Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

La donna che sembrava Greta Garbo

Rate this book
Ambientato in una Stoccolma estiva e soleggiata, fra le migliaia di isolette che la circondano, un thriller carico di suspense che conferma la eccellenza nel genere di Maj Sjöwall che, questa volta in compagnia di Tomas Ross, riprende le strade del giallo già percorse con Per Wahlöö indagando tra i segreti più inconfessabili delle democrazie del Nord Europa.

326 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1990

1 person is currently reading
60 people want to read

About the author

Maj Sjöwall

108 books470 followers
Maj Sjöwall was a Swedish author and translator. She was best known for the collaborative work with her partner Per Wahlöö on a series of ten novels about the exploits of Martin Beck, a police detective in Stockholm. In 1971, the fourth of these books, The Laughing Policeman (a translation of Den skrattande polisen, originally published in 1968) won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best Novel. They also wrote novels separately.

Sjöwall had a 13 year relationship with Wahlöö which lasted until his death in 1975.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
8 (7%)
4 stars
22 (20%)
3 stars
43 (39%)
2 stars
29 (26%)
1 star
6 (5%)
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
Profile Image for Vera VB.
1,500 reviews6 followers
December 6, 2013
Decades ago I read all books written by Maj Sjöwall en Per Wahlöö. This book is a cooperation between May Sjöwall and Tomas Ross, written I think in 1990. It wasn't as good as I remember the books written by Maj Sjöwall en Per Wahlöö were. Perhaps it's because I have gotten older or that times are changing but I wasn't sucked into the story.
Profile Image for Angel 一匹狼.
1,011 reviews63 followers
April 15, 2025
Way weaker than her efforts with Per Wahlöö, "Kvinnan som liknade Greta Garbo" is one of those books that make little sense, where characters sometimes behave like they are in an action movie for no particular reason, and where the MacGuffin is quite risible. It is an OK airport read, but totally skippable.

The best: some snippets of what made Maj Sjöwall/Per Wahlöö fun

The worst: it is all so silly

Alternatives: as said above, the Martin Beck series

5/10

(Catalan translation by Meritxell Salvany)
Profile Image for Simona Moschini.
Author 5 books45 followers
January 20, 2020
Cosa succede quando Maj Sjöwall "tradisce" Per Wahlöö con un giallista olandese? Elementare, anobii: scrivono un giallo vivace e di ambientazione urbana il cui intreccio rimbalza da Amsterdam a una fiera tedesca a Stoccolma e alle isolette svedesi.
Ha il suo fascino, e un pessimismo di fondo che l'ingannevole vivacità del tono narrativo cela fino alla conclusione.
Profile Image for Giusi Desiré.
1 review
December 28, 2019
Cercavo una biografia di Greta Garbo 3 per errore ho presto questo libro.
L' ho trovato prolisso, lento e a volte confusionario... Probabilmente però, semplicemente, non è il mio genere...
34 reviews
May 20, 2025
Mooi plot en tof dat twee van die grootheden de krachten hebben gebundeld.
92 reviews
September 10, 2025
Een onderhoudende politier, niet altijd even geloofwaardig, maar leuk om op verlof mee te nemen.
Profile Image for Axel Walkovitch.
24 reviews3 followers
March 29, 2021
Veľká zvedavosť ma priťahovala, aby som si prečítal túto detektívku. Tvorbu Maj Sjöwall s jej partnerom Per Wahlöö som ako mladý človek trošku poznal. Obidvaja vytvorili kriminalistu Martina Becka v 10. dielnej sérii "Románov o zločine". Príbehy sa odohrávajú v rokoch 1965-1975 vo Švédsku a vychádzali v približne ročných odstupoch.
Až približne 15 rokov po smrti Pera Wahlöö sa Sjöwall odhodlala napísať v "tandeme" ďalší detektívny prípad. Skúsila to s holanďanom Tomasom Rossom a knižka v českom preklade Miloslava Žilinu sa volá: "Žena, která se podobala Gretě Garbo".
Naozaj to bol veľmi zaujímavý literárny počin.
Výsledný efekt po prečítaní bol taký, že neprišlo žiadne veľké sklamanie, ale ani veľké nadšenie. Možno napovie, že som neľutoval prečítanie. Naopak, som rád.
Čítalo sa to ľahko, bolo tam napätie, príjemná, nielen severská atmosféra.
Možno žiadna genialita, čo by knižku zaradila k nehynúcej klasike, ale poteší, pobaví.
Myslím, že to stačí.
Profile Image for Paulien.
139 reviews3 followers
June 25, 2012
Dit boek roept zeker de goede sfeer op. De beschrijvingen zorgen ervoor dat je je in het Zweden van de late jaren tachtig, vroege jaren negentig waant. De personages zijn gevarieerd en genuanceerd, wat niet evident is in een thriller. Het plot zelf vond ik net iets te magertjes - het had gerust wat meer gemogen.
Profile Image for Pino Sabatelli.
596 reviews67 followers
April 11, 2017
Conoscevo Maj Sjöwall per la serie di Martin Beck, dieci romanzi scritti a quattro mani con il compagno Per Wahlöö fra il 1965 e il 1975 e che, nelle ultime prove, aveva già iniziato a mostrare la corda a causa del sempre più evidente squilibrio fra l’intreccio legato all’indagine poliziesca e la programmatica componente di denuncia sociale nei confronti della perbenista e corrotta società svedese, divenuta via via preponderante, quasi ideologica.
Anche questo romanzo, scritto con la collaborazione di Tomas Ross, non sfugge a quella deriva, punteggiato com’è da sermoncini sociologici abbastanza scontati che appesantiscono una narrazione che non decolla mai del tutto, complici anche i personaggi, nel complesso mal definiti e bidimensionali. Insomma: deludente.
Profile Image for Trine.
204 reviews11 followers
January 15, 2014
Dessverre ikke så god som serien hun skrev med sin mann; men helt lesbar. Plottet var ikke særlig OK, og syntes tiden boken var skrevet i gikk en del frem og tilbake - ofte virket den eldre enn de 25 årene den var.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.