I love how sometimes the simplest of ideas make for the best kind of stories, if they're written well. And this is an astonishing piece of storytelling and one that I am struggling to get out of my head!

'Late one evening, toward the end of March, a teenager picked up a double-barreled shotgun, walked into the forest, put the gun to someone else's forehead, and pulled the trigger.

This is the story of how we got there.'

This is the quote that lured me into this book! That and knowing it is from the author who charmed my world with A Man Called Ove. But this is nothing like that book and just proves what a wonderful storyteller Fredrik Backman is and how he doesn't seem to be afraid of writing something completely different.

The story is simple and revolves around a town that is obsessed with hockey. Every aspect of the town and its' inhabitants are governed by the success of the hockey team. It is what brings the small town in a large swedish forest together - and the effect it has on tearing them all apart when sides have to be chosen.

It is difficult to review the story without adding spoilers so i won't focus too much on the plot of which I knew very little about, and I think that is the best way to enjoy this book. The less you know beforehand, the better! So I will focus on the storytelling which starts off slowly and flits from character to character, telling you snippets of how they fit into Beartown - from the teenagers on the hockey team, to the coach, to the sponsors,to the parents - and this helps slowly build up a picture of just how much Hockey is at the heart of the town. So you can't help but be drawn in as a reader so that you become a fly on the wall of every house, training pitch, garden etc while the author puts the pieces together to lead up to the events of 'that day'.

I just couldn't put this book down once I had started reading it as I didn't want to miss anything - from the simplicity of everyday life, to the harrowing consequences of a night gone wrong and I found it to be so powerful and absorbing. It is a wonderful insight on family and community dynamics, and it is often not an easy read because of some of the subject matter where it pulls no punches and that just adds to the impact it had on me as a reader.

One of my books of 2017 - a MUST read!!

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. I was really looking forward to reading this book as absolutely loved a Man Called Ove. This book was not as good I am afraid but I still read it anyway.

Originally published as Beartown, this was a book about a small town in Sweden and it's hockey team. A tragic event occurs which leaves the town reeling in shock. Great characterisation and setting, with some real descriptive passages which transport you to northern Sweden. Another really good Swedish mystery. Thank you Net Galley for my copy. I reviewed on Goodreads.

Cannot review a book that has so many letters missing that it becomes a chore rather than a pleasure!

Thrilling and compelling, scandanivan crime meets Jodi picoult

In a small town where sport and loyalty to your team is everything, what happens when a scandal brews. Do you choose your team and the town or are you willing to forfeit it all for the truth, and what will the repercussions be.
So many lives are affected and it's rare that an author can make you want to weep for victims on both sides.
Absolutely blown away by the amount of emotion and energy that Fredrik Backman has managed to generate within these pages. I read a Man Called Ove and loved it, and I've enjoyed his other titles but this is beyond everything else.

The book is based in the fictional Scandinavian town of Beartown. Once prosperous it is now struggling and most of the residents blame the fact that their ice hockey team is no longer successful for this. Now however the junior team is through to the semi-finals of the national competition and the whole town is hopeful that they will go through to and win the final and the new hockey academy will be built in the town. Then an incident happens involving one of the hockey team and the town struggles to cope - some think the incident should have been dealt with internally at the hockey club and others think the police should deal with it. The opening chapter of the book describes a teenager holding a gun to another teenagers head and pulling the trigger but instead of explaining why this has happened straight away the author describes the town and its residents and the influence ice hockey has on everybody. This approach gives the reader the chance to get to know all the characters involved, get a feel for the town and how the incident affects everybody. Really enjoyed reading this book.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publishers and the author for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Beartown is a small isolated community in Sweden and it’s in decline. The future looks bleak, but one thing the town does have going for it is ice hockey and it looks like the junior hockey team is going to be able to revive the town’s fortunes and give this small well-meaning town a future and something to hope for. But then it all goes badly wrong. Told form various points of view, this is a heart-breaking and compelling tale of ordinary people caught up in an obsession for a sport, a sport around which the whole town revolves, and which ultimately blinds them to all sense of proportion. This is a far more serious book than Backman’s previous ones, dealing as it does with issues of great moral complexity. Sport is at its heart but it’s about so much more – parenthood, racism, loyalty, perseverance, and the dangers of turning fallible sportsmen into heroes. A wonderful thought-provoking read, engaging throughout, with memorable and authentic characters that live both on and off the page.

The Scandal by Fredrik Backman (translated by Neil Smith) is a contemporary novel about small town living in Sweden. It is a town both united and divided by ice hockey. Ice hockey dominates everything. It is the be-all and end-all.
The town revolves around ice hockey. You are either in the 'in' crowd or you are outside looking in. The novel shows this obsession can blur and warp people's thinking.
There is the theme of family. Family sticks together. The ice hockey family demand loyalty. There is a high price to pay if you do not give it.
Friendships are important. Some have been forged in childhood.
Ice hockey makes heroes. Once placed on the pedestal, there is only one way to fall.
The novel has the difficult topic of rape. The aftermath and shocks are realistically portrayed. "\she's scared of the darkness in the middle of the day." The parents desire for both revenge and to protect and feelings of failure are all understandable. "Everyone has a thousand wishes before a tragedy, but just one afterwards." The reader can empathise with both the victim and we understand the feelings of both sets of parents. It is all sensitively done.
There is much use of four letter words in the novel which I did not particularly like. However I do realise that their inclusion was for realism.
The Scandal was a novel of two halves. I must admit to finding the first half hard to get into but I realise now that that was the author setting the scene. The second half was extremely intense. I was on tenterhooks, anticipating the action to come.
The Scandal was not my usual genre but it was an interesting, if rather disturbing read.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.

A rollercoaster of emotions this story set in a small Swedish town in a large forest. The economy is dwindling and the town is getting smaller but, they all have something that keeps them all together is Hockey. You don't have to like hockey to love this story. The junior team is in the semi final of the biggest youth tournament in the country. The story tells us of the days leading up to that. The story talks about rape, homersexuality and growing up and how this sport brings everyone together.

I thought this story was a breath of fresh air to the stories I normally read. It had well developed characters, it was an up put downable story that I didn't want to end. 5/5 stars

The Scandal- also called Beartown.

This story is nothing like 'A man called Ove', however the Characters are equally strong and well crafted. It was hard to put down and I read most of the book in one night.

I can't think how to describe the book without spoilers, so I will just say it's about team spirit, right and wrong, coming of age, and bringing up children in a small, sports obsessed town.

Definitely worth reading 😀

This book is nothing like I've read before, from the first page I was hooked.
You are drawn into so many people's lives and taken on a rollercoaster ride of every emotion possible.
The author deals with real life situations, and makes you feel you are going through them with the individual, their family and the community.
Fantastic writing, a book that will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you Netgalley, Fredrik Backman and Penguin for allowing me to read and review this book.

This story had an emotional affect on me that I haven't felt in a long time. A story of dilemmas, human failings, justice and the few who carry a light amongst the rest. A really gripping story which left questions but also a kind of justice. I have nothing but admiration for the author for writing such a story.

There are so many impressive things at work here that it is hard to know where to start. There's an enormous ensemble cast which, from a less accomplished writer, would have sunk the project before it left the shore. So many characters and yet all so beautifully drawn it was never an issue keeping track of them - both on and off the ice. The depiction of Beartown itself is also incredibly vivid. By the end, I felt I'd definitely been there. The plotting is intricate and there is no shortage of stakes. Everyone has several vested interests, and they are put through the wringer again and again. At times The Scandal rises to a cross between 'Fever Pitch' and Dürenmatt, delivering enormous moral questions in an entirely relatable, and often humourous way.

Ultimately, my tastes run more to Dürenmatt than Hornby. I like my tragedy served up raw and don't want the author pulling punches and sparing me the painful joy of wallowing in it. I also prefer not to be endlessly told how I am meant to be feeling about things and I really don't want to be lectured at. Although I wholeheartedly and unreservedly agree that rape, sexism, racism and homophobia are all abominations, I feel the book would have been considerably stronger if the author hadn't endlessly intruded into the narrative to remind me to think the way I do. Feeling him constantly over my shoulder, making sure I didn't back the wrong team, as it were, left me tempted to give this book three stars when, really, the talent on display is easily worth five.

Having said this, I will definitely look out for more of Frederick Backman's work.

I would like to thank the publisher for giving me an advance copy of The Scandal in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. This would normally not be the type of book I would read so am very grateful to Netgalley and the publishers for encouraging me to read outside my comfort zone.
'The Scandal' is the story of a town reliant on its hockey team to keep a sense of civic pride in the face of economic downturns.
The team are hailed as gods, everyone loves these young men, they literally can do no wrong. In the midst of this there is the power struggle within the management of the team who are desperately courting sponsorship and a family that has struggled so long against tragedy they would not know what to do without it to prop them up.
It accumulates,twists and grows until something unspeakable happens and the town is torn apart. Does the truth matter more than the need for the town to establish an identity? Does treating sports stars like gods mean ignoring justice ? Does the death of a child drive a couple to succeed at the sake of their living children?
More than just a thriller this is a microcosm of a struggling town, struggling families and struggling children. It's a beautiful, elegant book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Based in Beartown.
Well this turned out to be a very surprising read based on how it started. There were a lot of characters, that at times left me feeling bombarded with a barrage of names, best friends names, their parents, parents careers, other adults and their positions, as well as other school friends. There was also a lot of narrative for the main characters, the groups they associated with, the town and it's obsession with Ice-Hockey and the up coming semi-final match.

Then suddenly from out of nowhere, this book that I was struggling with, had me hooked. Because I had perservered with it initially, I then found I had a better understanding of the characters and their actions and reactions after "The Scandal" took place. Without this background, the story would just be a story about a town that plays ice hockey. But instead it is a whole lot more.

To summerise the story without giving anything away: The town lives and breathes for ice hockey, the pressure from sponsors, parents and supporters for the teenage boys ice hockey team to win is immense. The town is gradually dwindling, ice hockey is the one thing that gives them hope for future prospects. After an event occurs the town is in uproar, how dare anyone put their family before ice hockey! But the actions of a few individuals soon divides opinion and true colours are shown. The popularity of the best players and their parents is based on hockey, and because of this some people will always put hockey first. But others realise that their family and friends are the important things in life, they give the support and loyalty that will serve you well later in life.

As I said at the beginning, this book contains a lot of detail and narrative, but builds up some brilliant characters that are well developed, especially once you get your head around them, as there are a lot. The narrative gives some great detail into the thoughts, ideas, dreams and hopes of the residents of Beartown.

I would recommend this book to readers of contempory fiction, mystery, sports fiction.

If you have read A Man Called Ove by the same author be warned that this novel is nothing like it and, for me, way more brilliant. Ostensibly this is a book about a small town obsessed by ice hockey but it is far more than that. It is about loyalty, friendship, power, gender and bravery.

Beartown is struggling: jobs are disappearing and people are suffering. The one thing that binds the residents together is their passionate support for the ice hockey team. The junior team look to be on the brink of significant success and the hope is that this fame will bring investment to the town.

The story follows the lives of the players, their coaches, their families and other Beartown residents. The players are idolised and can do no wrong. The town is buzzing in the run up to a semi-final of a junior tournament. Then a single act puts everything in jeopardy and divides the town.

The questions the novel poses are whose side do you decide to be on? What prejudices do you have which will influence your decision? Are you brave enough to stand-up for what you believe?

The book is heart-breaking in places and makes you angry in others. It portrays a town in economic recession with little hope of a revival. It is an observation of what makes us human, what choices we face and how we make them.

This book will stay with me for a long time.

ARC received from NetGalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.

This book is about when something happens to someone the knock on effect it has to all those around them.. Beartown is a small hockey mad town. After winning an important game the hockey team decide to party. What happens at this party ends up affecting the whole town. Maya is a young girl of 15 wanting to be grown up, and to hang around with the older boys from the hockey team. After getting invited by Kevin the hockey team star Maya and her friend Ana can't believe their luck. Unfortunately this invite has terrible consequences for the whole town. A great read that makes you think how people's actions effect all those around them.

Small town where everything centres around the hockey team, but the very heart of it will soon be shaken to its core and loyalties tested. I found the book slow to start with but actually the build up to each character is as important as what happens at the time and after. Really recommend, brilliantly written. Gave a four just because it is a slow burner....

I wasn't sure if i was going to enjoy this book as i have no interest in hockey whatsoever! After the first few chapters i was hooked. I'm so glad i don't live in bear town! I think this book really does make you realise that we haven't actually moved on that much when it comes to women and the way they are treated! A really great read