Zwarte leugens, rood bloed

Ann Lindell #9

by Kjell Eriksson, Tineke Jorissen-Wedzinga (Translator)

De passie tussen rechercheur Ann Lindell en journalist Anders Brandt is groot, tot hij plots op reis gaat en niets meer van zich laat horen. Als kort daarna het lichaam van een dakloze man wordt gevonden, die een papiertje met daarop het telefoonnummer van Anders bij zich draagt, lijkt het plotselinge vertrek van de journalist wel erg verdacht. Ann verzwijgt haar relatie met Anders tegenover haar collega's en probeert zelf met hem in contact te komen, maar tevergeefs. Anders heeft heel andere dingen aan zijn hoofd.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Scandinavian Literature, Sweden, Nordic Noir, Swedish Literature

381 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Karl Stig Kjell Eriksson is a Swedish crime-writer, author of the novels The Princess of Burundi and The Cruel Stars of the Night, the former of which was awarded the Swedish Crime Writers' Academy Best Swedish Crime Novel Award in 2002. They have both recently been translated into English by Ebba Segerberg.

Series:
* Ann Lindell Mystery

Reviews

[Mario · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was more like hard work than enjoyment.

I found the characters difficult to keep track of. For a start there were so many, often without any significant part to play in the story. To confuse things further a character might be referred to by their first name, their surname or their nickname, sometimes even within the same chapter.

In addition the story didn’t flow well and seemed to jump from one disconnected event to another. When the plot did gain a bit of momentum it was likely that the next chapters would centre around the musings of some triple named insignificant followed by a mundane part of the storyline. By then all energy and hope had drained slowly away.

The story itself is about two separate murders, one of which suggested the possible involvement of chief protagonist Ann Lindell’s latest flame, Anders Brant. The solving of the crimes was pretty routine with a bigger part of the story relating to Brant’s interminable inner struggle in deciding if he wanted a relationship with Lindell or not.

This is the sixth Kjell Eriksson book I have read and whilst they have the same difficult writing style they all had much stronger and intriguing plots that meant they were worth persevering with. This one unfortunately didn’t.

[Gisela Hafezparast · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whilst I still enjoyed this story, this is so far my least favourite of the series. What I like about the series is that it first introduces you to a police department and then lets you get to know the detectives bit by bit and whilst the problems they face in their private and professional life are shown until now it wasn't depressing. More like that's life, it has its ups and downs. This book however, definitely tipped into the depressed state, both as far as the individual police men and women were concerned, especially Anne Lindell (who is having a terrible time), but also a general despondency over the whole department. The crimes, whilst terrible, are not the most harrowing ones of the series. Can only assume the writer wasn't having a great time when he was writing this! Still worth a read though and I will start the last one in the series tonight.

[Anirban · Rating 1 out of 5]

Black Lies, Red Blood by Kjell Eriksson is the latest instalment in the series featuring Ann Lindell. Set is Sweden, the book starts with Lindell glowing in the light of new found love (according to her). But, no sooner had she really started feeling happy, than the “perfect man” Anders Brant, disappears from her life and apparently from Sweden without any hint as to his whereabouts or his motive. Before Lindell can figure what’s happening, a dead body with a bashed up head is found. Quickly identified as a homeless man, the police find a phone number in his pockets. And, giving credibility to the term “co-incidence” the number turns out to be Brant’s. Lindell is distressed and tries to solve another crime relating to the disappearance of a teenage girl, as she tries to find out “Where the hell, Brant is and what had he done to get his phone number in the pockets of a murdered man?”

Now, points to reckon while reading a book that has been written in a Scandinavian country.
1. Extremely brutal and twisted crime. Like one bullet used to kill three men standing haphazardly.
3. An equally twisted logic to solve and explain the crime.
4. Extremely bad translation (in most cases).
5. Extremely dark detectives.
a. They don’t know how to laugh.
b. Their lives are always down in the dumps.
c. They, always somehow in some way make the crime personal.
6. An African connection. (not frequent, but neither rare)
7. A book, despite all the above points, which is deliciously fast, and hugely entertaining to read.

Now, this particular book had none of the points mentioned from 1 to 6, except maybe the brooding detective and bad translation. Yet, it came out as a “WHY DID I PICK THIS BOOK” kind of book. The crime was pretty simple, the motive when explained to the reader was also simple, in fact it was so simple that wasting 320 pages on such a crime, and bringing it out with a name as mysterious and having no connection to the plot is a bit over the top. And the detection. This took all the cakes away. For 80% of the book everyone was speculating as to who can be the murderer, digging up names and taking with them, comparing fingerprints with no success. And then suddenly the murderer stars behaving oddly, he starts to show to the reader that he just might be the criminal, and in the penultimate chapter he is branded as the culprit. The police could have as well sat on their backs and waited for the 80% of the book to go by and wait for the man to reveal himself. This is not something I like in a detective novel. If this is a kind of thriller you are writing, I would rather read a case report. And coming to case report, the translation actually felt like that. Wooden and official.

Then what was this fuss about the book being an Ann Lindell mystery??? I mean the crime written on the blurb gets solved by everyone else but this lady. The only connection she had with the crime was that her supposed beau’s number was in the victim’s pocket, and that he did a vanishing trick. Lindell was busy trying to solve the missing kid case. And what did that case had to do with the main plot, except increase the number of pages?? And, even that case didnt get a proper ending. Or for that matter what did Anders Brant’s vacation in Brazil, his escapades with a Brazilian lady had to do with the main plot?? Except increasing the number of pages.

This book will remain as one, which had a thin plot fit for a short story, but which came out as a novel just because the author decided to stuff the whole plot with words and paras not remotely connected with the main plot. Or maybe this was that other kind of crime novel, the one with a “BROADER ISSUE” as it base. Whatever that might be!!

[Julie Stielstra · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've read two of Eriksson's Ann Lindell series and they were competent. The series has not been translated into English and published in order, which made for some confusion about Ann's conflicted life: lovers, pregnancy, motherhood, etc. But this one was just awful. Written by a man about a woman's purported sexual and emotional awakening by an absolute jerk. She daydreams through meetings about all the things this guy does with his tongue, and how she has finally met the man who will unfold her soul... a guy who "makes her feel seen and desired," by never listening to or caring about a single thing she thinks, does, feels, how her day is, anything, and tells her nothing at all about his either. Her son is now five and barely appears on the scene except to mention when he's conveniently at a friend's house. What was Eriksson drinking when he wrote this one? I ditched it fast and won't read another one.

[Laura Bourassa · Rating 2 out of 5]

The translation was very poor and the editing that didn't catch the poor translation disappointing. The mystery was well paced and interesting. The parallel Anne and Anders romantic thread was overdone and detracted from the characters themselves.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've liked his previous books featuring Ann Lindell solving complex crimes, however this entry seems muddled and not nearly as interesting.

[Mike Cuthbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

My exploration of Nordic Noir continued with this example from Kjell Eriksson. Unlike most of its brethren in the genre, this one is half murder mystery and half romance. Ann Lindell, cop, has concluded a tempestuous love affair with journalist Anders Brant. He has since disappeared, leaving her extremely depressed and sexually frustrated. She has a son by a previous marriage, but she clearly wants a commitment from Brant. So, while she waits to hear from him she begins work on two homicides: a young girl, Klara Lovisa, has disappeared and has yet to be found and a homeless man named Bo (Bosse) Gränsberg. Bo has a piece of paper in his pocket with a phone number: that of Anders Brant. That makes Brant a suspect for some reason, though it seems to me the phone number of a reporter who features stories about the helpless classes would not be enough to place the reporter under suspicion of homicide. Lindell is aided and supported by a fellow office, the elder Sammy Nilsson. There is no whiff of serious relations between them; he is just a good friend with her best interests at heart. I found the constant references to her desperation over the loss of Brant and side trips into his Latin affairs with the ravishing Vanessa time ill-spent, but then Lindell doesn’t spend much effort on the homeless case and is very slow developing the case against anyone for the Lovisa slaying. The novel also turns out to be out-of-balance: while the romance and the mixed cases of the homeless man and a Russian connection take a lot of time, the solution to both cases comes lightning quick, in almost excessive haste. Other than her desperation and her admirable relationship with Sammy, I never got much of a feel for Lindell’s character as a cop. There is also very little physical activity in the novel, a rarity for this genre. All-in-all, then, somewhat of a let-down in my series. I have many more to go, however, so I shall remain optimistic.

[Jez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had forgotten I had bought 3 Ann Lindell books when they were on offer. Didn’t enjoy the other 2 (‘The Princess of Burundi’ and ‘Cruel Stars of the Night’). This one didn’t change my mind.
I can normally handle lots of different characters without a problem, but here they lacked distinction, and it wasn’t always clear who we were reading about. There is a habit of switching from surname to forename, occasionally to a pet name or nickname, with no real consistency, so it all gets a bit confusing. One particular example was when there were 2 people named Nilsson - I had to read the passage 2 or 3 times to get the hang of who was doing what - terrible writing!
There was also a lot of jumping location, which I normally enjoy. However, it wasn’t executed well, and many times you were a page into a chapter before figuring out who you were reading about and where on earth we actually were. Could have been solved with a place name as a heading at the start of the chapter.
Some paragraphs have an odd way of describing things. It’s almost back to front. Maybe that’s a translation quirk, but it doesn’t make it an easy read.
So, aside from all that, you could perhaps forgive it all if there was a gripping story and plot. There just wasn’t. The whole thing felt like a bit of a mess, clumsily stumbling from one scene to the next. Compare it to an orchestra without a conductor, it may be a good tune, but you can’t really tell because it’s just chaotic sounds.
Looking back on it, I suppose it’s a decent enough plot, but not amazing. It’s just been executed so utterly terribly.
In summary, this wasn’t particularly enjoyable and was a real chore to persevere with it. I’ve now tried 3 Ann Lindell books and I haven’t liked any of them. Disappointing.

[Marilyn Shea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I chose this book because it had an endorsement on the cover by an author whose work I have enjoyed in the past, Henning Mankill. A Swedish detective story with several simultaneous plots, and I was able to form a mental picture of most of the characters despite the foreigh names that at first made me wonder if a character were male or female. It was engaging enough for me to stay with it, though it traveled through many a morass of clues and coincidences along with a strong examination of one detective and her love affair with a journalist that was almost irritating. Perhaps I judge women too harshly when they obsess over a man. Still, her job was so intense and required such calm and control that perhaps she needed to have a personal life in which she could let down all those carefully maintained professional barriers. When her relationship with this man was in question, she seemed to have no reserves of strength from which to draw. The ending was realistic, like so many actual endings in life are, neither good nor bad but rather unresolved.

[Elizabeth Sulzby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very puzzling in how Kjell Eriksson has portrayed Ann Lindell's timeline. The copyright date is 2008; translation to English date is 2014. The Hand That Trembles copyright date is 2011; translation date is also 2011. But all I can figure is that 2011's timeline is BEFORE the 2008 timeline. In The Hand That Trembles Ann is still pretty held together and longing for a man to love. In Black Lies, Red Blood she has fallen in love with investigative journalist Anders Brant. She falls apart massively when he leaves without warning and seems implicated in at least one or maybe more murders.

I have been rereading this series in order to get Ann's character development and life events straight. She is one of the most interesting characters in any of the Scandanavian series set in current times, except for Lisbeth Salander. In both books, "loneliness" is the demon with which Lindell is wrestling. Now I am going to reexamine the true order of the Swedish original copyright dates.

[Michael Rumney · Rating 2 out of 5]

This comes across like most Scandinavian crime novels as cold and bleak and I had to remind myself it was Summer in sweltering heat. Two crimes were merged into one the link being Ann Lindell who investigates a disappearance and her new boyfriend is implicated in a murder of a homeless man. I got confused in the last third of the book to where we were in either story and the fact one remain unsolved.
I know this happens in real life but it still felt unsatisfactory. Some of the English translation felt odd, who says paper carrier for someone who delivers newspapers. Does anyone take pain pills?
I felt the author could do better it felt like two separate tales but didn't have enough for separate books.

[Deane · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual, a good read set in Sweden and one of the Detective Ann Lindell mystery series. Ending surprised me in its briefness of the solutions or closing of the cases of murder being investigated but all made clear, thank goodness. I notice more and more explicit sex being introduced which is unnecessary; hope that path doesn't continue. Now to find the final book #10 in the series!

Was very surprised to find several errors in the translation of this book....where was the editor who should have caught these somewhat confusing mistakes?

[Phenomene · Rating 3 out of 5]

The structure of the book makes it sometimes difficult to get into, as there was a tendency to start new chapters with a new character and a different event, and it takes the reader a while to figure out how these new elements fit into the plot. That said, the plot hangs together and is well developed. There is quite a bit of psychological development of the main characters, which makes it interesting albeit at times difficult to read (in other words, the main characters such as the detective Ann Lindell and the journalist Anders Brant were all too human and not totally likeable which does not make a reader want to root for them).

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new Scandinavian noir detective novel happy find! Ann Lindell's emotional neediness is a new twist on the invincible cop and takes her into international intrigue as well as the local cases of a murdered houseless man and a missing teenage girl. She works all out, wearing her heart on her sleeve the whole time and the intrigue of the cases kept the pages turning for me more than the "poor me can't find true love" weepiness. Her single-mother devotion to her son adds roundness to her character but a little toughness would have gone a long way for me.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ann Linell is a captivating character. Sad, smart and vulnerable, she makes for a complex heroine who knows her policing but does not know herself. There are two murders being simultaneously investigated, which makes the book compelling, if hard to follow at times. I found the end disappointing insofar as one of the murders remains unsolved. That said, I did read it in a day, and found the plot solid in this very character driven story. Kjell Eriksson, I will read you again.

[Sheila · Rating 2 out of 5]

While it is a crime and police procedural novel, a good deal of the narrative is about the female detective's emotional state, her longing for her lover, and her confusion when she believes he may be involved in a murder. Apart from Ann and her lover, the other characters are not fleshed out enough for me to remember which is which. I like crime novels because unlike in real life, things usually get tidily resolved in the end. The end of this book, however, I found rather less satisfying.

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nah. This did not really click. It was more about the relationship of detective Ann and journalist Anders Brant who disappears and suspiciously seems in the middle of a new murder case. Ann is having a life crisis, anders is not very like able. I found the story line confusing with out enough character development fir me to care if relate. I had trouble figuring out who was who and did not get any great satisfaction by the end. Disappointing actually.

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ann Liddell is unlucky in love and that more or less is true in this book. There are two parallel cases that occur, and in typical Swedish manner, there is a lot of violence and several deaths, one of them related to a young homeless man whose motivation is hard to untangle. This is a reasonable series, but more violence than in some murder mysteries, beware.

[samuel-levi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not like the journalist whom Anne Lindell fell in love with. He seemed very shallow and confused. Not at all stable, like Edvard. Beyond that I enjoyed the 2 different storylines and the style of writing. I do hope Anne does not ultimately end up with this journalist. I will read more books by this writer.

[Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think that because I came straight in at Book 5, the story felt slow and sluggish - wading through treacle. I didn't care about the characters, good or bad so they didn't keep me interested enough to be desperate for the final act .. sadly, just the final page.

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

It takes a lot for me to throw in the towel on a Scandinavian noir but throw I did with this one. I think I got about 50 pages in and found the cast of characters to be impenetrable. Just did not have it in me to finish.

[Eva · Rating 2 out of 5]

Vyšetřovatelka Ann s osobními problémy obviní z vraždy vždy toho, kdo se zrovna namane. Důkazy žádné. A já vlastně ani po přečtení knihy nevím, kdo je vrah...

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worth persevering but a bit slow in places.

[Lynda Haghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story

[Janellyn51 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one the best I think. Ann wasn't all boohoo Edvard.....

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like Nordic crime novels so I thought I would like this one. Not so. It was too long, the characters were not likable and the ending was a dud.

[Mike Miller · Rating 2 out of 5]

Could not finish reading. Too many odd named characters and very slow.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good police procedural set in Uppsala Sweden. I like the ensemble characters running parallel investigations.

[Nyssy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m confoosed with the series.. 📚

[Trudy Keller]

Ann Lindell, Swedish detective