Some years ago, Sebastian Bergman helped to catch a serial killer. Now Edward Hinde is "back" although the man himself is in prison so it must be a copycat. Meanwhile, Bergman's life is not going well and he needs this investigation to get him back on track. However, it seems that Hinde has bigger plans for him than he can possibly imagine.

I didn't realise that this was the second book in the series and, although it didn't really detract from my enjoyment of it, if I'd known I would have liked to read the first one first. Nevertheless, "The Man who watched Women" stands alone well and I did very much enjoy it.

Sebastian Bergman is well portrayed as a character who is most definitely fraying at the edges. He is really the central character, but the supporting cast of characters are also very well rounded and I did enjoy reading about all of the police personnel working on the case (although I did find Ellinor exceedingly grating).

This is more of a character driven thriller than a procedural and I think that part of it worked well. There were some back stories that I didn't think were that relevant but they didn't detract from my enjoyment overall and I would definitely go back to read the first one on the back of this one.

An enjoyable thriller if you want the chase without deep thought!

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

As a heatwave blazes in Stockholm, a series of women are found brutally murdered and the Criminal Investigation Department is getting nowhere. The murders bear all the hallmarks of Edward Hinde, the serial killer jailed by psychological profiler Sebastian Bergman fifteen years earlier.
Sebastian desperately needs some order in his chaotic life. The revelation that he has a daughter, Vanja, could provide this longed-for stability. But should he tell her the truth and risk destroying her life and career?
Forcing his way into the investigation, Sebastian soon learns that the murders are connected to him and that no one around him is safe. Including Vanja.

This is the second book in the Sebastian Bergman series. I think reading the first book would have been beneficial in regards to character development, but certainly isn't crucial as far as the plot goes. I am going to go back and read the first novel soon enough.

You can tell from the first few chapters that these authors are script-writers for TV - they get pacing, they get plotting and understand that too many words are boring. Which is an odd thing to say about a 520+ page book. However, all the words have a place and a point. There is really nothing about the style of writing to complain about. I really enjoyed that aspect of the story.

The plot itself I found to be a little familiar - "a series of murders are happening and they look like the work of a killer the MC put in jail years ago. Things develop along the way until the detectives own family are in harm's way." Nothing new there and I felt like that was a little disappointing.

Finally, though, I have to say that the ending is also a let-down. There has been a fascination for a few years now to have "cliffhanger" endings, where the plot/s never really seem to get closed, all for the sake of selling the next book. It is frustrating and I get irritated by it. This book did just that same thing. Lost marks for doing it. Just finish the story and then move onto the next one - cliffhanger endings are just a cheap way out of actually resolving plots...

Still, if you like Nordic crime mysteries, then this one will probably suit you perfectly.


Paul
ARH

A very dark read but well worth the time to read. It's compelling, tense and scary!