The Woolf by Samuel Bjork trans. by Charlotte Barslund published by #Bantam part of @TransworldBooks #BlogTour @RandomTTours

J-LBRBSBLOGS

Nov 14

Always watching. Always Hungry.

A Munch and Krüger detective story, following the first case that bought together the brilliant, young police cadet Mia Krüger and old-timer police chief Munch, as a new case helps solve a cold one. This is a prequel to the first three in the series and can be read as a standalone.

Book blurb

In Sweden two young boys are murdered, their corpses left in an almost brutally artistic arrangement, and the case remains unsolved.

Years later, two more young boys are murdered in Norway in similar circumstances.

Mia Krüger, a young trainee at the Police Academy is drafted in to help solve the case due to her uncanny ability to piece together these horrific stories. Teamed up with Munch, her skills and his experience start to show that the two cases may be connected.

My thoughts

Books were children are the victims can often be difficult to read and whilst this is the case in The Wolf by Samuel Bjørk this is primarily a police procedural which, whilst it's a double murder case of eleven year old boys, is not overly graphic.

It opens with a short introduction of an unsolved case of two boys in Sweden in 1993 and its sad, shocking consequences.

We then move to Norway eight years later and two boys are found dead in very similar circumstances. Holger Munch and his team are called in. Munch heads up an historic new homicide unit, with offices away from Oslo Police headquarters and the freedom to pick his own team.

As a police procedural I found the set up of the team headed by Munch unusual and interesting in that when Mia is invited to join the team she is still in training at the National Academy yet is offered a contract and salary specifically for her position in the unit. Munch, as we will see, also has the power to fire staff.

So, Munch is the chief of the homicide unit and they are tasked with investigating the case.

Mia Krüger is determined to be the first woman in Delta, the police force's tactical unit. Her sister, Sigrid, is missing and Mia spends her free time looking for her. She is referred to Munch by the Academy principal, an old colleague. Munch and Mia meet in a coffee shop and after a rather unusual interview, of sorts, is invited to join the homicide unit.

Mia has a gift in that she is able to see things from a unique perspective it allows her to understand and see what is not always obvious, what others don't. For Munch this is a skill that he would love the team to have access to and why he wants Mia on the team.

Each member of the team is given tasks which they are assigned and then given a lot of freedom to carry out as they wish. Certainly there are tasks that are routine and prescriptive but they are left to their own devices to follow up leads either individually or with colleagues. This is quite innovative but is not always without its drawbacks.

Mia joins the investigation and teams up with a profiler on loan from the Swedish team that investigated the 1993 case.

We get to know the team as the investigation continues, they follow clues and leads to try and find the killer. Whilst Munch and Mia are the lead protagonists the rest of the team play their part. The search for the killer doesn't go well, Munch has been warned that another unit will take over if they don't get results soon.

As we follow the investigation along its complicated path we are privy to other aspects from various people. It's a beautifully woven story whose threads crisscross and are delicately entwined to bring the story to a conclusion.

It is engrossing, tense and pacy at times. A terrific read which was interesting, had characters I enjoyed, well written and beautifully translated. I'm glad I hadn't read the three books already out because now I can read them all with the insight that this story has given me.

I thoroughly enjoyed it and would certainly recommend.

Thanks

To Ann at @RandomTTours for the invite to take part in this BlogTour and to Bantam Press part of Transworld Books for an eARC of The Wolf by Samuel Bjork.

BlogTour

Want to know more? Take a trip round these wonderful blogs and then check out the links below to get your hands on a copy of this terrific book.

Information

Published: 2nd November 2023 / Hardback / £18.99 / Bantam Press (Transworld Books an imprint of Penguin) | ISBN: 9781787636996 | Length: 432 pages

Translator

Charlotte Barslund translates Scandinavian novels and plays. Recent novels translated include the Arctic crime novels The Girl Without Skin and Cold Fear by Mads Peder Nordbo, Resin by Ane Riel, which was shortlisted for the 2019 Petrona Award, and A House in Norway by Vigdis Hjorth, which was longlisted for the 2019 International Dublin Literary Award. Her translation of Per Petterson's I Curse The River of Time was shortlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. She was longlisted for the 2023 International Booker Prize. She has worked with writers such as: Samuel Bjork, Jo Nesbo, Karin Fossum, Thomas Enger, Jonas T. Bengtsson, Carsten Jensen, Lotte and Søren Hammer, Lone Theils, Steffen Jacobsen, Sissel-Jo Gazan, Jakob Melander, Jesper Stein, and Lene Kaaberbøl. She lives in the UK.

Author

Samuel Bjork is the pen name of Norwegian novelist, playwright and singer/songwriter Frode Sander Øien. The Munch and Krüger series features three books: the Richard & Judy Bookclub bestseller I'm Travelling Alone, The Owl Always Hunts At Night and The Boy in the Headlights.

Books