The Lost Boy

Returning to work after a health scare, Patrik Hedström and his team must investigate the murder of Fjallbacka’s new town finance officer, Mats Sverin. Mats had recently moved back to his hometown from Göteborg. Before he died, he had concerns about the town’s joint venture with private investors to renovate and reopen a spa. Was the murder related to his work? Or could it have been related to the job he left in Göteborg working for a shelter for battered women?

On the home front, Erica has recovered from the car accident that ended the last book on a cliffhanger. She and Patrik are now the parents of twin boys. Erica’s sister, Anna, wasn’t as fortunate. Anna survived the accident, but her unborn son did not. Anna’s show more withdrawal from her family alarms Erica. She also provides some assistance with Patrik’s investigation since the murder victim had been her high school classmate.

It should be no surprise to the reader that lost boys are a theme in the book. The murder victim is his parents’ only son, and Erica’s sister, Anna has lost a son. Abused women and domestic violence are another theme in this book. Two women from the murder victim’s past have been subject to domestic violence, as has Erica’s sister, Anna. There is also a touching tribute to the author’s father in this book.

I’ve noticed a great improvement in the writing/translation over the course of the series. The main plot in this installment is well executed, with a surprising twist at the end of the investigation. However, a couple of the minor elements weren’t explained to my satisfaction. I also didn’t care for the supernatural elements in the plot. show less

This is the seventh entry in Lackberg's Erica Falck/Patrik Hedstrom novels, and it holds its own in that excellent series. This novel mixes present day crimes with a mystery from the past, with a frisson of a ghost story tossed in. The plotting is tight and compelling, with several story lines unfolding in parallel, and becoming more and more intertwined as the novel progresses. Characters are sharply drawn and fully rounded. Running into the regular cast, on the home front and at the police station, is like meeting old friends, while the new characters are convincing. I wish there were more books in this series available in English: it's a real treasure.

Mats Sverin is a mystery. When he turns up murdered, Detective Patrik Hedstrom struggles to find the leads he needs - Mats was liked by his colleagues, and yet outside of work no one knows a thing about him. Mats’ high school sweetheart Nathalie has just returned to her family’s remote island Graskar, in the fjords off Fjallbacka, with her young son. She might be just the person to help break the case open for Patrik but Nathalie is hiding secrets of her own.

This is the first book by Camilla Lackberg that I’ve read, but it's number 7 in the Erica Falck/Patrik Hedstrom series.

Patrik and Erica are strong leading characters, and family man Patrik makes a nice change from the stereotypical dysfunctional detective found in much of show more the crime fiction genre. Set in the small coastal town of Fjallbacka, Lackberg has created a strong cast of secondary characters each with their own back stories to flesh out this community.

I thought the pacing of the investigation was perhaps a little unbalanced. Nobody knows anything about Mats, so for much of the book we learn about all the dead ends Patrik runs into, with the mystery being solved relatively quickly in the end. As a reader I well aware for most of the book that something was wrong that there would be a twist at the end. I was slowly starting to understand what it would be although I didn’t have it all worked out before it was revealed, so instead of a suspensful ending it was more a quiet moment of comprehension.

There is a secondary, historic plot that runs parallel to the main story. I’m not to sure what the point of this was, but it provides an interesting look at the hard and isolated life lighthouse keepers would have had, and provides another dimension to the story.

The Lost Boy was an entertaining read, and I’ll be following it up by going back and starting at the start of this series. show less

I tend to like the nordic mysteries. Like others I have read, this one is intelligent, complex, peopled with interesting characters, and offering a touch of darkness. Maybe more than a touch.

There are several characters here, including the various police members and the characters involved in the mystery. The story hinges on the murder of a young man in front of his apartment building. By all accounts, he was a model citizen, a decent human, always friendly yet not in the habit of offering any details of his private life.

His parents are devastated. His coworkers are shocked. Nobody has any clue why someone would want him dead.

Mats Sverin was a financial officer for a company developing a major spa hotel in the town of Fjallbacka. In the show more days before his death, he had asked to speak to someone higher up about what looked like some oddities in the finances. Was he onto something?

He also had previously held a job at a women's shelter, a job where men were employed against standard practice. It was considered something of an experiment and the leaders of that organization needed the men to be unimpeachable. Why did he leave? Was he hiding something?

It did not appear that he had any romantic interests at the time. He had had a girlfriend in highschool, Nathalie, and the couple was expected to marry, but Nathalie chose to leave for other parts of Sweden instead, leaving Matte (nickname) behind. Was she just selfish? Did he want revenge and she reversed the situation?

Nathalie happened to be living nearby at the time, on a small island she owned as a family inheritance. She lived in the only cabin on the island, an island called the Ghost Island by locals because of rumors of ghosts. She felt comfortable with the ghosts, believed they would never harm her.

The lead detective, Patrik Hedstrom, has his own demons to stare down. His wife, Erika, a leading mystery writer, is still recovering from an accident, and he worries about her and their children. Erika, meanwhile, is stir-crazy, wants to resume a more normal life.

There are other interesting characters and stories. The plot is convoluted and, to me, highly improbable, but really, what's new about that? It is interesting and I enjoyed getting to know everyone. I will be seeking out more of Lackberg's work now. show less

This is the first book I've read by Camilla Läckberg and I really enjoyed it. It wasn't as hard boiled as some crime novels, but nor was it cosy crime. It was cleverly plotted, with a slower pace than I'm used to, but that made it more enjoyable. I really liked how the personal lives of the police officers were woven into the crime investigation, and had impact on how they carried out their work.

a whodunnit/crime story (bikers involved) with a large slice of family and social relationships --oh just about everyone has a difficult past-- in a small town of a seaside Swedish province.
UPDATE Threw this book in my bag as I left for holiday August 2014, As I got into it I kept having the feeling that I had read it before; not so much because the narration sparked memories, but because I thought I remembered who did it. Well after 7 years--yay for catgaloguing on Library Thing--it turns out I was wrong about the killer. However, I needed to give this book an extra half star because it was a very intriguing and lively read with the many characters --in the beginning a character list would have been helpful with all those Swedish show more names-- and the weight of the problems they were carrying. show less

THE LOST BOY written by Camilla Lackberg and translated (from the Swedish) by Tiina Nunnally is Book #7 of the Patrik Hedstrom (Fjallbacka) series.

“Patrik Hedstrom is no stranger to tragedy. A murder case concerning Fjallbacka’s dead financial director, Mats Sverin, is a grim but useful distraction from his recent family misfortunes. It seems Mats was a man everybody liked yet nobody knew - a man with something to hide. His high school sweetheart, Nathalie, has just returned to the area with her five-year-old son - could she shed some light on who Mats really was?” [book jacket]

THE LOST BOY has a brilliantly layered plot. A trademark of Ms. Lackberg’s seems to be secrets - lots of them and very, very dark - unfolding over show more decades and generations.
I quite this technique with historical and cultural references. Every book has a definite personality. I also like the main characters, Patrik and Erica, their families and co-workers at the police department. The western, coastal area of Sweden is a character in its own right. The title is very tense and suspenseful.
Not to be missed. **** show less