Midnight in Malmö

Inspector Anita Sundström #4

by Torquil MacLeod

When a woman is stabbed to death while jogging in Malmö’s main park, the Criminal Investigation Squad need to discover who she is before the case can properly get under way. Soon they realise the victim had flown in from Switzerland, and with links to important people in the city, she wasn’t everything she seemed.

Meanwhile, enjoying the hot summer away from Malmö, Anita Sundström is on her annual leave and is showing Kevin Ash the sights of Skåne. Their holiday is interrupted by the apparent suicide of a respected, retired diplomat. After a further death, Anita finds herself unofficially investigating a case that has its roots in the 1917 chance meeting of a Malmö waiter with the world’s most famous revolutionary. All she knows is that the answers lie in Berlin.

Two investigations that begin and end at Midnight in Malmö – the fourth Inspector Anita Sundström mystery.

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

360 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 26, 2015

About the author

Torquil MacLeod was born in Edinburgh and brought up in the north east of England. After a brief spell as a teacher in Worcestershire, he worked in advertising agencies in Birmingham, Glasgow and Newcastle; since 2000 he has been a freelance writer.

See also: Torquil R. MacLeod

Reviews

[Zain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Malmo is a Fantastic City!

Lots of good activity located in Malmo.

Inspector Anita Sundstrom is on vacation in Osterlen, so she isn’t aware that a murder has occurred at the park near her home in Malmo.

A woman jogger has been stabbed in the back and no one knows who she is. Her team has to work without her.

And although she is on vacation, she gets caught up in a murder. She just can’t seem to get away from crime.

Will she solve the murder? Will her team back home solve a murder without her? Time will tell.

Five fabulous stars. ✨✨✨✨✨

[Gary Van Cott · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. This is a good book and I am enjoying this series, which I suggest should be read in order. It slowly builds to two climaxes. Read the summary if you want to learn more about the plot. My only criticism is that I think the ending is a bit abrupt. If you like this book you might also be interested in the books of Helene Tursten. Her books have a similar tone.

[Colin Mitchell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Midnight in Malmo is the fourth in the Inspector Anita Sundstrom novels by Torquil MacLeod set in Malmo, Sweden. Anita is on holiday with her British policeman boyfriend Kevin when the death of an elderly former diplomat and a young local historian occur in what seem to be suspicious circumstances. Meanwhile her team in Malmo are investigating the murder of a prostitute in a local park.
For much of the book these seem to be unrelated, while Anita and Kevin travel to Berlin her son Lasse is in danger. I did feel that the link between case was left almost to the end and the came as almost an afterthought. It did make a tense and gripping ending.
To fully enjoy this book it is a good idea to have read the previous three books as there is a historical link between them and the characters have all appeared before. A lot of sex and too much alcohol show a trend within many current crime novels. Does this reflect our shallow society?

[Calzean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much better than the previous book I have read in this series (Book 1). There's plenty of reminders of what happened in Book 2 and 3 so either read the series in order of skip them.
Two crimes are being pursued separately. Anita is on holidays with a friend with benefits. A suicide and a motorbike accident raises her suspicions and away she goes. Meanwhile back at the office her colleagues are chasing the murder of a female jogger.
I kept waiting for the two stories to have a link and there is one eventually and not one I was suspecting.
My main complaint is the ongoing Wikipedia like statements about a historical event or person as background.

[Ken Fredette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Torquil MacLeod has a definite twist to all his books. I now read the forth book in the series which was way out of order and it made the most sense of any book so far. Anita Sundström happily took her summer vacation with Kevin, a British cop. But with murders occurring right under their noses she tried to find the killers. While Chief Inspector Moberg was faced with the murder of a prostitute during her run. The Chief Inspector started off on the wrong male suspects and ended up on the wrong male suspect. Hakim Mirza in the last chapter of the book solved this case. While Anita and Kevin went to Berlin to meet with who they thought new the killers of their friends. Arriving home to make an end of the killings. Anita was involved in both cases so you have to read the story to find out what really happened.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've rated this 5 because I've rated this against the other books in the series and I feel this one has finally come of age. Gone are the annoying completely disbelieve-able characters, there was again 2 plots but this time they didn't intersect but still led you up the garden path leaving the surprise until the end. I hope to see more character and relationship building of the central and supporting cast in future books.

[Isabelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed the two plots intertwined unfolding at a rapid pace, giving you a lot to think about. Plus there are some pleasant description of Sweden Midsummer!
I particularly took a liking for Kevin, coming over for a holiday with his new found girlfriend, Anita.
He sure has the holiday of a lifetime!
The book has provided me good entertainment.

[Mike Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 4 in a series that, in my view, has maintained its standard so far. Two strands to this one, with an intriguing finale. The story covers holidays, The Cold War, abuse, religion, politics and race. Phew! Some really good plot twists and good development of supporting characters.
I'm looking forward to Book 5 - Menace In Malmö...

[Amanda Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two entwined tales..

.. that reach a desperate conclusion..

It's quite some time since the last case and Anita is taking a holiday with Kevin the British policeman who helped to solve the Todd case. We split our time between the couple on holiday and a murder case back in Malmö which happened just after Anita went on leave.

Her initially ambivalent relationship with Kevin begins to deepen as the pair find themselves questioning the supposed suicide of a retired diplomat who's in the process of writing his memoirs. When the writer Klas also dies in a sudden mysterious motorcycle crash this is a coincidence too far for Anita and they end up racing across Europe on the trail of the truth.

The case back in Malmö is proving difficult to solve and Moberg is determined to crack it before Anita returns. The victim, Julia Akerman, turns out to be a high class call girl with a list of wealthy clients; the ones in Malmö have reason enough to want their liaisons kept quiet but sometimes it takes more than looking in the obvious places to solve a case.. it will take every member of the team to see the truth and get them to the finale in time.. will it be enough?

[Ron Chicaferro · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not put this book down. An excellent thriller in the Anita Sundstrom series. The book takes place in Sweden - Malmo and Stockholm. There are two stories - one involving just Anita who is in-country on a short vacation along with her British boyfriend; and another main story about the murder of a woman who was jogging in a park. Other than stumbling on the Swedish names, its a very easy read. The reader will learn a lot about some Swedish history - and its struggles against its geographic neighbor, Russia. Anita's story touches on some of the German past - its Nazi days. There are some terrifying characters in the book - there are also some terrific detectives working the murder case. An excellent book.

[Martha Mason · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not up to snuff

I've enjoyed the three previous Malmo books They were not examples of great literature but good for what they were. This time, however, MacLeod missed the mark. With two separate and unrelated murder mysteries in different locations leaving Sundstrom outside the main investigation MacLeod created a disjointed narrative. And the denouement was dreadfully contrived. It was as if he suddenly realized that he needed to get Sundstrom into the Malmo action and made all haste to do so. Not only was the ending contrived, it was also so abrupt that one is left wondering what just happened.

[george burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too Much of a Good Thing

This is the fourth installment in the Inspector Sundstrom series and like the first three, it features complicated plotting, action and surprises. The redoubtable inspector is on vacation when a woman jogger is stabbed to death. She turns out to be something of a mystery woman complicating the investigation. Meanwhile, the Inspector's vacation isn't all fun in the sun. Indeed, she stumbles onto an elaborate conspiracy that does not fit and is hard to take seriously. Still, this book provides plenty of guilty entertainment and we can only hope that number five appears soon and that it features only traditional police work.

[Gillian Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read all four books consecutively which made for a better read. You can read the books independently but starting with Meet Me In Malmo it builds up a better character picture of Anita Sundstrom (who doesn't seem to eat but drinks a lot of wine), her hideous colleague Karl Westermark and the boss from hell Chief Inspector Moberg who only reads two things, police reports and (his own) divorce papers. Like the other three books, there are enough twist and turns and the end leaves the door open for another story. Brit/Nordic Noir? Not sure if 'noir' could be used here but certainly Swedish crime with an English twist.

[Michael Martz · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very disappointing addition to the Malmö series. 2 entirely separate cases worked by different teams which never really come together, silly thinking, poor police work, bad dialogue, a shoddy ending. Nothing here, move along.

[Phillip]

Really enjoyed story and background political detail. looking forward to #5

[Anne Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve enjoyed all the books in the series so far but this is my favourite. Anita is on a month long holiday and she’s invited Kevin, the British policeman she met in the previous book to join her for a fortnight. Anita is ready for some male company, ready to feel wanted again, although she’s not sure exactly how far she’s willing to let Kevin in. Kevin knows he’s the keener one already and he’s constantly having to stop himself from being too needy. Both are enjoying themselves in Anita’s holiday let cabin north of Malmo near the town Anita grew up in. Although a little isolated, they are not entirely alone. There are another two properties on the site. One has another holidaying couple in it, the woman seems friendly enough but her husband is unfriendly, and a third property is the home of a retired diplomat. The diplomat is quite famous in Sweden as he served in all the glamorous postings like London and Washington. Unfortunately, he is dying of cancer and is spending his remaining time recounting his life to a local historian who is going to write his biography to be published after the diplomat’s death. The diplomat’s death comes sooner than anyone is expecting. It seems he has committed suicide. The local historian is actually an old friend of Anita’s and he comes to her with his concerns that there was no suicide, that the diplomat was murdered. Anita believes him to be mistaken until something happens to him too. She talks Kevin in to investigating the deaths as the local police, under the supervision of Anita’s old enemy, seem only to keen to rubber stamp a suicide and an accident. However, Anita has no idea just what she’s getting herself and Kevin into and how much danger she’s putting everyone and everything she loves in.

Meanwhile, the usual team are dealing with the death of a late night jogger in the park in Malmo. She’s been stabbed. For a long time, the police cannot find her identity because she only had a key on her when she was killed. Then, when they discover her identity, it leads to more questions rather than answers. This is a tough case to crack.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this 4th entry Anita is taking a vacation with Kevin Ash, the British detective she met and worked with in the previous book. While enjoying their time in a rented cabin a friend visits and mentions he is busy interviewing a dying diplomat who has secrets dating back to World War II and that he will be writing the man's biography. Shortly after the diplomat dies and Anita feels the death is suspicious. She and Kevin quietly start to investigate even though this is not her case. A week or so later her friend dies in a motorbike accident on his way back from interviewing a man in Germany connected to the diplomat and the World War II secrets he was going to reveal. The story goes on from there. Meanwhile back in Malmo, the team is investigating the murder of a high-priced call girl with political connections and implications. The two cases are connected in a very loose way that doesn't come out until the end. Overall this book was just okay. I particularly didn't like how Anita's "case" turned out.

[Ilona Bell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two absorbing mysteries - with a surprise twist in one.

I’ve read the previous three Inspector Sundstrom mysteries and hoped this one would give them a fresh start. At first it seemed that way. She and Kevin are on vacation together. Then some old Soviet spy stuff comes up and two people end up dead and together they are off on the hunt. This part of the book had a lot of interesting history of Sweden during WW II and the Cold War - stuck as they are between Russia (USSR) and the west. It’s a pretty straightforward spy story with some maturing relationship thrown in. The other mystery is good too, and I didn’t twig to the one thing I should have early on. This made the twist surprising but also irritating as, once more, Anita is in personal jeopardy, something that annoys me as lazy drama. So the end left me fuming. I may keep going but I think Torquil MacLeod needs to give Anita a rest before she ends up in the loony bin.

[Tony da Napoli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Doing the series in order. IMO this is the best so far. It is interesting that it contains two separate mysteries/cases and that they both involve Anita in different ways and degrees. The cast of characters continues to develop well, and the personality traits remain consistent. We now have a Barney Miller cast of characters working together in the homicide department. And even though the author, MacLeod, is from the UK, the novel fits well into my idea of Scandinavian noir although much lighter than others with gruesome gore. Also, true to genre, the romantic/bedroom elements have few details... I leave it to the more skilled reviewers to fill in non-spoiler story lines.
This would be an OK standalone even though it involves previous novel activities and mentions. I like that the author does not unnecessarily pad the book with past history. Recommended and looking forward to the next in line.

[Bud Mallar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had this all figured out, until the middle of the book and then I had to re-figure and then at the end I was wrong.

Two whodunits in one, good characters stumbling along trying to figure it out, not really a police procedure.

Ties back to an earlier book, so start with #1, and another view of the complications across Scandanavia thanks to WWII and the years immediately following.

A couple of serious loose ends probably saved for somewhere down the line in the series.

Enjoying these.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sundstrom's stories keep improving

The fourth of this series outshines the others - good plotting of multiple lines, characters developing nicely, and - a lover for Anita! Though it did take police an awfully long time to realize the first victim was a mistake. That seemed evident early to me. Guess reading all these mysteries has finally paid off - even if guessing the killer was impossible.

[Peg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anita is taking a much deserved vacation at the beach after the harrowing events of the last book. In the meantime, her colleages are working just fine without her to solve a mysterious murder of a jogger in the park. Of course, Anita cant just go on vacation without a mystery of her own. I found this side event of hers sort of a waste of time and unfulfilling. But the other mystery was pretty good

[Martina · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fourth of Torquil MacLeod's series of crime novels set in Malmo featuring Anita Sundstrom, an inspector from that Southern Swedish city.

Giving it a low 4 as the story was woven into the issues around Sweden's supposed neutrality during the years of the Cold War after world war II. Involvement with the security services of Russia, Britain, the US, and other Scandinavian countries underpins the plot. There was so much involved, in terms of people, security services, police, and the occasional person who should not have been loose taking revenge over things that didn't happen or things they perceived but were not grounded in truth. The basic story is a wild ride, but somehow not as grounded as some of the other plots of books in this series. But it certainly kept me reading!

[Jan Lehman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Different but good

Is it an espionage story or a mystery or more interesting ,
a combination of both? Anita is on a holiday, but life goes on,presenting excitement for her and her partner ,but also for the police department a home. This gives other characters a chance to blossom. Very entertaining reading. Love this series.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

MacLeod's novels are filled with fascinating twists and turns which in some cases are expected but in reality leave open questions to be answered in later books. Or do they? I find the the plotting and pace quite good and make the journey both interesting and curious as to the historical aspects of the issues. In this case WWII espionage.

[Guy Cabell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating story, although some of the ending is unsatisfactory, and shows that evil forces continue with their evil, no matter how much we try to stop them. And if that seems cryptic, it's because I don't want to give away any of the story. I did correctly guess the motive for the murder in Malmö. It was obvious after the first few pages, although the murderer remained a mystery.

[Rogue Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two separate and parallel tracks, not at all converging so nice to have the dual plots and develop another strong female protag. Nice too that Anita finds love! Setting is splendid - the summer cabins on the lake.

[Livia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one more than the 2nd and 3rd. Mostly because of the personal situation of the main character which was different and much more positive this time. The story itself had the usual surprising twists and was very thrilling and entertaining. I'm really looking forward to number 5.

[Bruce Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vacation, spies, and detectives

What a great novel and so different from the other Malmo books! Anita goes on vacation with her new acquaintance from England. They become involved with two murders, and they investigate. The spy story adds depth to this story. Surprise ending...

[John Mathews]

It was like rolling into your favorite diner and digging into that same great burger that simply makes a really satisfying meal. Nothing overly ambitious, honest in what it delivers, expected but satisfying all the same. I'll be back.