The Boy In The Suitcase

The Boy in the Suitcase is my first try at a Scandinavian thriller (well The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was my first, but the beginning dragged so that I could never get through it). The Boy in the Suitcase was fast-paced and the author took great care in developing the characters. If you've put The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo aside for the same reason, and are interested in Scandinavian thrillers, this book could be a good start for you. And the price is just right! ($1.99 for Kindle & Nook e-readers).

I love a good mystery/thriller, but I didn't love this. The blurb sounded excellent, and the prologue immediately caught my attention. However, when I got to the 24% mark without really getting to a crime or feeling any thrills, it was time to move on. The focus of the book is on the lowest common denominator, and for someone like me who reads to take a break from everyday life, it just wasn't pleasurable. The characters and plot were confusing, as the timeline shifted here and there and it was hard to get a sense of place and time. However, it was easy to get a sense of the crudest bits, as those were described in stark detail, including even the time talking about the abuse a woman had taken to her private bits and all that the doctor was noting.

So no, not my thing. I read for characters and plot, not for crudeness front and center. It felt more like a literary novel than a thriller.