Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of The Tenant!

Overall I found this book to be just ok. While there were some minor twists nothing really jumped out at me and really shocked me, which is what I look for in a good thriller/mystery. This story is about Julie Stender who ends up the victim of a gruesome murder, which bares a striking resemblance to her landlord, Esther’s unfinished murder mystery novel. Detectives Jeppe and Anette along with a few other colleagues are assigned the case and for the most part keep hitting dead ends. While I did read the book rather quickly, I kept finding myself wanting more excitement or a bigger twist and it just didn’t come. I also found it a little difficult to read some of the dialogue specific to Denmark.

Danish mysteries are not often published for american readers. I am happy to report that being a major fan of thrillers I was delighted to read this one. There are some typos that need to be addressed but the characters and plot lines were both well drawn. Jeppe, the main protagonist, was a sympathetic police officer whose life was devastated by divorce. He struggled to solve the multiple murders and come to terms with his own loss. Overall, I recommend this book to fellow detective fiction lovers. Copenhagen makes for an interesting backdrop to the novel.

I'm not sure why I'm drawn to Scandinavian crime fiction, but this was a great one! Jeppe and Anette are detectives who are called to the scene of a murdered young woman, Julie who has odd markings on her face and has been brutally killed. And it appears the woman who owns the house she's been living in is writing a book about a crime very similar to this. What's the connection? All I can say is it's multi-layered and has many suspects--all of whom play a role in this novel to some extent. I almost needed to take notes until I just decided to immerse myself in the drama and let it play out. It was incredibly satisfying and I hope there's a sequel as the detectives were well-drawn and so very human!

I am purposely sparing any details of this tantalizing book to avoid spoilers. It’s a book that begs to be read. An absolutely fabulous mystery, told in the spare yet delicious style of the best Scandinavian writers, The Tenant weaves a gruesome tale of seemingly senseless murders with a despicable, debased, and virtually inhuman, backstory..

Every character in this book, even those dead by the time we meet them, leaps off the page and lands firmly in the reader’s face. They are simply brilliant, those who are good and those who are evil . Even the characters who play the smallest of roles in the hunt for a depraved killer who carves up the victims’ faces, apparently just for the fun of it, sing in the harmonious chorus that makes up this story.

And, thankfully, The Tenant is not solely death. In the surface, a brutal and mystifying crime is solved. But at its core, the story is about life - what it means to be truly alive; to hit rock bottom and then climb back up into the light; to experience the wealth of feelings that define our essential humanity. To create this core of caring humanity and humility entwined in this dark and dangerous tale is the mark of an exceptional writer. I look forward to reading more by this gifted author.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley.

Copenhagen detectives Jeppe Korner and Anette Werner have been assigned the bizarre murder of a woman who has had a series of lines cut into her face. They become very interested in Julie’s landlady, Esther, famous for loud parties and her ambition to become a writer. In fact, Julie has made in appearance in Esther’s unfinished novel…as a murder victim. Is the crime that simple to solve? Was Julie’s death a literally experiment or is there something else at work? This work of Nordic Noir will be popular with fans of the genre