Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Cold Cases, the Swedish Welfare System, and Murder

Denise and her young friends appear to be gaming the Swedish Welfare System. They dress well, party, and don’t want to work. Anne-Line, their case worker,is frustrated. Why should they receive benefits when they’re so clearly gaming the system? Then the young girls become the victims of a serial killer. Department Q is assigned the case.

The murder of an elderly woman in a park resembles a cold case Department Q is investigating. This puts them in conflict with the department upstairs and affects Department Q’s future. The members of the cold case team, Detective Carl, Assad, and Rose are experiencing their own problems. Rose is recovering from a mental breakdown and appears to be on her way to another one. Assad and Carl care for Rose and want to help her, but the resemblance of one of their cases to her past may be pushing her over the edge.

I found this book hard to get into. It’s part of a series and while it can be read as a standalone, I found parts confusing. The opening is devoted primarily to the welfare system and the young girls who are gaming it. When Department Q comes in, they’re trying to wrap up an old case and worried about the existence of their department. In the end all the threads come together for a satisfying ending, but you have to get well into the book to become immersed in the cases.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.



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