Patrik and Erica have 3 children and is a True Crime Author but at the moment seems to have writers block and Patrik is a Detective with the Tanumshede police department in Fjallbacka where his boss is having a melt down and they live in this small coastal Island town where everybody knows who's who and on the whole a very friendly place to live.
Rolfe Stenklo is a re-knowned photographer and is putting on a show and while in his gallery the night before putting out is photographs in order he is brutally murdered.
The Baur family have a house in the area and are having their Golden Wedding Anniversary so, many people are invited, included Patrik and Erica.
Patrik has been called to the murder of Rolfe who everybody knows so hush hush at that moment but Patrik has been told to take over the running of the case.
As this is a small community people when they do find out it was Rolfe are very upset and want to give the police as much co-operation as they can.
Now this story has 2 different time-lines 1980 and the present day, and it looks like Rolfe was doing his story from 1980 in Stockholm, and a murder at that time that was unsolved so Erica decided she will have a look at it and see if she can work it out years later.
Not long before they are some more killings and the small island community is in meltdown, has this got something to do with 1980?
Erica has decided to write about this crime that took place in 1980 thus putting herself in danger, so a cliff-hanger there and will there be more novels from this gifted author?
I would like to thank HarperCollins and NetGalley for an ARC copy but that has no way influenced my review.

2 stars mean "it was ok". Just okay.
This book starts slowly, the first dead body appears at about 12% of the book. Later on, we have another murder scene. Before, meanwhile, and after there is a lot, A LOT, of talk, talk, and talk...
Which is in most cases unnecessary, these dialogues and scenes rarely add anything of importance to the story. I like Lackbergs writing style, so I initially enjoyed it, but after a while, I started losing my patience. Honestly, this book is well over 400 pages long and we could cut out about half of it without damaging the story.
Also, there are a lot of characters in this book. They all are connected and related somehow to each other, they all have complicated lives, which I presume we could read in previous books in this series. Now, I have read the first two books and I remember some of the characters, and yet at times, it is hard to keep track of them all. I can imagine how a new reader must be feeling, totally lost.
Anyway, there are some other issues here:
- is this still a crime novel? debatable
- white and black people/lives/dilemmas
- politically correct preaching about the LGBT community

Nonetheless, when I see the next book by Camilla, I will surely give it a try.

I have read some of Camilla Lackberg's previous books and enjoyed them all.

This one is a little bit of a slow burner, so be patient! There are quite a few characters that you need to keep in order as well as the time, as the book goes between 1980 and the present.

The book starts in Fjallbacka during anniversary celebrations for Henning Bauer, a famous author, and his wealthy wife Elisabeth, The following day a renowned photographer is found murdered and Patrik is investigating. A few days later, a tragedy hits the Bauer family. Then Patrik's wife becomes interested a in murder case from 1980, is the past tied to these cases somehow?

Loads of twists and did not see the end coming, highly recommended

"There was something about families – that fine line between love and hatred. Functionality and dysfunctionality. Feelings that were so close together could easily be turned on their heads."

When a world-famous photographer is murdered shortly before his mysterious latest exhibition goes up, Detective Patrik Hedstrom is assigned the case. Why had the man skipped his best friends' fiftieth wedding anniversary party? What was the photograph called 'Guilt' supposed to be about?

Forty years earlier, a glamorous and gentle trans woman, Lola, and her young daughter are murdered in an arson attack. They were close friends with the photographer who was killed, as well as a bunch of other up-and-coming artists and writers. Now, true crime author Erica Falcke decides this will be the topic of her next book.

But could these two cases, decades apart, somehow be connected? When the body count increases, Patrik realises he needs to find answers, soon, otherwise, there will only be more bloodshed.

I really enjoyed this latest Camilla Lackberg crime thriller. I thought she wrote with care and sensitivity about the trans community and what it would have been like to live as a trans person in the 1980s in Stockholm. Lola is a beautifully fleshed-out character, not just a caricature. I feel like the author has researched the community and didn't write out of ignorance – she did due diligence. I wished I could have met Lola – she seemed so real and like such an incredible person to know.

A crime novel that is engaging and has a lot of heart.

This is the 11th book in the Patrik Hedström series (though why they call it his series I’m not sure as it’s mostly about his wife). Rolf Stenklo is a famous photographer who is preparing an exhibition. He’s part of a group of artistic, literary friends, 2 of whom are celebrating their anniversary with a massive party. After the party, Rolf is found dead, starting a chain of murders which seem linked to an unsolved mystery regarding the death of a trans woman many years before.
I don’t think you’d need to have read the previous books to enjoy this, but there is something really comforting about catching up with a cast of familiar characters. Patrik and Erica have a lot going on in their personal lives as usual and the book gives them a bit of a challenge to be faves in book 12.
I love the setting of these books, and the glimpse into the world of some rich island dwellers in Sweden is fascinating. I did guess who the killer was, but it’s clever, and well-plotted.
I’ll look forward to the next book in the series.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

A dark and atmospheric read, like most Scandinavian murder mysteries - it’s nicknamed Scandi-noir for good reason! I’ve not read many of Camilla Lackberg’s books, but what I have read, I’ve found very engaging, with well-drawn characters and really nicely plotted and satisfying murder resolutions. Like most translations, the nuances of the language get a bit lost, and sometimes the lack of description feels a bit of a cheat, but overall, it’s a strong read, engaging and kept me reading steadily, which was great after a too-long period of a reading slump. Really recommended to anyone who likes good characters and police procedurals with a dark edge. Not a thriller, but just skating on the edge.

In this book, Patrik Hedstrom, a detective on the Fjallbacka police force, investigates the death of several people surrounding the author Henning Bauer and his wife Elisabeth. Patrik’s wife Erica is a true-crime writer, and decides to do some digging into the background of Henning , thinking of her next book. As she uncovers information, she realises it may be connected to her husband’s investigation. How are the murders connected, and why?

Thoroughly enjoyed it.

This was my first Camilla Lackberg novel and I thoroughly enjoyed my introduction into the world of Detective Patrik Hedström and his wife Erica. At first it didn’t grab me. I couldn’t remember all of the characters and how they all related to each other at the party. Henning and Elizabeth Bauer are celebrating their wedding anniversary with family and friends, but sprinkled amongst the celebrations the author places little hints of menace or disquiet. As Henning’s son Rikard stands to make a speech we realise all is not well in their relationship. Even worse the couple’s oldest friend Rolf has declined to come, but is over in the gallery organising the photos for his exhibition with an ominous final pair entitled ‘innocence’ and ‘guilt’. Old secrets are stirring and when Rolf is found dead, killed by a nail gun, Patrik has to look at who had something against him. His wife Vivian is shocked and devastated, especially since she was partying the night away. Could there be a link to his exhibition? Or was there something to uncover at Blanche, the club that the friends owned together? Then the next day, when a terrible discovery is made on the Bauer’s private island the pressure mounts on Patrik to find out who could have committed such a sickening crime. Meanwhile his wife Erica has a link to the crime through Louise, Henning’s daughter-in- law. Erica finds herself drawn to a certain aspect of the crimes, through Rolf’s photographs which appear to have featured women in the transgender community. It seems that many years ago the group were linked to another terrible murder.

The author has placed Lola’s narrative in sections throughout the main story. At first I was completely confused as I read about a little girl called P’tite and her daddy Lola. I honestly did look twice to see if it was a mistake, Lola is a woman but her daughter calls her daddy. P’tite isn’t confused or concerned as people might expect, she’s simply accepting of the fact that her daddy is a transgender woman. Lola works in a club at night and there she met Rolf, with whom she built up a friendship. Nights out often ended up at Lola’s flat, with P’tite asleep in bed and the group playing music in the kitchen. Through her narration we know that Lola’s little girl is her absolute world. The only other thing that’s precious to her are her notebooks, that she carries with her and is always writing in any spare moments she gets. I was really interested in Lola’s story, much like Erica, I sensed there was a lot more to her story that would reveal itself. However, we do know that Lola was killed in a fire along with her daughter who was found locked in a trunk. Erica starts to do some research, knowing that she must be careful to stay away from Patrick’s investigation but determined to find out why Lola met such a terrible death. As she starts to ask questions, strange anomalies come to light. The post-mortem shows that Lola had no smoke in her lungs, meaning something or someone killed her before the fire started. Sadly, the child found in the trunk did die of smoke inhalation. However, Erica does uncover something that changes absolutely everything, from the historic crime to Patrik’s investigation. Even worse it might place her in terrible danger.

I thought the author was brilliant in the way she slowly pulled apart this previously solid group of friends and family. There were professional jealousies with Henning about to be announced as the winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. His sons Peter and Rikard couldn’t be less alike. We hear Rikard discussing with his partner that they’ll be able to get money out of Elizabeth still, despite his father cutting him off. His contempt for his parents is uncomfortable to listen to and it would be easy to imagine him committing the crimes. Peter is more traditional and stands on his own two feet. It hasn’t been easy to be a committed father since the death of his first wife Cecily. Thankfully Louise came along and carefully supported him and the boys. In fact she made herself so indispensable they are now married. The team come across rumours of one of their group, Ole, touching young women inappropriately at Blanche and pay offs having to be made. All the group are well known in their field and one of them sits on the Nobel committee, so one sniff of scandal could completely change their status. With the Bauers wealthy enough for a home on a private island it isn’t just saving their status as artists and writers, it’s preserving their wealth too.

There are very difficult subjects in the novel, dealt with sensitively and with depth. Lola’s experience of transphobia is awful. Her family only see her as Lars and won’t accept Lola at all. In fact her sister visits and makes her position clear, but making the threat that she could let child services know that P’tite lives in such an unconventional situation. This is a rather self-serving threat as she wants the little girl for herself. While Lola is accepted in her group of friends, not everyone feels the same way and the incident with a group of teenage boys outside the club is sickening and terrifying. I wasn’t sure whether she’d been killed in a similar situation or whether her killer was someone closer to home. I felt that Lola had more talent, generosity and integrity than all of her friends put together. Her sections of the book drew me in more than anything else, so I kept reading because I had to find out what happened to her. In this way I felt a kinship with Erica, who’s also compelled to follow Lola’s trail. Probably because I’m an aspiring writer, I was fascinated by her process even though I was scared for her as she started to unravel events. For light relief I loved the sections where Erika’s in-laws decide to redecorate her house while she’s away researching and Patrik is caught up in the investigation. I was inwardly cringing at the archway and the salmon pink kitchen. This is an engaging novel that compels you to keep reading, with a maze of connections and some delicious twists towards the end.

As a family turns up to celebrate the golden wedding anniversary, well-known photographer Rolf is murdered at the site of his latest exhibition. Days later Henning and Elisabeth's son and his children are murdered on the family island. For detective Patrik Hedstrom the cases are linked but it is his wife, Erika, who discovers that the antecedents go back forty years.
I do like Lackberg's novels, they are not too dark and are very readable. this is no exception. What really pleases is that there is a theme about acceptance and an exploration of the prejudiced views of Swedish society towards difference back in the 1980s which is not what would necessarily be considered today.

When detective Patrik and crime-writer wife Erica are invited to celebrate the wedding anniversary of friends Henning and Elisabeth Bauer, they have no idea how events will unfold. The murder of photographer Rolf keeps the couple busy as Patrik investigates his death, whilst Erica explores the cold-case of the deaths of transgender woman, Lola and her daughter P’tite. Quickly the reader is brought into the world of the exclusive Blanche Club and the group of creative individuals at its centre that run it and keep its secrets.

I loved the isolated and wild vibe of this book, especially being predominantly based on a remote Swedish island. I found the plot easy to engage with but initially struggled with the style as I found scenes within chapters flowed into one another and I had to go back and read again. I eventually got used to it and really enjoyed the characters and themes. The murky nature of the creative elite and the theme of trans rights were really interesting. There were quite a lot of characters, and I felt like I had to keep reminding myself of who was who. I particularly liked Patrik and Erica as down to earth and relatable characters, and I really loved the relationship between Lola and P’tite.

This was my first Scandi crime read. I don’t feel like I can compare to others in the genre but I really enjoyed it and would recommend for an atmospheric and complex crime read.

I've read all of the previous books in this series so was delighted when I saw this book was being released, it's been far too long since the last one. Well crafted plot and hugely engaging characters whose stories I've become so invested in over the years. Fantastic read.

Having read other novels in the Erica Falck series and enjoyed them, I was looking forward to this latest instalment. Detective Patrick Hedström is called in to investigate the murder of a renowned photographer in his gallery. This is followed by another gruesome murder in the same community. Meanwhile, Erica, his wife is investigating a true crime for her next published work. The story is well plotted and although part of a series, still works as a stand-alone novel.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for letting me read an advance copy.

Superlative Series..
The eleventh outing in the Patrik Hedstrom series arrives with more drama and investigative prowess from the duo, Patrik and Erica. Whilst Patrik investigates, Erica realises that her book research may well be connected to his case. As ever, hugely atmospheric with a well imagined backdrop and sense of time and place, a deftly drawn cast of characters and a solid and immersive mystery at its very heart. A worthy addition to a superlative series.

I’ve read all of the books in this series but struggled to settle into this one. The book is translated from Swedish and I found the translation a bit clunky? That said the story is good and the characters remain interesting.

I did struggle at the beginning of the book to get my head round who was who with the characters. The more you read the book it clicks into place, and I particularly liked the time lines in the story. Full of twists among the characters which was absorbing and found the book hard to put down. A great read.

Intricately plotted,meticulously planned..A slow burn but what an ending! This author' is always a great read.

The cuckoo

This was my first Camilla Läckeberg book and while it took a little effort to get into at the beginning with all the different characters, I loved reading it. And despite starting the Fjällbacka series on the eleventh book I really enjoyed getting to know all the characters and their relations to each other.

After a murder shocks the small community in the coastal town of Fjällbacka, police detective Patrik must investigate and try to catch a murderer, while his wife the true-crime novelist Erica tries to uncover the unsolved murder of someone from the murder-victim’s past.
The writing is engaging and rich and the dual storylines (one past and one present) give an interesting angle to the story as Patrik and Erica tries to uncover the truth. While the ending was perhaps a little predictive to some, I did not solve the case until it was all resolved in the end, there are plenty of twists and turns to throw you off. We also get a very good insight into the private lives of the investigators and while some might find this to be unnecessary, I quite enjoy it, and in this case I’d say it gave the story more depth.

There are not a lot of gruesome details so I’d say this is safe to read if you want a thriller that captures you, but you don’t like too much carnage. It’s more of a murder mystery, which I love and I now want to read all the other books in the series.

Thanks to HarperCollins for an ARC via NetGalley. I received a free digital copy of this book, however, my thought and opinions are my own, and in no way influenced by receiving a copy.

A twisty, suspenseful tale told in 2 timelines, the present day and flash backs to 1980. This is an excellently crafted psychological thriller, with a dark and twisty whodunnit theme. Secrets, twists and turns, they are all here in this engrossing read. Although The Cuckoo starts slowly and has a large list of characters, I was soon intrigued enough to keep reading. Well written, this story is full of secrets, lies and self-preservation. The characters are interesting, well developed and richly drawn in this intriguing novel. I especially enjoyed the lead characters Patrik Hedstrom and Erica Falck and her sister Anna. I didn’t realise this was #11 in a series of books with Hedstrom/Falck. I will say that I think readers will enjoy it as a stand-alone even without reading the previous novels, although they are now on my ‘to read list’. The characters were realistic, complex, well developed and richly drawn in this tense, addictive read. Extremely entertaining and suspenseful. Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley UK for the ARC.

I have never previously read any of Camilla Lackberg's novels, although I watch plenty of Scandi-noir TV shows. Despite missing the background of the repeating characters I found the whole story engrossing. The characters and locations are wonderfully well presented and the plot is sufficiently convoluted to keep the reader (mostly) in the dark. A superior thriller in a great setting.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I found this an odd book to be honest. The main storyline, the murder of a photographer on the eve of a grand exhibition, proved to be clever and shocking. It was one of those stories where, instead of offering up a host of possible suspects that you think could do it even with some doubts, I found myself not really thinking anyone would have committed the crime. The reveal was intense and gripping, it wrapped up many threads and despite feeling hollow and unsatisfactory in some aspects it also managed to be as complete and satisfactory as I wanted. It was a great example that truth is the only real justice that exists. In that regard it felt an important story, one with weight and substance.

But there's a but. A tricky one at that, because for much of the book something just felt off. I think my issue is this felt too big a story to belong in a longer series. Don't get me wrong, the series itself is fine, I haven't read all of the books in it but that's never been an issue, I have a random scattering and they've always been accessible as standalones with a little nice thread to give a bigger story as and when, the whole thing is well put together in that regard. But in this book the main plot felt slightly diluted by the presence of the established characters and structure. That main plot had something that could've been truly special, Läckberg showed she could do it justice with the conclusion, but at times the path there felt weighed down by the obligation of the recurring characters' storylines. It was a small thing really, and it didn't ruin the story, but for much of the book I felt there was a spark missing. It remains a very good story, quite an important one too, but I find my enjoyment tainted slightly by the sense that this showed it could be even more. Still worth a read, either as a standalone or to continue the series, just it falls fractionally short of its potential.

This is a great plot and so well planned that I got distracted and got the wrong culprit!!!! It was a real shock at the end which is obviously what Camilla wanted and planned for!!!
The characters were very complex and as you are drip fed their lives a bit at a time, you are absolutely so engrossed in it, that the end suddenly arrives!!!
I loved it! I look forward to more in the future!
Many thanks to Harper Collins Uk for the opportunity to read this arc copy for review consideration via Netgalley.
#Netgalley, #HarperCollinsUk, #Lackburg.