Follow the Butterfly

by Martta Kaukonen, David Hackston (translator)

THE HIT INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

Two brilliant women—a serial killer and her therapist—play “a brilliant game of cat and mouse” in this twisty psychological thriller for fans of Ruth Ware and Alex Michaelides (The Times)

It all started with a telephone call. It was the first time I heard Ida’s voice, just a faint whisper, as though she were calling from beyond the grave.

Renowned therapist Clarissa Virtanen is not afraid to look at the darkest side of humanity. Haunted by the death of a young patient, she will do whatever it takes to save the most vulnerable.

But when Ida – angry, damaged and seemingly suicidal – walks into her office, Clarissa may have met her match. For Ida has secrets.

Murderous secrets, which mark her like a bloodstain. Secrets which drive her to kill. And kill again.

Somehow, Clarissa must find the key to unlock her past. So she makes a bargain with Ida - six months to try and stop her taking her own life. But what if she has entered a game more deadly, and more evil, than she could ever imagine?

Don’t miss this dark and twisty psychological thriller featuring a face-off between 2 women that's overlain with a sense of poignancy about damaged lives, the power of the imagination to trick–and protect–us, and the passage of time.

361 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 4, 2025

Reviews

[Diva · Rating 1 out of 5]

Che brutto romanzo, mamma mia.
Forse riflettendoci, facendo trascorrere qualche giorno dalla lettura, sarò meno impietosa. Ma così, di getto, dopo averlo appena terminato, mi sento solo di dire: che brutto romanzo, ribadisco.
Di base l'idea c'è e poteva essere interessante, ma è scritta e gestita veramente male. I personaggi non convincono e lo stile di scrittura (perlomeno la traduzione) è più che discutibile. Un "mappazzone" di idee messo assieme, buttato lì, rendendo l'effetto cardiopalma - che un thriller in teoria dovrebbe avere - totalmente inesistente. Un po' perché alcune dinamiche erano scontate e banali, altre "costruite" molto male.
Al momento, il romanzo peggiore letto quest'anno.

[Marina Grgić · Rating 1 out of 5]

Totally boring and waste of my time.

[Sonia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Non mi è piaciuto, è talmente brutto che faccio fatica ad elencare tutto ciò che mi ha fatto storcere il naso. Il primo difetto è la narrazione in Pov di 4 personaggi lunghi una o al massimo tre pagine, per cui molto frammentario. Poi parte con delle premesse, che a tre quarti di libro capisci già tutto ma con idee esposte in modo tanto disorganizzato, criptico e frammentario da provare sollievo che sia finito. Era anche partito bene peccato. Non vedo l'ora di restituirlo in biblioteca. Ah già ampiamente metà libro ho iniziato a trovarlo noioso, ma con la speranza che si riprendesse sul finale.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the twists and was entertained.  I was not expecting the ending and it moved at a fast pace which I liked. I was invested in how this was going to end. I think this is a unique thriller and I would recommend this. Special Thank You to Martta Kaukonen,Pushkin Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Mona El-gharbawy · Rating 3 out of 5]

رواية ثقيلة بتفاصيل مملة وزادتها الترجمة ثقلا.
الثلاث نجوم:1- للمعلومات النفسية التي بذلت فيها الكاتبة مجهود يستحق التقدير.
2- التويست الخاص بالمعالجة وجرائم إيرا لاني توقعت دور بيكا

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Follow the Butterfly by Martta Kaukonen is a character driven mystery translated into English by Daniel Hackston.

Ida decides to seek therapy from renowned psychologist Clarissa Virtanen. Ida does not give much away at first but she does surreptitiously leave clues behind. Clarissa has her own secrets but disgraced reporter Arto hopes to uncover at least one of them. And why is Clarissa’s husband Pekka is so suddenly concerned about his wife?

Follow the Butterfly is a dark and twisted mystery set in Finland. Ida cannot escape the haunting memories of her past. Clarissa is well-known so she will go to any lengths to protect her reputation. Arto needs Clarissa’s story to save what is left of his career. Pekka’s issues are unknown until almost the end of this slow burn mystery. The storyline is compelling with difficult subject matter handled with sensitivity. Unfolding from multiple points of view, Martta Kaukonen’s cleverly-plotted mystery hurtles to a shocking conclusion.

[Itsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

بدون حرق: قاتلة متسلسلة تقرر الذهاب للمعالجة النفسية الأشهر في البلاد، ليس للعلاج ولكن لضمان الحصول على حجة أنها مضطربة نفسيا إذا ما القت الشرطة القبض عليها.
وصحفي مكلف بإجراء حوار صحفي شيق مع نفس المعالجة النفسية.
تظهر من الصفحات الأولى أن القاتلة المتسلسلة والصحفي والمعالجة النفسية وزوجها جميعهم يعانوا من اضطرابات وصدمات نفسية سابقة بتتكشف في الأجزاء الأخيرة من الرواية، لا يعلم أي منهم ماذا يخبيء الآخر.

شوف الريفيو هنا 👇🏼
https://tinyurl.com/ycx3ew2m

الرواية تشد الانتباه من أول سطر،
الترجمة أكثر من ممتازة، من المرات القليلة اللي تشعر أنك تقرأ كتاب بالعربية وليس مترجم.
الكاتبة بذلت مجهود واضح جدا في الأمراض النفسية وتشخيصها وعلاجها، ظهر ذلك من خلال المعلومات عبر صفحات الرواية ولكن بسلاسلة وبدون ملل.
الرواية+٢١ بسبب موضوعها، ويعيبها وجود شخصية نتفلكسية كالعادة لإظهار مدى روعة هؤلاء الأشخاص، شخصية مقحمة إقحام بدون أي مبرر.

#ريفيو_عالسريع

[Arianna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Una stella è un regalo. Era da tanto che non leggevo un libro così brutto :scritto male, personaggi non caratterizzati, banali, scontati, noiosi. Io non lo consiglio per niente, sono così tanti o libri da leggere non buttate il vostro tempo.

[Nino Ciglio · Rating 1 out of 5]

I miei ex alunni di terza media hanno una prosa migliore 👍🏻 grazie per avermi comunque tenuto incollato ai duemila plot twist 🪢

[Margob99 · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bad. Badly written, or poorly translated, or both. I can't believe I forced myself to read the entire thing.

[Rita Terlizzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Butterfly" di Martta Kaukonen

Longanesi Editore ‎, 2025
320 pagine
📚 Genere: Thriller psicologici
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Piuttosto vi starete chiedendo: che cosa si prova a uccidere?
Niente.
Neanche stavolta.
Tutto si ripete, sempre identico. E io invece ogni volta spero che sia diverso. Spero di rinascere..." 🥺

Butterfly è un thriller psicologico, l'autrice gioca con noi lettori facendoci entrare nel "mondo malato" dei quattro protagonisti, tra bugie (tante) inganni e mezze verità 😰
Come dicevo ci sono 4 diversi POV "Point of View": Ira, Clarissa, Arto e Pekka!
1. Ira è una serial killer, un personaggio veramente irritante, una ventenne divorata dalle sue debolezze e ossessioni... e chi è lo "Stronzo" che la perseguita nei sogni e nelle sue allucinazioni? 😱
Ira: "Avrei dovuto avvertirvi subito: sono una bugiarda cronica e patologica. Persino nelle cose più banali." 🧐
2. Clarissa Cristal Virtanen è una psicoterapeuta di fama mondiale, una star dei talk show, esperta fredda e analitica, e instancabile paladina dei diritti delle donne e delle bambine!
È a lei che Ira si rivolge per chiedere aiuto... perché proprio lei??!? 🤔
E cosa si nasconde dietro l’impeccabile aspetto di Clarissa?!
3. Arto Haaleajärvi è un giornalista, ora è più un fallito e alcolista, ma è arrivata l'occasione buona: una intervista da copertina per il nuovo inserto chiamato Lifestyle.
Dovrà incontrare Clarissa Virtanen, la psicologa!
4. Pekka è il marito di Clarissa, è un ingegnere esperto nella manutenzione di vecchi database, ed è il primo ammiratore della moglie, ama il suo modo di dedicare "tutta la sua vita" per aiutare i suoi pazienti!!
Le loro strade in un modo o nell'altro si incroceranno (o sono già legate tra loro 😬) io verso la metà del libro, mi sono detta... What?! ...cosa stanno dicendo. Sorpresaaa ...io non avevo capito nulla (ahah) mi ha proprio sorpreso il collegamento tra i personaggi e il finale, che mi ha stupito... però mi ha lasciato con l'amaro in bocca.
Bello!
Non conoscevo l'autrice, sono stata ispirata da una recensione (Loredana 👍🏻) e dalla bellissima cover.
L'ho letto in pochissimo tempo... l'ho proprio divorato.
Molto interessante lo stile narrativo dell'autrice, perché con i capitoli brevi la storia corre veloce tra i diversi POV, e ci porta dritti nei meandri oscuri della mente umana 😱
Il libro è un viaggio nel disturbo ossessivo compulsivo, tra pensieri invasivi, anoressia, violenza, abusi, alcolismo... Butterfly è riescito a tenermi incollata alle pagine, coinvolgente e ricco di suspense, lo consiglio soprattutto a chi ama il genere.
Buona lettura 👍🏻

[Ashley Sawyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Follow The Butterfly by Martta Kaukonen is a complex, multiple POV psychological thriller.

After reading the synopsis I was very excited to read this one. I think the character driven plot is great but I almost think it could have been better without the male characters. I just didn't feel like they added that much to the overall plot. This is definitely a novel that you need to take your time with because it can be tricky to keep the POVs apart. Another thing to mention is that this was translated in to English so maybe some things might just be lost in translation. Even though there is difficult subject matter discussed, it is not graphic so that is a plus. I would be interested in checking out more by this author in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley, Martta Kaukonen, and Pushkin Press for this ARC. Publication date was March 4th 2025.

[Andi Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars- A multiple POV dark and twisty psychological thriller about a female serial killer and the therapist racing to find the key to unlock her past before it’s too late.

The title really should have been something featuring a spider as this book was woven together like a twisted web. I loved the multiple POVs and full cast audio. I was excited to find the serial killer MC was narrated by Lauren Ezzo, one of my favorites, and her performance (only way to describe it) was amazing! This was a very entertaining story that kept you guessing the whole time. My only issue was that it was a little hard to follow at times, moving along in the story with no real real transition leaving me feeling a bit like missed something. But overall good dark and twisty thriller and great audiobook!

[Zoe Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ida the serial killer, Arto the journalist, Clarissa the therapist and Pekka the therapists husband, these four weave together a tale of secrets, lies and devastating truths.

Without giving anything away I enjoyed this read, set in Finland which mainly concentrates on Ida and her relationships with others, none of the characters are particularly likeable but it made for an interesting read. This is a good psychological thriller with an interesting plot.

Many thanks to NetGalley, publisher and author for my gifted eARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Sarah B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Renowned therapist Clarissa Virtanen is contacted by Ida as she wants therapy to help her with a few disturbing matters within her mind! The story is told using multiple points of view. It's a tense plot full of twists and turns and secrets and lies play a huge role within the storyline! It is well written and very descriptive. All the sub plots tie up with a dramatic conclusion that I never saw coming or imagined how the book would finish.

[Kaley Leggett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listen I really like this book I had fun reading it and was really taken aback by the ending and twist!!! But it was out there, almost completely unbelievable how so many coincidences kinda just happen! Totally unlikely but then again it is fiction. So I’m not knocking the story totally a good read but my brain was like “how are all these improbable things happening all at once”?

I had to come back and re-rate this book and add another star. I couldn’t stop talking about it to my friend!

[Snježana Babić · Rating 2 out of 5]

Manjkav prijevod, nije odrađena redaktura i lektura/korektura, što jako ometa čitanje. Neuvjerljivi likovi, a način pisanja docirajući. Najavljeni nastavak sigurno neću čitati.

[Giulia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Capitoli brevissimi, psicoanalisi, colpi di scena finali

[Qamar Mohamed · Rating 1 out of 5]

عنوان براق لرواية مملة جداً.
العنوان لوحده يجعلك تشعر بأن الفكرة ستكون مثيرة للأهتمام ولكن ما بين تلك الصفحات ما هو إلا هراء لا يستحق هذا الوقت

[Ilaria Lozia · Rating 4 out of 5]

e mezza

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

تقريبا أوحش رواية thriller قريتها في حياتي. سيئة و مضيعة للوقت