An Exploration of Good and Evil

Three Seconds is a fast paced crime story, but much more. The plot revolves around the Eastern Europeon Mafia drug traffic. Infiltrators are used by the Swedish police to get information on criminal activities and in this book to attempt to stop the trade.

The central character, Piet Hoffman, works for the Swedish police as an infiltrator. A man with a criminal past, he is used by the police but also distrusted. In the course of his duties, he takes on a dangerous mission with the blessings of the highest levels of government authority. It is in this juxtaposition of the criminal world with the government bureaucracy that the exploration of good and evil occurs.

I found the book fascinating and highly recommend it to lovers of crime fiction and to those interested in character study. For the crime lovers, the clever ruses employed by the criminal element are delightful. (I just hope law enforcement officers are reading this as well as the criminals.) For those interested in psychology, the characters, from Piet, the infiltrator, to Grens, the harden cop, and of course, the beaurocrats, are well drawn and thought provoking.