Book Review: Bad Intentions by Karin Fossum

Title: Bad Intentions
Author: Karin Fossum
ISBN: 978-0-547-48334-4
Pages: 213
Rating: 7/10

Summary: A young man named Jon who is recovering from a mental breakdown drowns in a lake in Norway while on a weekend trip with two friends. At first it seems to be a suicide, but Inspector Konrad Sejer has his doubts. When another young man's body is found and Sejer discovers a connection between the two, Sejer and his partner, Detective Jacob Skarre, must determine how involved Jon's friends were in both deaths.

Review: I discovered Karin Fossum in 2007 when the Washington Post featured her novel The Indian Bride in a story about international crime novels. Since then, I've read as many of her English translations as I could find, with the exception of Don't Look Back, which is currently sitting on my bookshelf.

Fossum's books aren't quite as raw as Steig Larsson's and Henning Mankell's. The setting can be bleak, especially when they take place during the winter months. But despite their sometimes harrowing plots, her books don't have quite the sense of cynicism that a lot of Scandinavian crime fiction does.

One difference between Bad Intentions and some of the previous Fossum books I've read is that there's not quite as much background about Sejer's personal life in this one. He occasionally mentions his wife, who's passed away, and his grandchild, but this book focuses more on the victims and their families than on the detectives. There are some moving domestic scenes that involve the mothers of the two dead young men.

Sejer's partner, Detective Jacob Skarre, doesn't play as large of a role in this book as in the previous ones, but I did enjoy the scenes he was in. His youth and energy provide a perfect counterpoint to Sejer's occasional jaded cynicism. I've enjoyed watching their relationship and rapport develop.

The Indian Bride is still my favorite Fossum novel; it's one of the saddest, most moving detective novels I've ever read. But Bad Intentions is also enjoyable. I don't think I've read a Karin Fossum novel yet that's disappointed me.

RIP VI: Death of a Gossip by MC Beaton

As I mentioned yesterday, I became hooked on MC Beaton's Agatha Raisin series a couple years ago. I almost got caught up on that series, which currently spans 21 novels, earlier this year; but then I had to take a break.

Now that fall is rolling around, I decided to pick up the most recent Agatha Raisin book--the only one I hadn't read--from my library, and I also decided to get started on Beaton's other popular series about the Scottish police constable Hamish Macbeth.

For some reason Death of a Gossip is no longer in print in the US, but my library still has the first edition hardcover from 1985. I started it last night and finished it tonight.

The premise of this book is that a malicious busybody is murdered at a week-long fishing camp in Scotland. Everyone else attending the camp has a motive for murdering the obnoxious woman, but it's up to Macbeth to determine which one of them did the deed.

Although the sleepy, easygoing Hamish Macbeth has practically nothing in common with Agatha Raisin, this book has several of the hallmarks of a Beaton book. I think it would be easy to play a drinking game while reading one of these books. It would involve taking a shot ever time a character "jeers," "sneers," screams at another character, calls another character sexy, or behaves inconsistently in order to advance the plot or a subplot.

Despite these minor annoyances, which I think can be alleviated by simply not reading Beaton books in quick succession, I'm planning to keep reading this series. Macbeth's character intrigued me: I want to know more about the six younger siblings he's helping his parents support and whether he ever becomes romantically involved with the beautiful and rebellious Priscilla Halburton-Smythe. Beaton's books are also very short, very easy reads, which makes them good palate cleansers.

This was my first full-length novel for the RIP VI challenge.

RIP VI: Maigret's Christmas (Short Stories)

At the library on Wednesday night, I stumbled across a book of short stories: Maigret's Christmas by Georges Simenon. It'd been years--ten, at least--since I'd read a Maigret novel, which I remember enjoying but just never got around to picking up another one.

I'm glad I found this book. I've read the first two (of nine) stories, and it's quite a refreshing change from the Scandinavian crime fiction I've become so fond of. Rather than the dysfunctional relationships so common to Scandinavian crime fiction, Maigret and Madame Maigret have a loving, supportive relationship, and I enjoy the juxtaposition between cozy scenes of family life, with Madame Maigret knitting on the sofa; and scenes more typical to detective fiction. On the other hand, there are few if any women  in positions of power in the first two stories--the one woman who's managed to hold down any kind of job is portrayed to be cold and dishonest--so I might want to ration my Maigret lest I find myself screaming at Simenon while reading in public to write a strong female character already.

Anyway, the first story is called "Maigret's Christmas" and it's about a little girl who is known for her honesty and claims that Father Christmas has climbed into her bedroom through the window. As evidence of her claim, she has suddenly acquired a large, very expensive doll, which she says Father Christmas gave her. Her aunt, with whom she is living because her mother has died, is unwilling to investigate the little girl's claims, which obviously makes Maigret suspicious. But a neighbor who happened to be in the apartment when the little girl made her claim helps ensure that Maigret investigates--and eventually solves--the case.

This story was particularly heart-wrenching because of Madame Maigret's lack of, and longing for, a child of her own. She is clearly beyond child-bearing age, and although it's never explained, she was probably unable to have babies. Even before she's met the little girl, Madame Maigret becomes very attached to and concerned about her. According to the book, "Many of these stories feature observant and resourceful children, frightened yet resolute, who bring out a paternal streak in the childless Maigret." But in this story, it's Madame Maigret who is clearly more affected by a child in need, and the ending is somewhat unsatisfactory because the child's fate remains unclear.

The second story, "Seven Little Crosses in a Notebook," doesn't actually feature Maigret; instead, its hero is a switchboard operator named Lecoeur whose brother and nephew become involved in a manhunt for a killer. Once again, an endearing child, Bib, is at the center of the plot, although we hardly hear his voice until the end of the story. Bib's father has lost his job, but he's tried to keep that fact from Bib so he won't worry. However, Bib finds out when he tries to visit his father at his previous place of employment and ends up chasing a killer through the streets of Paris so he can get the reward money that's being offered and help his father.

The second story is quite a bit more intense than the first. Once again, the only female character is unsavory. We don't even get Madame Maigret in this story. I wonder if there will be any likable female characters in this book, other than Madame Maigret? I don't remember whether there were any in the last Maigret novel I read.

A note about the translation: I don't know if the same translator (Jean Stewart) has done all the Maigret books, but as a former French student, I thought it was interesting that she occasional seems to have kept the French syntax in the English translation. I had to slow down a few times and reread a few passages because the syntax was slightly different from what I'm used to, but I enjoyed that because I think it added to the French flavor of the stories. Unfortunately I didn't keep note of examples while reading, but I'll try to for the rest of the stories.

This book seems not to be in print anymore, but it's worth picking up from a library if you can find it.

RIP VI: Midsomer Murders

Today, thanks to Carl, I discovered a new detective drama: Midsomer Murders. I should probably preface this by saying that I'm not much of a film critic (or book critic, for that matter). I just know what I like and what I don't like.

I watched the first two episodes and am really enjoying them. In the first episode, "The Killings at Badger's Drift," an elderly woman is found dead in her cottage after seeing something disturbing in a local wood. DCI Tom Barnaby immediately suspects murder. Interspersed with the murder mystery are vignettes from Barnaby's home life with his wife and daughter, who's a budding actress.

The mystery is typical detective drama fare: Barnaby questions all the locals, most of them lie to him, and red herrings abound until a few offhand comments and events that don't make sense finally lead him to the murderer.

The acting tends to be a little cheesy, although a young Emily Mortimer is delightful as the May end of a May/December romance. One of the murder scenes, which included a lingering shot of a huge knife hovering over the victim, actually made me laugh out loud. But the setting is lovely, the characters interesting, and the mystery intriguing.

In the second episode, "Written in Blood," Barnaby and Sgt. Troy must find the killer of a local man after he's hosted a meeting of a local writers' group. I enjoyed this episode slightly more than the first. Anna Massey is wonderful as a creepy, vengeful woman, and Una Stubbs is funny and sad as Selina Jennings, the heavy-drinking wife of famous author Max Jennings. In one scene, Max and Selina are talking in the kitchen one morning while Selina mixes a bloody Mary. Max asks, "Isn't it a bit early for that?" Selina replies, "No! I'm awake!"

In another scene between Barnaby and his wife Joyce, the gruff Barnaby exhibits his softer side. Barnaby find his daughter's cat, which he and Joyce are looking after, in his bed and has a minor argument with Joyce about whether it can sleep with them.

(Barnaby pulls back the bedcovers to reveal the cat)
Barnaby: Joyce...
Joyce: He's lonely!
Barnaby: I don't care if he's manically depressed, he's not sleeping there.
Joyce: Just for tonight?
Barnaby: Not tonight! Not ever!
(Cut to Barnaby sleeping peacefully in bed while his wife reads on one side and the cat snuggles up one the other)

There was one unintentionally hilarious moment in the episode too, when the camera closes in on a character who is supposed to be dead ... and she blinks. But despite from the occasional goofiness, I'm looking forward to watching the rest of this series.

RIP VI

I've decided to do the RIP challenge for the first time this year, and I'm really excited! It's been chilly and damp here, and the evening sunlight is changing noticeably as we approach September. I've definitely been in the mood for some dark, atmospheric reads.

I'm going all out and participating in at least three and possibly four Perils. I might as well, since I tend to binge on mystery, gothic, and supernatural stories each fall. I'll be doing Peril the First (read any four books, any length), Peril of the Short Story, Peril on the Screen, and possibly Peril of the Group Read (every one of the three books featured is on my TBR list, so I probably will do this one too.)

Aside from the books selected for the Peril of the Group Read, I'm also considering the following:

Novels

• The Death Instinct by Jed Rubenfeld
• Bad Intentions by Karin Fossum
• The Language of Bees by Laurie R. King
• Eight Months on Ghazzah Street by Hilary Mantel
• The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
• In the Woods by Tana French
• Room by Emma Donoghue

Short Stories

• Miscellaneous Sherlock Holmes stories
• Tales of Mystery and Madness by Poe
• Just After Sunset by Stephen King

Movies

Probably lots of Masterpiece Mystery! fare. I've got lots of that on my Netflix queue.

I've also got a handful of cozy mysteries on my shelves that might make the novels list. I'm looking forward to seeing others' lists too because I'm sure I'll get lots of ideas.

I love this time of year!