Håkan Nesser, Borkmanns Punkt (1995)

I den anden krimi af svenske Håkan Nesser, er en øksemorder med tilnavnet Bødlen på spil ude ved kysten i seriens frit opfundne nederlandske miljø.

Samtidig er Nessers hovedperson, kommissær Van Veeteren, draget på ferie ved havet, hvor han keder sig bravt. Han har tilbragt den første ferieuge sammen med sin voksne søn Erik, som afsoner en fængselsstraf for narkohandel, men forholdet mellem dem er langt fra ideelt. Van Veeteren traver rundt og filosoferer ved stranden; det går op for ham, at han ikke længere længes efter noget, han længes bare væk. Van Veeteren er lidt af en rugende Martin Beck-type, men tager sig tid til at filosofere over livet og døden, drikke et køligt glas øl og spille et parti skak, når lejlighed byder sig.

Mordene løser naturligvis Van Veeterens problem, da han bliver indkaldt til at hjælpe det lokale politi. Bogen byder på et spændende samarbejde mellem kommissæren og den lokale politimester Bausen, også noget af en personlighed med jungle i baghaven og egen vinkælder, samt den unge, ambitiøse kriminalbetjent Beate Moerk.

Bogen har nogle machokrimi-træk i kraft af den mandlige forfatter og de to mandlige hovedpersoner, men Van Veeteren udviser stor respekt for Beate Moerk, og til trods for sin enspænder-rolle, er han en vellidt og belæst overordnet, som ganske vist selv er fraskilt, men aldrig viser tegn på modvilje eller nedladenhed overfor kvinder. Sidst, men ikke mindst indeholder bogen nogle udmærkede scener, set fra Moerks synsvinkel.

Når sådan en række kompetente politifolk er på sagen, hvorfor varer det så så længe, før de kommer på sporet af, hvem der er bøddel, og hvem der er ofre? Læs bogen og få svaret i denne svenske krimi af høj standard.


Hakan Nesser, Borkmann´s Point (2006)
In the second crime novel by Swedish Hakan Nesser an axe murderer nicknamed the Executioner is at work on the coast of the imaginary setting somewhere in the Netherlands.

At the same time Nesser´s protagonist, Chief Inspector Van Veeteren, is bored stiff during his annual holidays at the seaside. He has spent the first week together with his grown son Erik, out on parole from a sentence for drug dealing, but the relationship between the two of them is far from ideal. Van Veeteren takes long philosophical walks on the beach, realizing that he no longer longs for anything, he just longs to get away. To some extent Van Veeteren is a brooding Martin Beck type (Sjöwall & Wahlöö), but takes his time to muse over life and death, enjoy a cold glass of beer and play a game of chess when the occasion arises.

The murders solve Van Veeteren´s problem as he is called in to assist the local police. The novel offers an interesting insight in the co-operation between the Chief Inspector and the local police chief Bausen who is also a real character complete with his own jungle and wine cellar, plus the young, ambitious detective constable Beate Moerk.

The book has some macho crime features as it is written by a male author and has two male protagonists, but Van Veeteren regards Beate Moerk with the highest respect and in spite of his lonely wolf role, he is generally a well-liked and well-read superior. Personally, he is divorced, but he never shows signs of aversion or condescension towards women. Last, but not least, there are also some excellent scenes seen from Moerk´s point of view.

When so many competent police officers are on the case, why does it take so long before they figure out who is the executioner and who are the victims? Read the book and find the astonishing answer. A Swedish crime novel of high standard, and English readers have several pleasant encounters with Van Veeteren to look forward to in addition to the four which have been translated so far.