I’m not sure why I waited so long to read this one, but I’m glad that I finally did. This was full of twists and turns and kept me on my toes until the very end. It kept me guessing throughout. I like how all the characters became intertwined with one another, giving any of them a reason to want to kill Julie. I like when you can’t guess the ending of a thriller because the mystery is so well woven and you are constantly changing your mind about who the killer could be. I know that some people don’t like reading thrillers from the point of a detective, but I actually really enjoy that perspective. So if you like detective thrillers, this is a perfect book for you!

Unfortunately, this book just did not work for me. I couldn’t get into it, therefore I can’t really give an accurate review. I will say, the writing is good.

I feel like this is a generous rating, but there wasn't anything wrong with this book, it just failed to get any kind of emotion out of me. I understand how the long winded descriptions lead to it being more atmospheric, but I felt they were unnecessary at times. The reveal was anticlimactic and convoluted; I just wanted something more exciting.

This book was okay. I finished it. It was just okay. I wouldn't read it again. I was able to figure it out pretty quickly.

I received an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This one started with a bang and developed a nice momentum early on. However, it started lagging somewhat towards the end. The last 10%, after the mystery was solved, became a little overly sentimental and odd. Some of it was pretty convoluted to begin with. I think some of it had to do with the fact that it was translated from Danish combined with it being an unedited manuscript. I thought using "captivator" instead of "kidnapper" was pretty amusing. It is a word (I looked it up) but I'd never heard it used. It's also a licensed brand name of a bug catcher. Just fyi.

All in all, I'd be interested in reading the inevitable follow-up. The jury's still out on the main detective, though. I kept waiting for him to keel over or have a heart attack, he felt sick and dizzy so much. He seemed a little delicate except for his vigorous sexcapade. As I said, though, I think some of it may be due to bumpy translation.

Actual rating: 3.5 stars

3.5 Engbergs US debut and a good start to a new Nordic series. Although not quite as dark and atmospheric as the usual Nordic offerings, anytime there is a murder, a certain amount of darkness follows. A murder that follows a fictional story being written by the woman who owns the building where her tenant is murdered. Jeppe and Annette are the two main investigators and their relationship is not a lovely, dovey one, but more like a long, married couple, bickering and all. Jeppe is recovering from a personal sorrow that affects his attitude and his libido. I could have done with a little less discussion on that subject.

A slower pace police procedural, but I enjoyed the depth of the storyline. Revelations are perfectly timed, changing the plot in carefully chosen moments. A well done, meticulously plotted offering. Will be waiting for the next.

ArC from Netgalley.

This is a very thrilling and gripping page turner. From the very first page you are hooked! Thank you Katrine for writing such a great book!

A detective police procedural and a psychological thriller tracking down a murder case of the decade. A fast-paced and excellent read where you are captivated from the first page. Full of twists and turns that you won't see coming. Truly entertaining. A great page-turner that will keep you up at night. Thank you to Galley/Scout Press and NetGalley for my review copy. All opinions are my own.

The Tenant by Katrine Engberg was a highly engaging psychological thriller with the perfect amount of twists and dysfunctional characters. Following up on a gruesome murder, two detectives must untangle an intricately constructed history of the both the victim and those closest to her when it seems her murder mirrors the unpublished crime fiction novel her landlord is writing.

In this nordic style mystery, the murder of a woman at an apartment complex sets off a media frenzy and 2 Danish detectives are brought in to investigate. This scenario is fairly typical but murder is rare in Copenhagen. Jeppe, who's got a bit of an issue with pills, and Annette, who I never felt was a fully developed character, have an easy brother-sister like relationship. There was banter but if you enjoy romantic undertones or tension you won't find it with these two. This is a slower type of character-driven mystery in which one by one the other tenants are suspected. which makes it feel a little like a locked room mystery. I had theories and felt the plot was complex enough. There seemed to be something that was lost in the translation for me though. I thought it was strange how Annette talked with exclamation marks all the time and the pacing seemed overly slow throughout. Overall this ended up being just an ok read for me

A gritty crime mystery that is sure to be a hit with all lovers of this genre. Only complaint is that it is a slightly slower burn rather than being super fast-paced.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this novel.

I have read Norwegian and Swedish thrillers before, but this is my first Danish thriller; it did not disappoint! While I did guess the "whodunit" about 3/4 of the way in, there were still plenty of twisty elements on top of it and around it and in between it to hold my interest and keep me reading until the end. I stayed up until 1:30am (on a work night, no less!) to read "just until the next chapter" because I wanted to see what happened next. Before I knew it, I'd finished the entire thing in a single sitting!

This novel is well-written with a good translation and easy to read. Highly recommended, and I look forward to reading more by this author!

The Tenant is a well-written procedural thriller that combines the best aspect of a detective story with a chilling psychological thriller.
I'm a Nordic Noir newbie, and Engberg gave me the perfect introduction to have me wanting more. The plot moved quickly, the characters were full of nuance, and there were surprises at every turn.
This is a fun and smart thriller and definitely deserves the praise it's receiving.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

The Tenant is a police procedural murder mystery. I liked the idea of the story, the interactions between the police officers, some of the characters and the fact that I could not easily figure out who did it. I disliked the pace because it was too slow, and my attention wandered. The story was confusing at times, and in the end, I felt like I was missing something. Overall, this is an average mystery, and I can take it or leave it.

The tenant is an interesting title for this book because there are quite a few to choose from. The characters all had interesting backgrounds and the story ties them together neatly. Mainly, this is a story about an apartment owner and a police detective. Each has a history that adds to the drama within the story. Katrine Engberg developed interesting characters and pulled them together neatly.

It took me a while to get into this book and found it took forever to finish it. It did have good thriller aspects but was overall not my favorite book. The author does have a good writing style though.

I am a huge fan of thrillers, but am also slightly picky, because I want to be 'thrilled.' I enjoy the 'not put downable,' feeling of a good thriller and I definitely experienced it with this novel. Katrine Engberg did a wonderful job interweaving just enough details but with us still wanting details to the very end.

I suggest this for those that like a good thriller.

This book was abysmal. The main problem seems to be a combination of lackluster plot and stilted translation.

Synopsis:

Esther de Laurenti is a retired university professor who has started writing a mystery novel, fancying herself the next Dorothy L. Sayers. She is also a landlord, and has fashioned her fictional murder victim after one of her tenants (and the best landlord of the year award goes to…). When her tenant turns up murdered in real life, the details are shockingly similar to her yet unfinished novel, which she’s only shared via Google Docs with a couple of people in her writing group. Then, the murderer starts writing in the Google Doc (How?! Oh my!), adding details and taunting her.

Two incompetent detectives are on the hunt, Jeppe and Anette – partners who can’t stand each other. We learn some about Anette, but the main focus is on Jeppe who is a mess. He’s freshly divorced, a drug addict, and makes questionable life choices like bleaching his hair platinum blonde and wearing skinny jeans (both at the urging of his best friend who serves no other purpose in the book). Jeppe also seems to feel intense loathing for every woman in his life, except the wife of a murder suspect whom he of course sleeps with. His mother is described as overbearing, his partner Anette as a bulldog with no tact, the murder victim a slut, and Esther a dotty old woman.

Miracle of miracles, they do solve the crime in the end.

Problems:

We’re introduced to a revolving door of character names and physical descriptions, but very little-to-no personality for any of them. I had a hard time remembering who was who, and most of them served no purpose for the plot. Even the main characters were flat. I learned more about Jeppe’s penis than his personality, both of which were unimpressive.

Overall, this is a very dry police procedural with a couple of sex scenes thrown in and some additional fantasizing on the part of Jeppe (in one fantasy the suspect’s wife makes him chili and then they have shower sex. I mean, to each their own I guess, but nothing about that sounds appealing). Because the rest of the book is oh-so-serious and dull, the sex scenes, fantasies, and enthusiastic descriptions of his penis felt contrived. And sleeping with a suspect’s wife – really? Come on. He literally meets her once and then falls into bed with her a couple times only to be crushed when she what? Doesn’t leave her rich husband for the washed up, bleach-blonde addict detective? Okay.

There were a few eye-rolling times where characters would say something along the lines of “what are we – in a crime novel?!” which was so cringey. We get it. This is a crime novel within a crime novel within a crime novel. The characters don’t need to announce it every other chapter.

There’s an over abundance of details throughout that don’t serve the plot in any way. For example, while I’m glad that Anette and Jeppe have “adjustable height desks” at the police station, I’m not sure why I needed to know that unless someone gets murdered on one at some point (they don’t).

The translation is stilted most of the time, and super awkward in places. At one point, the bad guy is described as a “knife murderer” which, while completely accurate, is a weird way to say it. I’m also going to hope the chili and sex reference was just a bad translation, but who knows.

Overall, there were too many characters, none of whom had enough personality to hold a book with such a subpar plot together. The publisher should’ve just titled the book The Google Doc Murders. At least then readers would’ve had a hint at what a dry and contrived book this was going to be.

Took me some time to get into this story but I did end up enjoying the story. I was able to figure who the killer was but the motive did take me by surprise which was nice. I would read another book by this author.

A suspenseful danish mystery that takes you along unexpected paths. Jeppe Korner, the Copenhagen police inspector, is in charge of the investigation, but has personal issues which get in the way of the investigation of a young woman's [the tenant] murder. Well written tale what will keep you guessing who the murderer is and the reason why she is killed. Read and see if you can figure out who did it.