I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Samuel Bjork’s previous books featuring Munch and Mia and this one is also very good. However I found that this time for me, there were too many characters who didn’t really matter to the storyline and sometimes I felt confused by their inclusion. However, I appreciate that the author likely intended for there to be an element of confusion. I can recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good detective thriller.

My thanks to the author, to the publisher and to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review the book.

Samuel Bjork is one of my favourite authors. I loved this book as I have with all Samuel Bjork’s other titles. It kept me glued throughout and read it in two sessions. I’ve recommend these books to many friends and I am jealous that they are just discovering these books. Can’t wait to read more by this author.

A cold, compelling thriller, the icy starkness of the prose beautifully evokes the chill of the nordic winter

I read Samuel Bjørk's "The Wolf," which was my first introduction to his writing. Although the novel demonstrated Bjørk's storytelling abilities, I found it somewhat underwhelming and not truly captivating. The plot was engaging enough to keep me interested, but it lacked the depth and complexity to make it great. Bjørk's prose was good, but his characters could have benefited from additional layers of development to enhance their emotional resonance. Overall, it was a decent effort, but it didn't reach its full potential. If you're looking for a gripping, multifaceted thriller, "The Wolf" may not entirely satisfy, but it is a decent starting point to explore Bjørk's work.

A chilling Nordic noir thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end, with a gripping storyline and a complex protagonist.

This was my first time reading any of Samuel Bjorks work and what a pleasant experience it turned out to be.
I have not read a huge number of books from the crime/thriller genres of late, so this was like a breath of fresh air. The pacing was of a fast nature which really helped with the whole experience, rather than getting bogged down in minute detail like many novels of this type.
All of the characters were well draw and felt like they were grounded in reality. The same can also be said for the story as a whole.
Overall I would recommend this for anyone who wants a slightly faster paced crime novel.

If you’ve been enjoying Samuel Bjørk’s Munch and Krüger novels, The Wolf will take you back in time to their first case. If you’ve yet to discover them, then this prequel to I’m Travelling Alone is where their story begins.

Mia Krüger has been freshly recruited from the police academy by Holger Munch after a colleague praised her extraordinary analytical skills. The rest of his team aren’t convinced by the 21-year-old trainee, who seems to follow her gut rather than evidence. When the Oslo homicide unit is tasked with the murder of two 11-year-old boys, she has the chance to prove her worth.

Link to rest of review: https://westwordsreviews.wordpress.com/2023/12/18/the-wolf-samuel-bjork/

I read all previous books by Samuel Bjørk in this series and I found out that I had the Dutch version at home. I've had it for quite some time now, but hadn't read it yet. I received a copy via NetGalley from Random House UK and it came out on the second of November.

Detective Holger Munch is asked to investigate the brutal abduction and murder of 2 young boys. 8 years ago something similar happened. In his new department Munch hires a new trainee, Mia Kruger, to help with the investigation. Kruger has her own problems but throws all her time and effort into this case. Will they be able to solve this and the cold case as well?

I had to get used to this book as I didn't immediately figure out it was a prequel to the other books. After I found that out it made so much more sense and it was quite interesting to read the, let's say, origin story of Munch and Kruger. As there have been a few books before, the characters in this prequel were already quite worked out and now you could delve more into the history of the characters. I did like that fact and also the fact that the story was quite fast paced. At times, it's a bit far fetched and not really believable, but it's still a fun story to read.

3,5/5 ⭐

This is how it all began, how the team became as close and as good as they go on to be in the later books.
This is the fourth book in this series but each book can be read as a standalone, this one included.
If you are new to the series then this is the book to start with! I have read all the books in this series now and there isn’t a bad book in the bunch, so I highly recommend this book as well as the other three.
Starting with the discovery of two bodies of young boys, posed with a dead fox and a hare, the team find a similar case from several years before bearing all the same hallmarks from their crime scene.
But how are the two cases connected and why the gap in between the two?
Holger Munch who heads the team recruit’s Mia Krüger straight from the police academy for her skills in seeing patterns in things that other people can’t and is set comparing the images and evidence between the two crimes.
As leads start to develop the team are in a hurry to solve this case, under pressure from the powers above as well as the press.
Each lead brings them closer, but not all roads lead to where they want.
The book is fast paced, totally addictive and impossible to put down! It draws you in and holds you captive until the very last page.
If you have already read the other books then you will know you won’t be disappointed by this book and if you are new to the author and his books, this one will have you racing out to get the rest of the books for a good binge read!
The Wolf was published on 2 November and is available to buy now from your local bookshop or to start reading straight away

This is how it all began, how the team became as close and as good as they go on to be in the later books.
This is the fourth book in this series but each book can be read as a standalone, this one included.
If you are new to the series then this is the book to start with! I have read all the books in this series now and there isn’t a bad book in the bunch, so I highly recommend this book as well as the other three.
Starting with the discovery of two bodies of young boys, posed with a dead fox and a hare, the team find a similar case from several years before bearing all the same hallmarks from their crime scene.
But how are the two cases connected and why the gap in between the two?
Holger Munch who heads the team recruit’s Mia Krüger straight from the police academy for her skills in seeing patterns in things that other people can’t and is set comparing the images and evidence between the two crimes.
As leads start to develop the team are in a hurry to solve this case, under pressure from the powers above as well as the press.
Each lead brings them closer, but not all roads lead to where they want.
The book is fast paced, totally addictive and impossible to put down! It draws you in and holds you captive until the very last page.
If you have already read the other books then you will know you won’t be disappointed by this book and if you are new to the author and his books, this one will have you racing out to get the rest of the books for a good binge read!
The Wolf was published on 2 November and is available to buy now from your local bookshop or to start reading straight away

This is how it all began, how the team became as close and as good as they go on to be in the later books.
This is the fourth book in this series but each book can be read as a standalone, this one included.
If you are new to the series then this is the book to start with! I have read all the books in this series now and there isn’t a bad book in the bunch, so I highly recommend this book as well as the other three.
Starting with the discovery of two bodies of young boys, posed with a dead fox and a hare, the team find a similar case from several years before bearing all the same hallmarks from their crime scene.
But how are the two cases connected and why the gap in between the two?
Holger Munch who heads the team recruit’s Mia Krüger straight from the police academy for her skills in seeing patterns in things that other people can’t and is set comparing the images and evidence between the two crimes.
As leads start to develop the team are in a hurry to solve this case, under pressure from the powers above as well as the press.
Each lead brings them closer, but not all roads lead to where they want.
The book is fast paced, totally addictive and impossible to put down! It draws you in and holds you captive until the very last page.
If you have already read the other books then you will know you won’t be disappointed by this book and if you are new to the author and his books, this one will have you racing out to get the rest of the books for a good binge read!
The Wolf was published on 2 November and is available to buy now from your local bookshop or to start reading straight away

"On 28 May 1993, two eleven-year-old boys were found murdered in a field near Fagerhult in Sweden ... The farmer who found the bodies later described the scene as if someone had opened the gates of hell."

Eight years after the brutal murder of two young boys in Sweden, two other eleven-year-olds are found murdered in a field in Norway, their bodies artistically arranged with a dead animal between them. Just like the previous murders. Is it the same killer?

Detective Holger Munch has few clues – the killer had cleaned the bodies thoroughly. He enlists the help of Mia Kruger, a young student at the Police Academy, who is brilliant at profiling and seeing beyond the obvious. She manages to help the police find leads, but the more they discover, the fewer answers they seem to have and it appears the murderer is leading them on a wild goose chase. Now, it's a race against the clock to make sure he doesn't continue killing.

'The Wolf' is an enjoyable addition to the Nordic noir subgenre. The reason I didn't rate it higher was because I saw some of the twists coming, meaning the last 10 to 15% of the book wasn't as exciting or tense as it could have been. I really enjoyed Mia as a character and would definitely read more books if they feature her as a protagonist. She's awkward but brilliant, just how I like my heroines. Also, she's badass when she needs to be.

TW: There is no sexual assault but please be aware the book has somewhat graphic descriptions of young children who have been murdered.

The story takes us back to when Holger first employed Mia to help catch a killer.
It's an interesting story and highlights how much can be taken for granted. I really enjoyed reading this.

A prequel to the Holger Munch/Mia Kruger series which confused me at first as I had enjoyed the other novels. However, this was a competent Scandinavian thriller and can be read as a standalone.Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

I always seem to have a weak spot for a good Nordic noir thriller... Add the fact that I really enjoyed the first three Holger Munch and Mia Kruger books, and you can imagine that I was excited when I found out there was going to be a prequel showing us how one of the main characters first joined the team. I've been looking forward to finally read The Wolf, so imagine my surprise when I ended up struggling considering with this story instead... I'm not sure if it was just the stubborn reading slump talking, but I had a hard time finding the motivation to keep reading and it took me a lot longer than usual to actually finish it. I'll try to explain what did and didn't work for me below.

I can never resist a Nordic setting, and it was great to return to Oslo and watch how the team was first formed. I appreciated the link to a Swedish murder investigation eight years ago, which gave the story more dept and added an extra level of intrigue. The murder case itself is fascinating, and the structure of the plot is without doubt more than solid with plenty of plot twists and new angles along the way. There was so much potential with this premise, but somehow the actual story simply didn't live up to expecations to me. Part of me is still struggling to understand why, because I did enjoy the other three books despite a couple of minor issues... But it is what it is I guess.

I think part of the issue with The Wolf has a lot to do with both the writing style itself and the multiple POV structure. The writing style somehow didn't flow properly and felt quite stunted, with a lot of short sentences interrupting the flow and thoughts seemingly expressed out loud. Especially Mia's chapters started to become extremely annoying, and I caught myself starting to find excuses to stop reading or skip her chapters altogether. There were also way too many POVs, and to make things worse there were a couple that didn't seem to have anything to do with the rest of the story and they lacked a proper introduction to be able to have them make proper sense. Sure, things were explained in the end, but it was too little too late for me.

The overdose of POV switches and seemingly unrelated POVs in between the more interesting chapters made it a lot harder to find the motivation to keep reading. In fact, I caught myself starting to skimread well before the halfway mark, and I'm surprised I even made it to the end... This was probably mostly due to the fact that I wanted to know how things would end. And sure, the way the case was wrapped up was solid, but what is a good ending if you don't enjoy the journey getting there?

As a whole, sadly The Wolf ended up being a bit of a dud for me. I did enjoy the rest of the series, so it might just have been the reading slump and my fickle reading mood acting up again... Either way, I would personally recommend sticking with the other books of this series instead.

You have no idea how excited I was to see this come up on the publication list, I've never requested a book so fast!
Having read the previous three Munch and Kruger books in publication order, I was a bit confused at first to read that Mia and Holger were meeting for the first time in this book. As soon as I realised The Wolf is a prequel, everything made sense and I settled in for the ride! As with Bjork's previous books, this is police procedure heavy, and very detailed - if you like The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, this is the series for you!
I found the huge cast of characters and their place in the story hard to keep up with at times but trusted it would all come together in the end, and I wasn't disappointed. The pace is insane and I constantly wondered if I'd missed a clue, but there are no red herrings here, everything is relevant. Despite the subject matter, this was a joy to read and I can't wait for the next installment!

This is the fourth in the Norwegian Munch/Kruger series but can be read just as well as a stand-alone. Two eleven year old boys are discovered dead in a forest near Oslo but from the way they have been posed it is as if the murderer has staged the scene for a purpose. This is reminiscent of another similar unsolved case of two young boys found dead in Sweden years earlier.
Detective Holger Munch enlists the help of Mia Kruger and a Swedish profiler to look at the photos of the crime scenes and this sets them on the path of trying to discover the killer. Bjork uses the forest to create a menacing atmosphere and Mia’s impulsive nature in taking action without a thought for the consequences puts her in danger which creates tense moments in the narrative.
I love the way Bjork constructs his novels by ending each chapter leaving you wanting to know what happens next but the next chapter takes you to a different place and character. This ensures a gripping story which in this case is definitely one of the best crime books I’ve read this year.
Thank you to the publishers for the ARC.

Hmmm..

This was ok but not the best crime book I’ve read. The overall plot was good and is the reason I didn’t DNF. The execution needs some work.

It was very chaotic and a lot of the time I was confused as to what on earth was going on, especially in chapter 81 where it switched POV multiple times with no page break or indication.

There was also a lot of info dump that wasn’t relevant to the plot at all. Almost like the author tried to bulk it out when it really didn’t need it.

When the actual reveal happens it’s really sudden and over with quickly.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC but I don’t think I’ll read this author again.

I've just finished this book and wow is an understatement!! The characters were interesting and the plot moved at quite a speed. I had guessed someone wasn't who they pretended to be, but the actual murderer was someone in the book I hadn't guessed. A book to read if you haven't got plans, as I don't think I've moved since I started it!!

Holger Munch is back, in what is actually a prequel to the previous books. This book shows the start of the Munch/Mia Kruger partnership and can be read as a stand alone crime thriller if you haven't read the other books.
This time Munch is tasked with solving the murders of two young boys in Norway. It becomes apparent that these murders replicate the murders of two similar young boys in Sweden, 8 years previously.
I love the way Samuel Bjork introduces a wide range of characters through different chapters. It gets you thinking and over time their relevance to the story is revealed.
I loved this book as much as I loved the three other books in this series.