Below the Surface

Maria Kallio #8

by Leena Lehtolainen, Owen F. Witesman (Translator)

When a woman's body turns up in a lake—a bullet to the back of her head—Violent Crime Unit commander Maria Kallio, freshly back from maternity leave, is fast to get on the case. The victim is ID'd as Annukka Hackman, wife of a prominent publisher and author of an upcoming unauthorized tell-all book on Sasha Smeds, Finland's celebrated racing rally driver.Almost as soon as the inquiry starts, it goes off the rails, as those connected to Annukka—and to Smeds—seem to have more secrets than they have alibis. Was the journalist about to reveal a bombshell that someone was desperate to keep quiet? Or will it take some reading between the lines? The clues may be few, but the list of suspects is long. As she struggles to balance her home life, run a department tainted by career-threatening allegations, and catch a killer, Maria is shocked to find just what someone was willing to do in the name of love—or revenge.

Genres: Crime, Finnish Literature, Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Nordic Noir, Audiobook

314 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2013

About the author

Leena Katriina Lehtolainen is a Finnish crime novelist, best known for her series of novels about the policewoman Maria Kallio.

Lehtolainen was born in Vesanto, Northern Savonia. Her first novel was released when she was only 12 years old. She studied literature in Helsinki until 1995 and wrote crime novels from 1993 on. Since about 2007 she has written other genres of books. Her works have been translated into various languages: Spanish, Dutch, Chinese, Lithuanian, Polish, French, Swedish, German, Estonian, Czech.

Reviews

[Ken Fredette · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a muder mystery I think that Leena Lehtolainen did just that. At first I was confused because of the person she was talking in sounded like Maria Kallio was the murderer, putting on the things (on her feet and on her hair) to keep DNA in check. Also throwing the gun and i-phone away in another location. After Maria found out that Annukka Hackman was murdered I knew that I was wrong. Many other red herrings were given and we went through a whole load of other possible people who could have murdered her. The Medical examiner was suppose to marry her, she changed her mind at the last minute an married another, she was writing about the Smeds family (father, mother, brother, wife of a rally driver, and the rally driver).

Maria has other problems with her staff in that there are allegations of misconduct among her male staff and she also has problems with information becoming public. The murder mystery comes to a head when Maria finds a tape with new information that leads to the final outcome. She's held at gun point but we find out who the murder is. This is an interesting read and it takes place around the rally drivers family. The story has many things to play on your empathy at all times. It was a good read.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid entry in the series.

Maria Kallio is an appealing detective and the mystery was tight with a good selection of suspects. There was one odd scene that was a call back to an earlier book the basically just felt out of place, but, aside from that, it was pretty well put together. There were enough clues to figure out 'whodunit' but it really was nearly the very end before it became completely clear.

Besides catching murderers, she also has to deal with discord among her team and as well as personal issues. Sometimes those sorts of scenes feel forced but in this case it serves to better let us know what Maria is made of.

[Wolf Draven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moje recenze: http://wolfdraven.eu/krev-v-jezere-le...

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have enjoyed all the Maria Kallio series. This is one of her best.

Highly recommend.

[Evander · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this series and Maria and wish my Finnish was quick enough to read them in the original but this one was particularly frustrating.

Maria is strongly feminist and yet not only was there a section where she "went along with" sex with her husband after a job offer because she "didn't want to ruin that for him" and "some things are easier for women than for men", the whole thing was Ursula was just yikes. Throughout the narrative Maria explicitly talks about aspects of sexual harassment such as the fact that no matter someone's sexual history or behaviour, it doesn't justify them being sexually harassed in the workplace, or about how anyone who's accused of sexual harassment has friends that jump to their defence even when it's true, but the book basically still does the whole trope of "office slut gets rejected for once and so falsely accuses the innocent man who rejected her". Ursula even basically says to Maria "I hoped another woman would defend me". It's not that false accusations never happen but they are not only overrepresented in fiction, this book follows a lot of other media in actually just perpetuating the tropes and harms that lead people to not be believed, no matter how credible the accusations. It was unresolved in this book but it's fairly plain to me that it's not going to turn out that Koivu has done it.

Far less of a big deal but still a bit annoying is the stereotype of the pathologist being an insensitive creep who basically "gets on better with the dead than the living". This one included weird comments about a teenager's corpse and stalking his ex. Maybe I'm sensitive to that one as a biomedical scientist by training who has performed dissections and as an autistic person who doesn't have the world's greatest social skills, lol. Like yeah, I get it that it takes a particular type of person to do jobs like that but it doesn't mean we don't give a fuck about living people, lmao. I'm less frustrated by this full stop than the fact that it's such a common trope that it just feels lazy at this point.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the "simplified Finnish" (selkosuomea) version of a much longer and complex police procedural about Detective Maria Kallio in the city of Espoo, immediately west of Helsinki. The biographer of a rally driver is murdered, and the police have to figure out the complexities of the relationships of the people around the driver to find the killer.

If you’ve been following my book reviews, you’ll remember that I’ve already read a few of the Maria Kallio series as they provide an entertaining, adult-oriented story and I can still develop my language skills without getting frustrated by having to use a dictionary on every line. It took a while to read this one as it was over 200 pages long - unusual for this simplified language genre – but I still enjoyed it and picked up some new vocabulary. I look forward to the next book in the series.

[Pia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Katsoin viikonloppuna tuoreen dokumentin, jonka aiheena oli Porkkalan vuokra-aika. Jatkosodan jälkeen Suomi joutui vuokraamaan Neuvostoliitolle maa-alueen sotilastukikohdaksi. Sijainti oli hyvä ja strateginen: lähellä Helsinkiä, sopiva sulkemaan Suomenlahden esimerkiksi sukellusveneiltä.

Näihin maisemiin Leena Lehtolainen johdattaa myös Maria Kallion, ratkomaan nuuskijatoimittajan murhaa. Luen kirjaa uusintaottona vuosien takaa. Veren vimma on miulle yksi onnistuneimmista Maria Kallio -dekkareista, joka punoo yhteen yllättävän rikosjuonen (jonka motiivi todella yllätti), monitahoisen ihmissuhdekudelman ja työpaikan dynamiikan mediamyllytyksellä höystettynä. Unohtamatta rallia. Ja luomuviljelyä..

Mie hurmaannuin Veren vimmassa myös siitä, miten Lehtolainen kuvaa pienen ihmisen elämää suurten kriisien keskellä. Länsi-Uudenmaan maisemista kelpasi lukea myös.

[Kaija Karlsson]

Kirja on kahdeksas Maria Kallio dekkari. Maria on muuttanut Henttaan vuokralla olleesta omakotitaloista kerrostaloasunnon ns. kuution Kuitinmäkeen. Se ei ole mieluisa asumismuoto. Maria palaa äitiyslomalla töihin. Uusi työkaveri on nainen kuvankaunis Ursula, joka ei aina miellytä toimintatavoissaan Mariaa. Maria saa tehtäväksi selvittää Kirkkonummelta löytynyttä ruumista. Murhattu nainen on ollut uimassa märkäpuvussa. Nainen on toimittaja Annukka Hackman, joka kirjoitti elämäkertaa rallautoilija Sasha Smedistä.

[Bud Mallar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I guessed right but had no idea of the motive.

Another good one in this series.

Partly a procedural, mostly about characters, a lot of 'family' cultural discussions, a bit of Finnish history and an interesting story.

Again, not Nordic noir, other than the fact that it's freezing cold all the time, but just a whodunit which takes place in Finland.

Lots of continuing story lines, so I do recommend you start with #1.

[Susann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very tangled web

Another good one by the author. How does she keep coming up with these complicated plots. Well written and translated, as per all her previous books I have read. Great dialogue, intense and emotional storyline, and tightly paced procedural. Will Maria and Antti survive as a couple???? Very Satisfying read!

[Chris Aylott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid slice-of-life mystery for Maria Kallio and the detectives of Espoo's Violet Crimes Unit. The plot of this one revolves around some quirks of Finnish history and culture, at least as it was experienced twenty years ago when the book was written. I'm curious if the characters would perceive each other differently today.

[Suzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hubris

So much is happening in this addition to the series! A new officer is in the group and her hubris is overwhelming. Anti and Maria have moved into an apartment where neither is satisfied. Kids has a new sibling and a cute personality. Women have a dilemma when they are balancing work,home,and that is well illustrated . An interesting murder and conclusion.

[Tarja Karvonen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kyllä Lehtolainen osaa kirjoittaa! Koukuttava dekkari täynnä sympaattisia ja myös niitä ärsyttäviä henkilöhahmoja, Lehtolaisen henkilöt ovat hyvin todellisia vikoineen, virheineen ja tunteineen. Sujuvaa kerrontaa 👍

[tilda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perushyvä, vähän ehkä omaan makuun liikaa rallijuttuja. Tämän sarjan hahmoihin kyllä kiintyy nopeasti!

[Frankie Winchester · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easily the best of the series so far.

[Viivi]

knummi represent

vroom vroom

[Emilia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mukaansatempaava ja yllättävä

[Tanja Juuri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lopun tarina Viktorin näkökulmasta oli hienosti kirjoitettu. 3,5 koska välillä tarina junnasi.

[Emelie Saarela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helt ok👍

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished this a few weeks ago but forgot to post.
As always, A very compelling story, well plotted with believable characters depicted realistically. I'll be sad when this series is over.

[Valpuri · Rating 4 out of 5]

another re read of the series

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating murder mystery in which Maria Kallio and her variously stressed colleagues investigate a murder with its roots in the history of Northern Finland.

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

Detective Lieutenant Maria Kallio and part of her team respond to a woman in a lake who has been shot. Believing that hunters must have accidentally killed her, they soon find out that she was shot with a small caliber gun instead of a large rifle. The woman’s name is Annukka Hackman. She is a journalist and the wife of a publisher whose name is Atro Jaaskelainen. She was writing a book on Sasha Smeds who is Finland’s greatest rally driver. Apparently, the book is controversial.

As the team’s investigation gets underway, the confusion starts. Someone is leaking information to the press. It seems several men thought that they were going to marry Annukka. The pathologist is only one among others. And Smeds has his own secrets. Was the book going to be such a bombshell that some felt they needed to kill her? Is there a more personal reason? There are many, many suspects. And Annukka would do anything to get a story – or so it is said. Between new babies and a hectic home life Maria and Koivu seem to have less and less time for the job. Rough going as it is, they knuckle down and get the job dome.

Sasha Smeds is in a fiery crash. Was his car sabotaged? Or was it an accident? Someone has a copy of Annukka’s manuscript on a disk. She reveals at least one secret in it. More people die. The name of Annukka’s killer comes as a surprise, but not as surprising as the reason for committing the murder.

This is a well written and plotted novel. It starts out suspenseful and the suspense continues to build throughout the book. I liked the way that Maria’s team got along – for the most part that is. There was sufficient background information given on the major characters to flesh them out, but not so much that it intruded in the story. It only added color and a sense of human-ness.

I want to thank NetGalley and AmazonCrossing for forwarding to me a copy of this good book to read and enjoy.

[Ilonita50 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was given an e-arc for an honest review, thanks a million!

This is the second book in the series which I have read, recently I finished #2 and absolutely loved this Finnish detective and Below the Surface is no exception! I like that the covers are within the same as the rest of the series.

Book was interesting from the very start, it is realistic and although I did not fully understand the ending, I am absolutely suggesting everyone to read the book! It is a page turner, thinking all the way through the plot, who could be the guilty person and enjoying each of the characters. I felt I was cheating by jumping from #2 to #8 but now as I know a little "up-front", I am looking to read the rest of the ones I have not yet.

The book starts from the murder scene right there, and slowly revealing the investigation team work on the case, having plain data but no solution until it's start to develop - I loved the analyzing factor, the main character, Maria Kallio, Commander of the Espoo Crime Unit, being imperfect at all and thus I think I loved her more, faces sometimes so called disaster from her team and still has to handle the family life where's spouse is not happy about work overtaking their private time. As a reader I fully get the excitement of Maria's when she thinks she has solved one more step about the murder case, how small detail actually matters and how much it takes from team not to reveal any information to the press who works as detectives themselves...how difficult is to spot who is lying and who isn't, who would have had a motive to kill the Annukka Hackman, wife of a prominent publisher and author of an upcoming unauthorized tell-all book on Sasha Smeds, Finland’s celebrated racing rally driver.

[Sue Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great mystery story. I wouldn't say it has twists and turns but it is like a spider's web. If you were trying to get to the center where the villain is, you would have a lot of false starts and dead ends to contend with. Like a maze. The book was written in Finland quite a few years ago and only translated into English recently. The translator did a wonderful job and the story reads well. I am not even going to attempt to tell you what is going on. You are going to traverse the spider web yourself, but do it. It is worth your trouble. I would definitely have given it 5 stars except after I read a few chapters I had to go back and start over, renaming all the characters.
Here is a short list of players. Maybe you can see why I renamed everyone.
Maria Kallio...Commander of Violent Crimes Unit
Kaartamo...Assistant Chief of Police
Jyrki Taskinen...Director of Criminal Division
Heikki Auto...VCU Detective
Ursula Honkanen...VCU Detective
Pokka Koivu...VCU Detective and Wang's husband
Lahde...VCU Detective
Lethtovuori...VCU Detective
Ville Puupponen...VCU Detective
Petri Puustjarvin...VCU Detective
Haikala..Patrol Officer
Anna Wang...VCU detective and Koivu's wife
Jukka Airaksinen... Patrol Officer
Makkonen...Patrol Officer
As I said, this is short list of the characters. Don't let it frighten you away from
reading the book.
I won this e-book in a Goodreads Giveaway.




.

[Mike Cuthbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lehtolainen’s style is congenial: she mixes murder with mundane family details such as what her heroine’s two kids are having for breakfast and how often she’s tempted to 1. Be unfaithful or 2. Have another drink. She succumbs frequently to the latter but never too the former—so far. Maria Kallo is a police lieutenant whose husband is a mathematical professor with a spotty job schedule. In this novel, the action is immediate: within the first two pages we have a woman swimming in a lake who is assassinated by a skillful marksman. The rest of the novel is Kallo and company chasing clues and suspects in and around Reykjavik, Iceland. The book is spaced out by domestic interludes with most of the detectives on the squad, including the birth of twins to one wife, a divorce in another, and Kallo’s own problems as her husband, Antti, is changing, or rather, finding a new job. Kallo feels some hot flashes for one of her colleagues while trying to keep rein on Ursula, the squad temptress, who seemingly wants to screw everything that walks, especially in the squad! Mixed in is a story about a rally driver, Sasha, going for the world championship, and his randy wife, Heli, who is having it off with his brother! This makes a merry mix but does slow down the pace of the crime solving for those into a fast pace. Lehtolainen is an acquired taste, but once you adjust to her pace, she makes for a good read.

[Janne Paananen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Veren Vimma osoittautui kenties parhaaksi Maria Kallio -dekkariksi tähän mennessä lukemistani.

Murhakuvioiden yhdistäminen moottoriurheiluun saa minulle jostain syystä aikaan nou-nou fiiliksen. Muun muassa Ilkka Remes epäonnistui siinä totaalisesti Pyörre-teoksessaan. Tuo lienee kirjailijan huonoin dekkari. Lehtolainen kuitenkin onnistuu kuvaamaan ralliperheen kuvioita riittävän uskottavasti.

Metsästysporukka löytää märkäpukuun sonnustautuneen naisen Humaljärvestä ja luulevat vahingossa ampuneen tämän. Nainen osoittautuu toimittajaksi, joka oli kirjoittamassa paljastuksia sisältävää kirjaa rallin maailmanmestaruudesta kamppailevasta Sasha Smedsistä.

Murhatutkimuksen kuvaaminen dekkareissa on tietenkin suhteellisen samanmoista aina. Silminnäkijöitä ja asianosaisia kuulustellaan, jälkiä etsitään. Kunnes löytyy jokin huolimattomuusvirhe tai uusi yksittäinen säie, joka avaa uuden näkökulman murhaan.

Veren Vimman nostaa keskivertoa dekkaria paremmaksi Kallion kamppailu pitää murhajaoksen langat käsissä. Jaoksessa tapahtunut seksuaalinen häirintä ja sen haastava setviminen on kuvattu hyvin. Joku vuotaa vielä sisältä tietoja toimittajille. Myös Kallion haasteet yhdistää perhe-elämä poliisin kuluttavaan työhön kuvataan tässä mainiosti.

Nämä dekkarit toimivat mainiosti äänikirjoina, koska ne ovat riittävän yksinkertaisia (ei juuri takaumia, miljoonia eri hahmoja tai monia eri kertojia). Lisäksi Krista Putkonen-Örn sopii mainiosti ääneksi näihin.

[Hannelore Cheney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Amazon Crossing for the eARC of this terrific book. A great story, set in Finland, a country we don't hear about that often, this was a real treat to read. Plus, the translation was a good one.
Maria Kallio, Commander of the Espoo Crime Unit, a married mother with two children who has to juggle her career with her private life, is leading the case of a murdered journalist, shot while she was swimming.
Anukka, a well-known journalist, was in the process of publishing her book about Sasha Smeds, Finland's foremost rally driver, but is killed before the event.
Maria and her team are stymied: who could have known Anukka was going to swim at that time and at that place? And what was the motive?
Solving the case isn't Maria's only problem. Ursula Honkaning, the new VCU Detective, is difficult, to say the least, probably leaking to the press and even accusing one of the male detectives of sexual harassment.
The background story of the area where the Smeds family lives is fascinating. Russia leased the area from Finland for years and the history was so interesting. What's better than an exciting mystery that informs, has atmosphere and delivers a cracking, surprising ending? I love the series and can't wait for the next book. I believe there are several more waiting to be translated...hurry, please!

[Wanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Won this thru the Goodreads.com Giveaways.
Enjoyed the setting in Finland and it is interesting to see how much other countries such as Sweden and Russia have an influence on the country.
Besides the mystery of who killed the journalist found in the lake the main character, Maria Kallio, has to deal with problems at home involving her husband finding a new job, living in an apartment she doesn't like, and childrearing issues. Her investigative team also has a problem with one of the members, a young woman who seems to be creating tension. The woman just seemed unreasonable to me and I didn't think Maria handled it very well. Maria is very concerned with the other members of her team and tries to help them out when she can. Her supervisor is having some problems at home and there is a bit of attraction between the two of them that she seems uncertain of and how to proceed.
The woman who was killed was working on a book about a rally car driver and Maria suspects there was something the family didn't want the world to know. The woman's husband is also a suspect along with a former lover, the medical examiner, who was obsessed with her. The media is all over the case because of the involvement of the rally car driver.
Felt at times that the story moved a little slowly. Will read some other books in this series.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Best of the Series So Far

I discovered the Maria Kallio book series a just two months ago; by book 2, I was hooked! While mastering the Finnish names and locations might take a year, the stories are compelling and the habits of the Finnish people are fascinating to this Midwesterner.

The police procedural aspects of the stories seem very real, as they make mistakes, follow red herrings, and vent their frustrations while following the rules of a more socialist society than we have here in America. Also, the police do not carry weapons unless they expect to encounter an armed suspect. Very different from American policing.

In this book, we learn A little about world wars and the experiences of the Russian, Finnish, and Swedish people, particularly during WWII. Very sad, but enlightening. The story involves people who love each other deeply, and that love leads to untold “criminal” behaviors while trying to keep long held and more recent secrets. Issues about freedom of the press, muckraking journalism, insecurities of police officers, family stress due to the job demands, and more are discussed in the telling of this very interesting story.

I’m looking for the next Maria Kallio book, as I want to know where life takes her and her family!