The Jealousy Man is a collection of short stories by the ever-reliable Jo Nesbo. The collection is split into 2 parts, The first 7 come under the "Jealousy" label while the remaining 5 come under "Power" .
The "Jealousy" stories are more traditional Nesbo tales ,the flawed characters ,the clever twists and intriguing situations that are very much in "traditional thriller" country.
"Power" might not appeal to some of Nesbo's fans as he lets his imagination run wild with futuristic settings such as an America where law and order has largely broken down , Milan post "future war" where society has collapsed and big corporations hold the power, the Scientist who thinks he's found the secret to longer life and even a tale involving parallel universes.
While I've always enjoyed Nesbo's writing I was quite surprised at the depth of knowledge and intellect on display in these stories as some quite complex ideas come into play and the reader has to use their own grey matter. I suspect many readers will be surprised if they pick this book up judging Nesbo purely by his Hole books and are expecting "straight" thriller writing.
The best thing about this collection for me is the range of thoughts and ideas sprinkled throughout the stories, many of which are quite thought-provoking,and suggest Nesbo's somewhat negative views of the way the world is heading in a couple of cases.
Great stuff from a master story-teller.

3.5 rounded up

This collection of short stories by the talented Jo Nesbø is divided into two themes. The first centres on jealousy and part two around power. I enjoy the first group much better than the second as there’s a really good mix of stories and the theme is evident throughout. The first entitled London is outstanding and my favourite story as I love the clever twist at the end which makes me smile, albeit wryly. The second The Jealousy Man which gives the collection it’s title, has a great premise of sibling rivalry and how that manifests itself into jealousy. It is a bit on the long side with some digressions but it is a clever story of parallel lines. I also like The Line which is short and sharp with the perfect revenge for a line jumper. In Trash we have an angry and jealous refuse disposal officer who really cleans up after himself and The Confession has a particularly yummy Twist! The latter really appeals to my rather dark sense of humour!!

The collection with power as it’s linking theme doesn’t grab me in quite the same way. Rat Island is a harsh and rather dismal story which I find is hard to get into but on the other hand The Cicadas although it is a convoluted tale, the concept is very creative and keeps the attention which you sure need! The Antidote is the story of a powerful father and son but the father is one jump ahead of the son in a clever though dark conclusion. The Black Knight is a bleak story which I don’t especially care for but I do like the way it concludes.

Jo Nesbø is one of my favourite authors and the quality of his writing is apparent in many of these but not all in my opinion. I definitely prefer his full length novels all of which I highly rate. However, this is very different collection with some unusual plots and so if you enjoy short stories then you may like this.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Random House UK, Vintage, Harvill Secker for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.