I love Anne Holt. I love Hanne Wilhelmsen. But this book was just so sad to me. I don't particularly like the person that Hanne has become, even though she may be very 'real', and the whole situation with her former partner and best friend, Billy T., was just so incredibly sad to me. The book itself, though not one of her best, was very good. I'd really just like to have something of the old Hanne back. It is she who keeps readers coming back, but when she's become just a shell of her former self, it's almost painful to read the more recent additions to the series.

If you try to avoid spoilers when deciding whether or not to read a book, turn away now, because the blurbs make no secret of informing readers of the ending of this series. Hanne has gone back to work, and has had Henrik (the rather strange looking and tic ridden young detective) assigned to her as her assistant, so the book follows on from the novel set during the Anders Breivik attacks (which are recalled here). Hanne is just as self-absorbed as she has always been, now long confined to a wheelchair. She makes Catherine Cawood (in the TV series, Happy Valley) look like a well brought up young woman, at ease in her social milieu. Hanne doesn't have a social milieu.
The cold case she and Henrik are working on turn out to lie directly in the path of current events, which involve what appear to be Lone Wolf attacks on Oslo, killing and maiming ordinary citizens going about their business. The group claiming responsibility seems not to exist. There are no traces of them online, which is up-to-date anxiety about extremists learning to stay offline. In fact, the book is also sold as 'Offline'.
Signs of the end of a series show in the tying up of loose ends, various. Holt has often been satisfied by arbitrary and unsatisfactory endings to her novels, and this one just stops. The blurb spoilers, however, inform us that this is the next to last volume in the series, so one must hope that it contains the solution to the investigation. Probably, on the 'kill your darlings' principle, she will.

I always enjoy Scandinavian mysteries - and especially Norwegian ones. Anne Holt is one of the best Norwegian writers and it's always a pleasure to read her books. This one was no exception - - and it left me hoping the next one will come SOON!!! I especially liked the introduction of Henrik Holme. What a unique and fascinating character! The narrative was excellent with plenty of threads of mystery to follow!

Waiting impatiently for the next book!

Not my favorite book by this author. Hard to follow. Decided not to finish.,

I highly recommend this book.. It's a mystery novel that is also kinda a spy novel . It also touches on the tension that exist in a modern muti-cultural society.

This is the second book in the Hanne Wilhelmsen series I have read, and I really enjoyed it. This one takes place more than a decade since Hanne was taken out of commission by a bullet. She is now in cold cases and finds herself with a partner that has the same mannerisms and personality as herself, so they tend to get along pretty well. This book has a complex plot that slowly builds, the tension and suspense ratcheting up throughout. Anne Holt has proven once again why she is one of the best Scandinavian authors out there.

I would recommend this to fans of mysteries, thrillers, and Scandinavian authors. I received this as a free ARC from Scribner on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is Book 9 of the series, and I have to admit, not my favorite., Sigh. When you get wrapped up into a series, you want a natural progression of the main character. But in theory the reader wants something they can relate to, that makes sense, and helps to tie up the mystery of the personality of the lead. The books leading up to this one seemed to follow that line, but this one seems to so focus on current issues, that some of what made the series so unique seems to get lost. Hanne is still Hanne, but now she is married, with a child, and she isn't the same. Billy T has come unglued, literally and figuratively, and it is up to Hanen to 'fix' him, as no one else seems to care. In many ways it seems the opposite in tone to the previous book, and that is part of what throws the reader somewhat. It's an interesting read, but to me it was too much, and one I really would recommend to readers of the series only, as otherwise, the new reader might not care so much about the characters, or sub plots. But Holt can craft a book and it will keep the series reader turning pages and wondering. So if you've become a fan of the series, you might not want to miss it.

I would like to thank NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for a review.
It has been eleven years since a bullet put Hanne Wilhelmsen in a wheelchair and ended her career with the police. She is now back and taking on cold cases, primarily working at home on her computer. Her old partner Billy T. has also come back into her life. His son Linus, once an outgoing young man, has become secretive and Billy is afraid he is involved with extremists.

When a bomb explodes at the offices of the National Council for Islam, it starts an investigation that eventually ties into Hanne's cold case involving a missing girl and Billy's fears for his son.

Hannes has always preferred to work on her own. In this, her penultimate story, Anne Holt has partnered her with Henri Holme, a young policeman who also has trouble fitting in. As they work together, their relationship becomes more cordial, bringing out the best in both of them.

Hanne is intelligent and demanding and her investigations are guaranteed to please fans of Scandinavian mysteries.

Very much in the style of Scandinavian crime novels. A good mix of contemporary and common elements, blending the unique realities of each character's story into the overall story. Lots of subtly and clues so that I felt just as involved as the police detectives. While being complex and rich in character and setting, it didn't have any extra prose that distracted. Looking forward to reading more.

I received this book free from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

<i><b>Painful!</b></i>This is a crime and police procedural novel set in Norway. Or maybe it is a melodrama set in Norway. It might be a thriller about Islamic terrorism in Norway. But it could also be a narrative about Norwegian politics, or a comment about the problem of Muslims immigrating into European countries — like Norway. Oh, wait! It is all of the above. Maybe that’s why reading it was such a painful experience for me. The plot moves slowly, and it is difficult to follow.

The book is suffused with Norwegian politics. Perhaps it is because the author, herself, is a politician, herself, but at times it reads like the written version of an American soap opera. The story gets off to a slow start, and by midway, it hasn’t picked up much speed. Detective consultant Hanne Wilhelmsen has begun to work with the Oslo Police Department to solve cold cases. She is a former police detective who was shot in the line of duty and has become confined to a wheelchair. She has been assigned a young, new detective to assist her. They begin to make progress on the case of a seventeen year-old girl who has been missing for eighteen years, but the focus of the story keeps shifting back to the terrorist attacks that have killed and injured many people (primarily Muslims) in Oslo. Also in sharp focus in the story is the state of relations between native Norwegians and Muslim immigrants who are hated by the extreme right wing of Norway’s political activists. For an American reader like me, this became more than a little boring. The plot is way too convoluted. When I put the book down, I found that it was difficult to pick back up again. But your tastes might be different than mine. If you like stories like these, then by all means read this book.

It has been my observation that the best literary works that have been translated into English from the languages in which they were originally written are the ones that have been translated by somebody with writing skills. I’m not sure that was the case with this book. The translation might have been accurate, but the result certainly wasn’t what one would expect in a well-written English-language novel. In many places, the book’s dialogue and narrative seem stilted. A good translation should be indistinguishable from one that was originally written in the language into which it has been subsequently translated. Such translations might be difficult to accomplish, but it can be (and has been) done. It is difficult to believe that the most popular crime writer in Norway wouldn’t have done a better job with this book, unless the fault lies with the translation.

Near the very beginning of the book the author presents us with a brief adjunct to the story by telling us about a racing pigeon that gets attacked and killed by a sparrow hawk. I suppose this is supposed to be some kind of metaphor, but for what is not clear. Then, at about 25% of the way into the book, through the literary device of having the chief of police and a couple of other officials watch a TV presentation by a local leader, we are treated to a long discourse on Islam, and on being a Muslim who has immigrated into Norway. Is isn’t clear why we readers had to know all of this in order to understand the story. I found it to be boring!

By 30% in, the story is more like a melodrama or soap opera than a police procedural and crime novel. We learn more than we care to know about family relationships. We learn in great detail just how incompetent the Norwegian police and military can be. We find out how family ties are more important to some people than the saving of lives, including the lives of children, by telling the truth to prevent a deadly terrorist attack. We are told all sorts of irrelevant facts, such as that Deputy Police Chief Håkon Sand stops suddenly at red traffic lights when he is driving Police Chief Silje Sørensen through Oslo, or that his snuff juice runs down the corners of his mouth when he fails to spit it out when he should. The book appears to have been padded with a lot of irrelevant minutiae. Who cares?

The police in this novel are reminiscent of the Keystone Kops. Even after Chief Sorensen has hired Hanne as a special consultant, and even after Hanne has solved an eighteen year-old cold case in just a few days, Chief Sorensen declines to accept a warning telephone call from her on National Day (May 17th) while marching blissfully into a potential terrorist attack. How stupid can you get? Hire a consultant, and then don’t accept calls from that consultant? Really??

I’m not sure that this novel will have a lot of appeal to most American or Canadian readers. It might be very appealing to Scandinavian readers, but Americans and Canadians just don’t seem to be that fascinated by politics, and certainly we do not have the same Muslim immigration problems in North America that many European countries are currently experiencing.

The pace picks up about three-quarters of the way through the book, but it is still a chaotic plot and the ending is highly unsatisfying. Loose ends abound, and the author makes no attempt to tie them up. I did not enjoy this book, and I would not recommend it to others.

Odd Numbers by Anne Holt

Hanne Wilhelmsen is back working for law enforcement on her own terms. She has agreed to look at cold cases long buried in files from the security of her apartment with only the internet and a young, odd policeman as her assistant. The first case Hanne and Henrik Holme are handed is the disappearance of a 17 year old girl almost 20 years ago.

At the same time Hanne’s ex-partner Billy T. appeals to her for help because his 22 year old son Linus is behaving very suspiciously and Billy is worried the young man may have converted to Islam and become radicalized. Meanwhile, Hanne’s former colleagues Silje Sorensen and Hakon Sand, promoted to Chief of Police and Deputy Police Chief of Oslo, have their own serious situation. Bombs are being set off in the city and the evidence points to local Islamic terrorists. As the body count continues to rise, the racist far right is winning the information war and public opinion is shifting in their direction. As more threats are made, Silje and Hakon are very aware that the biggest celebration in years, the two hundredth anniversary of the Norwegian Constitution with hundreds of thousands of people flooding the capital, is only weeks away.

It is difficult, at first, to keep the three plots straight. As the novel progresses, the pieces begin to fall in place, and the strands start to weave together. Hanne in her wheelchair with her brilliant partner who becomes her legs are the first to notice the pattern. Beginning with an overlooked event in the original case, the severe beating of her boyfriend on the same day the girl vanished, they follow leads that link to Billy T.’s son, and eventually to the possible identities of the terrorists. The question is whether they can bring it all together before hundreds are killed on May 17, National Constitution Day.

This is a taut thriller. The publishers state that this is the penultimate book in the Hanne Wilhelmsen series. It is a fitting curtain-riser to the final act. Highly recommended.

Hanne Wilhelmsen is back home with her family and opening up just a bit. She has recently agreed to work on cold cases from home. Just as she gets her first case an old colleague shows up on her doorstep with problems of his own.. Anne Holt continues to investigate current problems by exploring immigration, terrorism, and right wing extremism in another taut thriller.

Following the snow-bound locked room mystery of 1221, this ninth entry in the Hanne Willhelmsen series is both timely and sad. Hanne has returned to work, consulting for the police but without leaving her self-imposed isolation. Since being shot and disabled her worst qualities have amplified, but her best are brought out as an oddball detective who just doesn't seem to fit in is sent to help her with a cold case, and they bring out the best in one another.

The sad part is that her old friend Billy T is falling apart and she is very unkind to him (for reasons, but still - I wanted to shake them both). A bomb has devastated the city again, this time killing people at a Musliim center, with an unknown radical Islamic group claiming credit. Billy T. believes his estranged son has something to do with it. We know something else is going on and all of the pieces gradually come together. The final scene is both gripping and very unsettling. Given the Anders Breivik terrorist attack, this book attempts to confront both the horror Norwegians feel at mass violence of this kind on their home ground and the racism that fed Breivik's atrocious acts. It must be difficult to write about this; it's brave and necessary.

The arc of this series has been interesting to follow and I look forward to the final volume in the series; that said, I often felt while reading this particular entry that the author was kinder to her main characters.

Thank you.
Enjoyed it.
Will get copies for family and friends.

Anne Holt's books finally have come to where they should have been after 1222. I am sure they probably were in Norwegian, but in English they have been out of order. Now we can cry or laugh as some of the characters have aged, and have taken somethings into their own hands. We have a new character in Henrik which should add something to Anne's story line.

Odd Numbers is the penultimate book in the Hanne Wilhelmsen series and it's a good one.
A bomb explodes in Oslo, killing many and injuring even more. More bombs appear and the city is practically at a standstill. There are no clues to be found, except for tapes delivering the terrorists' messages. The man who spoke in them, however, is found dead and dismembered, making an extremely difficult case practically impossible.
Hanne, in the meantime, is at home and has been for over 11 years. She left the police after being shot and losing the use of her legs. She stays in touch with the world via the Internet. Asked to lead a small Cold Case taskforce she is sent a young policeman to help, a young man who is smart and quite different,making for a perfect pairing of 2 like minded souls.
Billy T makes an appearance in the book too, a rather sad one, but very poignant.
All in all, I really enjoyed the book and can't wait for the final installment of this series, even though I hate to see it end.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

Love Hanne Wilhelmsen series. Certainly hope there is a new book coming because lots of questions were unanswered at the end.
Goodreads

Wonderful classic mystery writer--Her books just keep getting better.