Changes

I have a problem with Asa Larsson books: once I start reading any book in the Rebecka Martinsson series, I simply can’t put them down and this book was no exception. My wife loves crime novels and particularly Scandi-crime but she won’t read the Martinsson series as she finds them too dark. She’d have had grave reservations about this book but I loved it. It perfectly conveyed Martinsson’s struggles with her job, relations with her colleagues and her mental state. The book pulls no punches in any of these areas and the relationship with her temporary supervisor illustrates this perfectly: they readily admit their mutual hatred and they never miss an opportunity to undermine each other.

Boxing features prominently as one of the protagonists is a gold medal Olympic boxing champion. What struck me, particularly, about Borje Strom was the daily grind of training and the exploitation of amateur boxers once they become professionals. I loved that the plot is multifaceted and thought-provoking in many different areas.