The Talented Mr. Varg is the perfect book to read if you wish to unwind from all the stresses and difficulties of life. It is a gentle mystery novel where several smallish cases are solved by a policeman from a “sensitive crime” unit in Sweden. It is completely different from most crime novels set in Scandinavia. It is more philosophical and more hopeful. It feels as if the main character Ulf Varg was real, and more people acted like him, the world would be a better place.

The Talented Mr. Varg (A Detective Varg Novel #2) by Alexander McCall Smith
Publication Date: April 28, 2020 - Out Now!

Description from NetGalley...
“The Department of Sensitive Crimes, renowned for taking on the most obscure and irrelevant cases, is always prepared to take on an investigation, no matter how complex. So when the girlfriend of an infamous author approaches Ulf Varg, the department's lead detective, and insists her bad-boy beau is being blackmailed, Ulf is determined to help. It's rather difficult to determine what skeletons hide in the hard-living Lothario's closet, though. And while his fellow Swedes are notoriously tolerant...well, there are limits.
    
The case requires all of Ulf's concentration, but he finds himself distracted by his ongoing attraction to his coworker, Anna, whose fears about her husband's fidelity are cauing a strain on her marriage. When Ulf is also tasked with looking into a group of dealers exporting wolves that seem more canis familiaris than canis lupus, it will require all of his team's investigative instincts and dogged persistence to put these matters to bed.”

Thank you to @NetGalley @penguinrandomhouseca @knopfca for the digital ARC in return for my honest review.

My thoughts...
So, this is the first time ever that I read a second book without reading the first! I wanted to see whether it can be a stand-alone. It can. What I like about AMS’ style is there doesn’t seem to be a lot of action. But, what he gives us is a lot of action in our minds. If you like his style of writing, then you will like this. The story’s pace, similar to his other stories, happens in a relaxed pace, but filled with sharp wit, interesting dialogues and thought-provoking themes. Don’t be disappointed that there are no “real crimes” involved. Ulf is an interesting character, as you don’t quite know if he is talented or not. And how sweet is it that his companion is a lip-reading deaf dog. It’s a charming book that makes the reader feel quite involved in the characters’ conversations. AMS, for the most part, is an auto-buy author for me. I have truly enjoyed his other series and will read this series as well.

The second book in the Department of Sensitive Crimes series is fantastic! I really enjoy Alexander McCall Smith. and with "The Talented Mr. Varg" he does not disappoint. Main character, Ulf Varg of the Criminal Investigation Authority for the city of Malmo, Sweden, investigates both personal and professional cases. This book was a delightful journey. It was meandering and unexpected and funny. I am looking forward to more from Ulf Varg and his team.

McCall Smith's books always bring about interesting feelings for me. They're fantastic, don't get me wrong, but there's also something oddly... Normal about them. The character of Varg is the linchpin of the entire operation, and I'm not going to say that's altogether a bad thing. Outside of him being eccentric, there really isn't much to these books, but that's what makes them so interesting and why I decided to pick up the second.

The plot of this one hits a few different, and odd, marks for me. It's fun, and the writing style very much helps convey that these are just very normal circumstances that are for some reason being brought into question. The only thing that hit me hard was the subplot with Anna, she became one of my favourites in the first book and I felt so badly for her the entire time. That whole part, to me, was the most impactful and showed the true colours of Varg in the end.

Ultimately, I have to say if you like McCall Smith's writing style then you'll probably like this, especially if you liked the first. Honestly, I'd even say I liked this more than the first. The series is starting to get some actual development, I'm curious to see if there's more to it.

I like this series, the characters are interesting and relatable; McCall Smith is a lovely writer. The protagonist, Varg, is faced with several new dilemmas in this book, and manages to puzzle them out in his own philosophical way. A nice read for a rainy weekend afternoon. 4.5 out of 5

Alexander McCall Smith does not disappoint with the second installment in this delightful series featuring Ulf Varg a detective in the sensitive crimes department in Sweden. This book was a perfect read during the pandemic full of humor and charm. Alexander McCall Smith is one of my favorite authors and this new series is full of all the wisdom and wit that Alexander McCall Smith's fan love. Highly recommended!!!

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for this second book in the Detective Varg series. Knowing that this is Alexander McCall Smith’s take on Swedish crime stories, you will not expect dark Scandinavia-Noir, but a charming and witty story. This features a small unit of detectives who are given cases thought to be of little importance. Much of their workload is filling out requisitions and reports designed to confound them.

In this case, there are a couple of cases of suspected blackmail, and dogs exported under the fraudulent designation as wolves. There is also the surveillance of a husband thought to be having an affair and a Gypsy accused of brawling with a clergyman. These cases do not always end in arrests or legal justice because the kind, good Detective Varg builds trust and has the ability to understand what really is behind reports of immoral or criminal behaviour. He is foremost in his dedication to mercy and forgiveness.

Varg is a moral, sensitive man who belongs in a Sensitive Crimes unit. He lives with his deaf dog that has learned to lip read. He is in love with a married colleague, Anna, but his moral code prevents him from showing it. He carries guilty feelings about an unexpected gift he received which might be considered a bribe, and a dog leash requisitioned from the police department by mistake. He is polite and sympathetic to a very annoying colleague who talks incessantly about trivial matters, and who is avoided by the others.

As in most of the author’s series, there is a quiet philosophy about life in the many conversations and much thought-provoking dialogue. I would have preferred the cases had been positioned more evenly throughout the book instead of investigating and resolving them towards the end.

I would read a further book in the Detective Varg series. I am a big fan of his 10 Scotland Street Series and The Ladies’ Number 1 Detective Agency. Any fan of these series should enjoy the delightful stories of Detective Varg, his fellow workers and their very unusual cases.