#5: A Conspiracy of Faith by Jussi Adler-Olsen

Copenhagen cop Carl Morck has been assigned to the Cold Case squad, and is content to coast out his career; but his able assistant Assad, and insouciant secretary Rose, won't let a mysterious message in a bottle go in Jussi Adler-Olsen's A Conspiracy of Faith.

This is the third in the popular Department Q series, and follows the curious pattern of its predecessors with pretty gruesome crimes counterbalanced with office hijinks. 

In this one, a dedicated and previously undiscovered serial killer has spent decades preying on closed-off religious sects throughout Denmark.  A reluctant Morck begins to realize that the killer is still very active, and very close to the detective.

This outing has two really nice set pieces--a car/train chase, and a stand-off in a bowling alley--that shows a more cinematic flair.  As it happens, A Conspiracy of Faith was made into a popular movie in Denmark, which I am eager to see.

An interesting series, although not for all tastes.  I listened to a good audiobook version on loan from the New Castle-Henry County Public Library in New Castle, Indiana.

#52: The Absent One by Jussi Adler-Olsen

Slightly burned-out Copenhagen cop Carl Morck now heads up Cold Cases in a dank basement, and--because of his meticulous assistant Assad and insouciant secretary Rose--reluctantly solves the case of murdered teen siblings in The Absent One.

The Absent One is the second in Jussi Adler-Olsen's highly regarded Department Q series, which has also spawned a trilogy of hit movies in his native Denmark.

This novel follows the pattern of its predecessor, The Keep of Lost Causes, with almost comedic scenes in the office contrasting with crime elements that include rape, torture, animal abuse, and more.  It can at times be somewhat jarring, with strong subject matter for the casual reader.

But Adler-Olsen is a great mystery writer, and The Absent One is recommended for discriminating readers.

I checked this out on audiobook from the New Castle-Henry County Public Library.

#10: The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen

A Copenhagen cop is wounded in a shootout, while another partner is wounded and a third killed; in the aftermath, the burned-out cop is content to be assigned to the cold case files deep in a windowless basement.  However, he meets a janitor/driver named Assad (with mysterious skills far above his station in life) and is gradually coaxed back to life in The Keeper of Lost Causes.

This is the first of Jussi Adler-Olsen's crime novels translated into English, and it is quite a tale.  Our cop and his assistant become interested in a female politician who went missing five years before and is presumed dead.  They rather quickly find out there may be more to the disappearance and take off on a winding mystery, leavened by surprising bits of humor in the relationship between the two lead characters, somewhat rare in the typically gloomy Scandinavian mystery.

Meanwhile, a parallel story is a particularly gruesome one as the missing woman deals with being imprisoned and tortured in a small chamber for years on end, a grim counterpart to the main plot and more in line with the typically downbeat offerings from these authors.  The burned-out cop's intent to keep his feet up and drink coffee often acts as an agonizing contrast to these scenes.

I found this to be one of my favorite reads in the Scandinavian mystery genre and would recommend this to fans of Stieg Larsson and others.

I checked this out from the Morrison-Reeves Library in Richmond, Indiana and read it quickly.