The Laughing Policeman (Martin Beck, #4) in Scandinavian Mysteries

Jul 27, 2011 Marcele rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, crime, not-read-only-once, borrowed, series, scadinavian, social-critic, read-in-2015, audiobook, read-2021

People were right, this one is the best of Martin Beck's books. At least, so far. And, ironically, Beck isn't so present all the time, the investigation was so clearly a group effort. I couldn't ignore, despite its age, the comments on feminine sexuality. "She likes to have sex, so she is definitely a nymphomaniac! If she acts on it, she's a whore." UGH. One less star for this. But the fact they have the answer for the crime right there since the beginning was pretty awesome. ...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Molly rated it really liked it

I really, really liked this one! My favorite yet out of this series. This one seemed to be more complex than the others. I really enjoyed the inclusion of more characters, and their descriptions and development were entertaining. All grumps, all the time! I especially liked Larsson's speech at the end regarding rich folks who think they can get away with, well, murder, just because they have social status and money. For me, the portrayal of class and social issues were pretty great. Take the nym ...more

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Jun 17, 2009 Liz rated it liked it

Another great detective novel from Sjowall & Wahloo. These detectives are such a departure from the heroes of TV and other popular fiction, who are always ready with a wisecrack and poised for action. They say dumb things to each other often as not, they run out of ideas and energy, but they get it done with determination and smarts. I find that the novels of this time (60's & 70's) offer some of the best police procedural without a lot of the grisly violence that's included today (unnecessarily ...more

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Jan 04, 2011 Jim Coughenour rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: bleakfiction, crime4connoisseurs

A classic. The archetype of all those dismal, cold, completely gratifying Scandinavian crime novels I've been reading for the last 10 years. It's impossible to imagine Kurt Wallander or Elendur Sveinnsson without Martin Beck.

Funniest line: "I thought you said you'd looked here..."
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May 23, 2011 ???!!! rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2011, audio

My first Maj Sjowall detective novel after claiming to be a fan of Swedish authors. I enjoy the intensity of the story, some humor, and literally prose of writing very much. No wonder many authors claimed they were influenced by these two great authors.

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