een anonieme tip stelt de politie een onderzoek in. De mannen zijn vóór hun executie gemarteld. Identificatie aan de hand van hun gebit levert een spoor op dat Wallander naar de Letse hoofdstad Riga voert. Daar dreigt hij een pion te worden in een Baltische intrige." 

Sinopsis de la contratapa: En esta segunda entrega, tras haber familiarizado a sus lectores con la fría región de Suecia donde Wallander es jefe de policía, Mankell traslada al inspector fuera de su jurisdicción, al vecino país de Letonia. En la capital debe investigar la muerte de dos letones, cuyos cadáveres llegaron a la costa sueca, paradójicamente, a bordo de un bote salvavidas. Acosado por sus problemas de salud, sus remordimientos por desatender a su anciano padre o la angustia por la separación de su mujer y la pérdida de contacto con su hija, la vida del inspector dará un vuelco cuando conozca a Baiba Lepa, una mujer que agregará a los conflictos políticos de Letonia las turbulencias propias del amor.
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