Aldrig fucka upp

The Stockholm Noir Trilogy #2

by Jens Lapidus, Astri von Arbin Ahlander (Translation)

Jens Lapidus debutroman Snabba cash är en av 2000-talets mest omtalade och sålda böcker. Med läsare i alla grupper. En exportsuccé som hittills sålts till 18 länder, däribland England och USA. Den ska bli film. Nu kommer uppföljaren.
Det är nya karaktärer, helt nya huvudpersoner. Men det är samma Stockholm, samma undre värld, samma bossar i toppen. Juggebossen Radovan härskar fortfarande. Och nu, i Aldrig fucka upp är det även snutarnas stad, de verkliga snutarnas verkliga stad.
Det är initierat, detaljerat och skrämmande. Grymt trovärdigt. Med skoningslöst driv skildrar Jens Lapidus de kriminellas egen logik som ingen annan tidigare gjort. Vi vill ju helst att det ska vara svartvitt, de onda mot de goda, i Aldrig fucka upp är det inte så enkelt.
Inspirerad av James Ellroy skapar Jens Lapidus en egen genre, Stockholm Noir. Det Ellroy gjorde med femtiotalets Los Angeles i böcker som Los Angeles konfidentiellt och Den stora tomheten, gör Lapidus med Stockholm idag. Och perspektivet är the bad guys. Totalt.

Genres: Crime, Fiction, Thriller, Swedish Literature, Ebooks, Sweden, Scandinavian Literature

498 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Jens Lapidus is a Swedish criminal defense lawyer and author, who made his writing debut in August 2006 with Snabba Cash. It is an account of the Stockholm underworld and the first of a planned trilogy called The Stockholm Noir Trilogy. Two years later the second installment, Aldrig Fucka Upp was published by Wahlström & Widstrand. A graphic novel with illustrator Peter Bergting (The Portent) entitled Gängkrig 145 was published May 2009. While this project does tie into his previous novels, it is not the third part of The Stockholm Noir Trilogy as some Swedish media has claimed. Lapidus' writing has been compared to James Ellroy and Dennis Lehane.


Series:
* The Stockholm Noir Trilogy

Reviews

[Dimitris Passas (TapTheLine) · Rating 3 out of 5]

H πραγματική μου βαθμολόγηση είναι 3,5/5 (ας όψεται το ελλιπέστατο σύστημα αξιολόγησης του goodreads). Το ''Never Fuck Up'' είναι το δεύτερο μέρος της τρίλογίας ''Stockholm Noir'' του Jens Lapidus, ο οποίος φαίνεται να έχει λαμπρό μέλλον στο πεδίο της σύγγραφής crime βιβλίων. Αν και η σύνδεση του με το πρώτο μέρος (''Easy Money'') είναι αρκετά χαλαρή και δεν μαθαίνουμε τι απέγιναν οι κεντρικοί ήρωες που πρωταγωνιστούσαν σε αυτό (απ'ότι μαθαίνω αυτό συμβαίνει στο τρίτο μέρος), με μοναδική εξαίρεση ένα σύντομο πέρασμα του Jorge, ο Lapidus μας εισάγει στον κόσμο τριών νέων χαρακτήρων, του Mahmud, του Niklas και του Thomas. Όπως και στο '' Easy Money'' παρακολουθούμε την ιστορία και την πλοκή να εκτυλίσσονται μέσα από την ματιά των 3 ηρώων-αφηγητών, οι οποίοι μας καταβυθίζουν στον οργανωμένο υπόκοσμο της Στοκχόλμης όπους κυριαρχούν η γιουγκοσλαβική μαφία, τα ναρκωτικά, η αναζήτηση του εύκολου και γρήγορου χρήματος, καθώς και ο εθισμός σε πάσης φύσεως εξουσία. Οι καταρχήν αυτόνομες ιστορίες των πρωταγωνιστων δένονται σιγά σιγά για να καταλήξουν σε ένα αιματοβαμμένο φινάλε που αλλάζει τις ζωές, όσων επιζούν, για παντα.
Προσωπικά, βρήκα την ιστορία του Niklas την λιγότερο ενδιαφέρουσα και σε κάποια σημεία ίσως και ανιαρή, αλλά θεωρώ ότι οι άλλες δύο ισορροπούν αυτήν την αδυναμία του βιβλίου. Πολλοί ίσως βρούν την ιστορία του Thomas και τη σύνδεση του με το τραυματικότερο γεγονός της σύγχρονης σουηδικής ιστορίας, την δολοφονία του προωθυπουργού της χώρας Ούλωφ Πάλμε αρκετά τραβηγμένη, ώστόσο δεν πρέπει να ξεχνάμε ότι μιλάμε για ένα έργο φαντασίας στο οποίο τα πάντα επιτρέπονται υπό την αίρεση της σοβαρής λογοτεχνικής διαχείρισης κάθε γεγονότος.
Συνολικά θα έλεγα ότι προκείται για μια ελφρώς κατώτερη αλλά προλαυτά άξια συνέχεια του εξαιρετικού ''Εasy Money'' και επόμενο στη σειρά είναι το τρίτο και τελευταιό μέρος της σειράς με τίτλο ''Life Deluxe'', το οποίο και αδημονώ να διαβάσω.
Να σημειώσω για όσους δεν γνωρίζουν ότι η τριλογία ''Stockholm Noir'' εχει μεταφερθεί στον κινηματογράφο με πρωταγωνιστή τον Joel Kinnaman (που έγινε ευρύτερα γνωστός στο κοινό από το αμερικάνικο remake του θρυλικού ''The Killing'') και είναι πιστό στο ύφος των βιβλίων. Αξίζει να τη δείτε με την πρώτη ευκαιρία.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the slam dunk that Easy Money/Snabba Cash was, still it had an interesting plot and good ideas. Worth a look. As for plot, it's set in the same world as Snabba Cash, but only has some of those main characters as peripheral characters in this story. Unlike the 2nd Swedish film, JW is not even in this story. However, with that said, this is ambitious novel writing, an attempt to solve the Olaf Palme murder mystery *and* take on white slavery and the fall of society. The prose doesn't have that same snap and energy as the first book, so it's a bit harder to get through, but it tries to tackle even bigger themes.

[Dobrila Bozic Novak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nesbo i ja se ne volimo. Ali zato se Lapidus i ja obožavamo. Jezik mu je pitak, jednostavan. Odlično skida govor i razmišljanja imigranata, ali i švedske radničke klase. Trojica glavnih nositelja radnje su dva Šveđanina - policajac Thomas i bivši plaćeni vojnik Niklas koji boluje od PTSP-a - te imigrant iz stokholmskog geta Mahmud. Thomas je razočarani policajac koji se previše upleo u jedan čudan slučaj te zbog toga bio kažnjen. Na pola radnog vremena zaposli se u zaštitarskoj službi kod srpske mafije. Niklas kreće u svoj osvetnički pohod: jedini mu je cilj kazniti zlostavljače žena. Mahmud nakon što izađe iz zatvora počne raditi za srpsku mafiju kako bi vratio dug. Životni putevi ove trojice se isprepletu. Ovo je prvi put da nakon duuugo vremena navijam za negativce.

[Alberto Delgado · Rating 3 out of 5]

Terminada la segunda entrega de la llamada trilogía negra de Estocolmo y realmente el nombre de trilogía confunde un poco porque en esta segunda parte la historia que nos cuenta transcurre unos años después de lo narrado en la primera parte y los protagonistas de la primera novela desaparecen de escena para dar protagonismo a nuevos personajes y tramas con lo que no es necesario haber leído el primer libro para poder leer esta novela. Mantiene la estructura de contar la historia a través de 3 personajes principales que se terminan encontrando en diferentes momentos de la historia. Si en el primer libro el trafico de drogas era el protagonista aquí la historia es más compleja uniendo diferentes problemas de la suecia actual como son la integración de los inmigrantes en la sociedad sueca, la violencia a las mujeres y como mezcla explosiva la investigación del asesinato del primer ministro olof palme donde los poderes fácticos del pais pueden estar detras del crimen y su no resolución. Muy entretenido como el primero.

[Kees van Duyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Het tweede deel van de Stockholm-trilogie, Bloedlink, heeft dezelfde opzet als het eerste deel. Drie verhalen, drie hoofdpersonages waar deze verhalen om draaien. De belangrijkste personages in dit deel zijn Thomas Andrén, een politieman die het niet altijd even nauw neemt met de voorgeschreven politieregels, Mahmud, een Arabier die zich bezighoudt met de drugscriminaliteit en Niklas Borgren, een voormalige huurling die voor eigen rechter speelt.

Thomas wordt met zijn partner naar een appartementencomplex gestuurd waar een zwaar toegetakeld lichaam van een dode man wordt gevonden. Omdat deze moord hem intrigeert, start hij een eigen onderzoek. Aanvankelijk alleen, maar later met politie-inspecteur Hägerström. Mahmud heeft snel een flinke som geld nodig en doet daarom een klusje voor de Joegoslavische maffiabaas Radovan Kranjic. Na dat klusje wil Mahmud niet meer voor hem werken, maar de Joego's staan niet toe dat hij hen verlaat. Niklas trekt zich het lot van mishandelde vrouwen steeds meer aan en wil hen helpen. Daarin wordt hij steeds fanatieker, verliest daardoor de realiteit uit het oog en draait door.

Net als het eerste boek uit de trilogie speelt ook dit deel zich af in de onderwereld van de Zweedse hoofdstad Stockholm. In ieder afzonderlijk verhaal wordt het belangrijkste personage uit dat verhaal uitvoerig beschreven. Daardoor leer je hen goed kennen. En begin je, omdat ze zo gewoon en menselijk overkomen, zelfs sympathie voor hen op te brengen.

Aan de schrijfstijl heeft Lapidus in dit deel niets veranderd. Korte, krachtige zinnen en ook wordt weer veel straattaal gebruikt. Dit laatste is niet storend want het hoort bij de setting van het verhaal en het milieu waarin vooral Mahmud zich verkeert. De korte zinnen zorgen er overigens voor dat het verhaal zich in een redelijke snelheid afspeelt waardoor het verhaal een goed tempo heeft.

Hoewel Bloedlink dus het tweede deel uit de trilogie is, is het als afzonderlijk boek goed te lezen. Er wordt af en toe verwezen naar voorvallen die in deel één hebben plaatsgevonden en ook naar personen die in dat deel voorkwamen, maar Lapidus geeft telkens een goede uitleg van die situatie of dat personage.

Het boek staat niet bol van spanning, maar deze spanning is wel degelijk aanwezig. Zelfs meer dan in het eerste deel. De verhalen, waarin de lijnen overigens steeds meer samenkomen, zijn een stuk boeiender. En als ze eenmaal samengekomen zijn, wordt er ook nog eens voor een prima climax gezorgd.

Dit alles maakt dat Bloedlink een stuk beter is dan Snel geld en daarmee heeft Lapidus aangetoond dat hij zijn prima debuut een waardig vervolg heeft gegeven. Het derde deel (Val dood) kan eigenlijk nu al niet meer stuk.

[Andy Pandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure what to make of this. I hope that doesn't make me anti-Nordic.

[Dalleer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before concentrating on Aldrig Fucka Upp, let me say that I read the first part of the trilogy (Snabba Cash) before moving on to the second part. I liked the first part alot.

As for the second part, I must tragically say that it was worse than the first part and a bit too similar too at times. I didn't really like some of the choices that the author had made regarding the plot and how it was carried on at all. Mainly though I had problems with the similarity of some of the characters when compared to some of the characters from Snabba Cash.

This book wasn't really a sequel to Snabba Cash at all. It does occur in the same setting, and even includes certain characters from the first part. Still though, it seems far too similar to the first part of the trilogy.

It was gripping, though- darkly narrated and very atmospheric too. So was the first part. Sadly Aldrig Fucka Upp didn't really offer anything too enchanting.

I'm hoping for the third official part of the Stockholm Noir trilogy to at least beat this one in many different ways. It remains to be seen on how it goes.

[Jeffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever since Steig Larsson's Millennium Trilogy beginning with THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO took the world by storm, Scandinavian crime novels have enjoyed tremendous popularity in the United States.

NEVER FUCK UP is the second book in a trilogy known as the Swedish Noir Trilogy, by Jens Lapidus, a famous criminal defense attorney in his country, and is a terrifically edgy, raw, and hard-boiled story about the underbelly of modern Stockholm.

The book follows three different characters in three seemingly disparate stories that all come together at the end.

Beautifully structured with an authentic feel for life on the streets, this is a must for fans of crime fiction.

By the way, the Swedish title is ALDRIG FUCKA UPP. Why does everything sound better in a foreign language?

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dessa tre POV karaktärer var extremt intressanta att följa. Detta är en bok som efter att jag har läst klart har legat länge i tankarna. Den bästa boken av Snabba Cash trilogin.

[Susanna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mitä ihmettä. Tykkäsin ekasta osasta hulluna, tätä luin ikuisuuden kun ei meinannut jaksaa kiinnostaa sitten mitenkään päin. Kääk. Hieman pelottaa tarttua trilogian kolmososaan, mutta kyllä me senkin aion silti lukea.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

The slow, unoriginal beginning was probably the best part until the last 5 seconds of the book being over.

[Mike Cuthbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most Nordic Noir is set amongst the lower middle class to high class Scandinavian sets of society. Jens Lapidus’s novels, not so. His novels grovel inside the lower class blatte (a resident in Northern Europe who is from North African descent) and their associates. Most characters are criminals, wannabes or guys trying to break into regular Scandinavian society. In this case, Sweden. This novel is notable for its lack of female characters other than a few abused wives and mixed-heritage whores. It is a testosterone-fueled romp through several subsets of Nordic society: a disillusioned and PTSD-affected mercenary named Niklas with a fixation on men who abuse women, a cop on both sides of the law, Thomas: “During the day, he was an upright citizen. At night, he belonged to the underworld. Just like the enemy. Maybe he was the enemy?” Mahmud, a blatte with aspirations. He really thinks he can escape his background, go to college and be somebody. They are drawn together, two of them without realizing it, into Operation Magnum,” Niklas’s grand plan for avenging the evil done to Swedish women by exploiting men of all sorts and levels of society. Niklas undertakes the murder to of two of the known (to him) abusers and he plans for something grander. There is an unsolved murder of an abuser of his mother, found mutilated with his face and fingertips erased, in the basement of his mother’s flat. It is unclear whether or not Niklas was the murderer. Tommy, disillusioned with police work and stuck with a rookie female partner one night, gets so involved with a drunk in a bar that he gets brought up on charges and assigned to the traffic desk as punishment before his trial. Mahmud gets involved in petty crimes with and without the assistance of blatte friends while maintaining his upward hopes and dreams. He is also into drug use of various types, turning to rohypnol to keep him alert during nighttime adventures, pot and hash for regular daytime use. Thomas eventually ends up accepting an outside parttime job sitting in a strip club, serving as a bouncer, working for the Boss—Radovan, the Serb—a hardly clean individual who, though personable in person, is a vicious killer, controlling crime in Stockholm. The assassination of former Prime Minister Olaf Palme, often a staple in Swedish Noir, plays a role in all this, especially in Thomas’s assumed role as an undercover detective trying to link a man named Raskell, the murdered man and abuser of his mother, to a wider plot. This is a very large novel—491 heavy pages—and heavy going because much of it is written in the language of and in the company of, the blatte culture. Much underworld slang pervades the pages and not a little of it is in Arabic slang. In a way, this is part of the interest of Lapidus’s books—it gives an authentic look at the underbelly of Stockholm and of Swedish politics not often present in other Nordic Noir. But it does get tedious at times and often makes for moments of hesitation about finishing the marathon. Good reading for those who want that underbelly view, skip it for those who want the old standard NN. As for me, I’ll take a break from it all for a while as finishing a Lapidus novel makes one yearn for a hot, cleansing shower.

[Skirmantė Rugsėjis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Po pirmosios dalies 'Greiti pinigai' stengiausi nedėti labai daug vilčių , nes iš patirties žinau , kad retai serijos knygos būna vienodai geros ir įdomios . Bet autorius pateisino mano lūkesčius su kaupu .
Knyga įsibėgėja šiek tiek lėčiau nei pirmoji , bet tuomet tik laikykis - vėl veiksmas ir pavojai , gatvės gyvenimas , kurį autorius moka perteikti kaip niekas kitas - pakankamai šiurkščiai , su humoro prieskoniais , žargonu , kuris neatskiriamas nuo tokio gyvenimo būdo .
Skandinaviški kriminaliniai romanai jau senai užkariavo pasaulį , bet J.Lapidus yra pačiame sąrašo viršuje . Savitas ir į nieką nepanašus rašymo stilius , tikrai negali likti neįvertintas .
Negaliu sulaukti trečiosios trilogijos dalies vertimo į lietuvių kalbą .

[Anders Twetman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Likt Snabba cash lyssnade jag på denna som ljudbok när jag låg på sjukhus. Jag ville ha något underhållande och lättsmält som kund få tiden att gå medans jag låg där och denna passar väldigt bra i den rollen. Dock så är den inte riktigt lika bra som Snabba Cash. Det är nånting som jag inte riktigt kan definiera, som den tidigare romanen hade som nu saknas. Kan hände beror det på att den handlar om helt andra karaktärer än Snabba Cash? Kan hända att berättelen egenligen tog slut i och med Snabba Cash men att Lapidus tvingade sig skriva denna ändå? Oavsett vad det är så gjorde denna inte lika mycket intryck på mig. Den funkade fint på sjukhuset men jag har ingent intreresse av att läsa uppföljaren.

[Sudha Bellamkonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am beginning to really like Jens Lapidus's writing both for the crispness of prose, the characters and the realistic description of events that I think comes from his knowledge as a criminal lawyer. Never Fuck Up is technically not a sequel to Easy Money but a great read nevertheless. Where in Easy Money he gives us a heady glimpse of white collar crime and the lives of the Swedish upper class, Never Fuck Up goes in to the world of immigrants and the poor, and the mafia gang world. The ending leaves a few loose ends not tied up which only makes it realistic but also makes one wistful!

[Tarmo Syvapuro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hyvä teos Ruotsin poliisin ongelmista; korruptio, hyvä/paha poliisi, kyräily jne. Maahanmuutajia, jugoslaaveja, mafiaa, huumeita, ilotyttöjä, naisten pahoinpitelijöitä jne. Paljon yhteiskunnan pohjasakkaa ja ongelmia. Olof Palmen murha salaliittoteorioineen. Hyviä juonia. Sujuvaa kerrontaa. Rikosromaani parhaasta päästä.

[Kristin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nah... I am not quite sure why I keep on reading these books by Lapidus - I really don’t like much of the conspiracy theories, the three POWs we are following, everyone with some serious personal issues and lack of normal moral standards - and the ending...well... seems like the writer suddenly remembered he had a deadline yesterday....

[Gabor Hernadi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The one who expects a `normal` scandinavian crime story will be disappointed because it`s nothing like that. Like the other books of the trilogy, it`s more like a crime-thriller in which the life of three people (a petty criminal immigrant, a psycho ex-soldier and a bad cop) intertwine fatally in the Stockholm underworld.

[Jeremy Hornik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Conspiratorial crime fiction? Fulla sex and violence? From outside the US? That should totally be my jam. But frankly, I had to read like a podcast at double speed to get through it. A real slog. I can’t quite say why… it might have been the translation.

The book was kind of like Ellroy without the manic edge… maybe that kind of crazy stuff needs more momentum to keep the hooks in. Not for me.

[Juan Antonio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Segundo libro de la trilogía. La mayoría de los personajes no tienen nada que ver con los del primer libro. Eso sí creo que describe bastante bien los bajos fondos de Estocolmo aunque a los que no somos suecos pensamos que traer a colación el asesinato de Olof Palme y al parecer los puntos negros que hay no nos interesa gran cosa

[Elio Corazon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me demoré mucho para terminar este libro debido a que la primera parte la siento repetitiva nos muestran el contexto donde nuestros 3 personajes se sitúan .Lo que sí debí decir es que la parte final de la emboscada en la mansión lo hace muy interesante de verdad eleva el nivel de emoción y acción en el libro .

[Linnea Broman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helt klart spännande. Oerhört lättläst bladvändare, det som drar ner på betyget hur vissa av karaktärerna är något väl tillspetsade och att boken stundvis blir väldigt rörig. Bristen på kvinnliga karaktärer är även det något som gör att boken stundvis blir lite väl macho

[Fredrik Hammar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this as a break from a lot of economic/environmental non-fiction and it's a nice book. It does however not have the panache and well-structured story of Snabba Cash. Perfect for a sunny day on the beach, but pretty easily forgotten among others in the genre.

[Jenny · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to read this for school but it was better than I expected. A good book with an important message in my opinion. Not something I would have picked up otherwise so pretty happy we had to read it for school. Not my ideal book but I enjoyed it!

[Christopher Ryan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Misogynistic, needlessly violent, nihilistic, and just plain boring. Not one character to root for. The overuse of slang and idiomatic phrases and euphemisms just made for a muddled, sloppy mess of a book. No thanks.

[David Baer · Rating 2 out of 5]

That I invested fifteen hours in this speaks to some basic merit in the writing.

But, with four hours to go, nothing much has happened yet, and I find I don’t really care what, if anything, will happen.

[Outi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ei ihan yhtä hyvä kuin ykkönen. Mut nopeaa luettavaa.

[Therese Bergwall · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Helena Frisk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Inte alls lika bra som snabba cash :(

[Carlos Hernandez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book but not as good as the first one!