As you might expect from the writer behind 'The Killing', this is an excellent thriller – a real page-turner with a couple of red herrings thrown in, great characterisation and two detectives who I would hope to read about again. Deserves to be a huge hit.

A real page turner from first page, couldn't put the book down until I'd finished. Well written with superb story, many twists and turns keeps you engrossed right to the end.

Thought this book was excellent. A clever blend of politics, policing and detective work. Not forgetting the interesting and well drawn characters. Whilst the characters were very well developed they were not allowed to get in the way of the main story i.e. the murders. I couldn't put the book down and I was not disappointed with the ending - what more is there to say.

A superior crime novel with great characters.
I found it a little too bogged down in detail at times but enjoyed it all the same.
Having read many ‘psychological thrillers’, it makes a nice change to read one that real depth, rather than the lightweights that are churned out ad infinitum.
My thanks to Netgalley for this copy.

A unique tale of two independent detectives with ambitions to go elsewhere who are thrown together charged with solving a murder case. They are a disjointed team suspicious of each other with a take it or leave it attitude to each other’s ideas. The case soon escalates when other murders occur with the killer leaving a chestnut man behind to suggest a link with more to follow. When political interests become involved their careers are threatened if the fail to find the killer. This forces them to work together if their careers are not to be destroyed. How their relationship evolves and how they finally crack the case makes a fascinating read.

Fantastic. This novel is very very good. It is quite lengthy but definitely does not feel like it. I was gripped by the story from very early on, a classic Scandinavia crime thriller that would make an excellent series.

This book became un put downable for me. Despite a necessarily gentle start, the further I read, the more I neglected the world around me!
It starts with a flashback to 1989, the significance of which is revealed in the final chapters. Back in present day, we are introduced to the characters of the key detectives, Thulin and Hess, both of whom seem to be damaged by life and circumstances. This could have felt a little cliqued but somehow, I still felt myself becoming an advocate for them both.
The murders in question start with an average level of gruesomeness and accelerate rapidly toward downright creepiness. This is emphasised more as the title of the book becomes more relevant. Although I had my suspicions about the identity of the killer, I still managed to accuse everyone before the denouement. The explanation worked for me, although I did find myself puzzled about one key point With plenty of red herrings and a back story of political life, the book felt well rounded. Only frustration was the seeming incompetence and unwillingness to listen of most of the Danish police.
I’m hoping this is the start of a series!

An excellent addition to the Scandi-Noir list. Multiple twists to the plot which keep one guessing to the end; incidents, characters that are seemingly unconnected, but are they? This was a book that had me thinking 'just one more chapter' and then I would find myself several chapters later! Impossible to put down. Would highly recommend to anyone who likes a good story, plot, characterisation.

Look forward to further novels by this author.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Pengiun UK - Michael Joseph for an advance copy of The Chestnut Man, a stand alone thriller set in Copenhagen.

When Laura Kjaer is murdered in the playground behind her house Detective Naia Thulin and disgraced Europol detective Mark Hess are put on the case. Laura's missing hand and the figure of a man made from chestnuts at the scene make them suspect that there may be more to the case than is immediately apparent. In the meantime Minister for Social Affairs Rosa Hartung is returning to work after the disappearance and assumed murder of her daughter the year before. Hess suspects a link between the cases but no one wants to know as they have the perpetrator locked up.

I enjoyed The Chestnut Man which has an intricate plot with many twists and turns. I do, however, think that the author shows his screenwriting roots in the execution as some of the scenes would be better visually than they are in the written word, notably the infighting about the direction of the case. I found the stubbornness of Chief Detective Nylander in sticking to his original convictions annoying and repetitive in the book but I could imagine it being good drama as tempers rise and Hess finds ways to circumvent his edicts. I also think the novel is overly long and making it shorter would have packed more of a punch.

Having said that there is a good, well conceived plot in the novel with lots of misdirection and false starts and a well concealed perpetrator and motive. I was hooked on all the potential links and it provides much food for speculation, especially as most of mine was wrong! It mostly follows the investigation and Rosa Hartung in its point of view and while the timeline is mostly in the present the opening chapter from 1989 tells the reader that there is much more to the story than is immediately apparent.

Thulin and Hess are interesting protagonists. Thulin is remote and not heavily invested in her current position, in fact she's applied for another job in a more high profile department. She is, however, very interested in promotion which will come by toeing the party line. I found her a strange character, supposedly smart but ready to accept the obvious without asking too many questions. Hess, on the other hand, is the maverick with a capacity for lateral thinking and an ability to see beyond the obvious. He would probably be as annoying as anything in real life but he's a great fictional detective and by far my favourite character.

The Chestnut Man is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending.

I did not enjoy this. I don't like present tense novels nor did I like the violence. It's just a pastiche of so much Scandinavian noir.

A lovely read!

The book starts a bit slow but then quickly builds up speed. The story itself is gripping and full of twists and turns!