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rocketiza's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked how this wasn't your typical police novel and felt insanely relevant in 2022 with mass shootings and a few times explicitly acknowledged the public has good reason to mistrust cops versus how the genre always paints them as crusading heroes who need to bend the rules to do justice.
michaeldavidsharp's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
b_e_stuart's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.0
readingoverbreathing's review against another edition
4.0
"Can you say it was the most ghastly sight you've ever seen in your life?"
This was honestly so much fun, way more fun than I was expecting, especially after also reading [b:Cop Hater|425164|Cop Hater (87th Precinct, #1)|Ed McBain|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1237947350l/425164._SY75_.jpg|935077] alongside it this week. It incorporates a humor that's dark, yes, but much more well done, at least to me, than the similar dark humor in a lot of hardboiled crime fiction. It gave it a whole other element that I just really enjoyed, especially all those critiques of capitalist society.
I also loved the Stockholm setting, and the way Sjöwall and Wahlöö really indulged in it. It made me realize that I don't think I've ever read any Swedish literature, or any Scandanavian for that matter, ever, and if it all has this same tone and humor, I'd like to get into more of it.
I don't know if I'll actually pick it up any time soon, but I'd love to read more of this series, and I'm so glad my crime fiction course got me started on it, because I know I never would have found it on my own otherwise.
hatseflats's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this one. I had often heard it was considered a classic in the detective procedural genre. I can see why now. I really enjoyed how the writers developed the atmosphere of the setting and how the stoicism of the detectives matched it so well. This is the first book from the Martin Beck series I have read, but I have a feeling I may be reading more in the future.
bigsexy's review against another edition
3.0
This is a clever mystery for sure but it’s difficult to read the descriptions of women from 1968. The lack of understanding of women in general through this writing is shocking. Shocking because one of the authors is a woman.
baxtervallens's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
marco5599's review against another edition
4.0
The cold and dreary world of Martin Beck. By now it feels like a warm bath to me. A spectacular crime this time. American mayhem in Sweden. Some loony mowed down nine people in a bus. One of them a cop. A mass murder. And a ruined crime scene. Not the only frustration Beck and his team will have to deal with. Grumpiness on almost every page. And more. Remarkable how few of them these authors needed to come up with rich stories. The Beck novels might be short, but the cases are long. They are slow, but never dull. Somehow Maj Sjöwall en Per Wahlöö make the mundane feel like something special. In their hands good old-fashioned police work never gets old.
smemmott's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism, Gun violence, and Murder
Minor: Rape and Racism
sannacjn's review against another edition
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5