This book will appeal to the fans of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo or really any of the "Swedish Noir" crime/thrillers that have been put out since. This is the 7th in a series, so if your patrons find they really like it, you may find you'll have to get the first 6 for them, too! The novel is translated from Swedish and I'm not sure if it's the translation or the author's style, but the third person, sort of omniscient viewpoint is odd - for a while, then it fades into the background without notice. The story is one of a nearly supernaturally smart villan (similar to Lisbeth in the Dragon Tattoo books, in my opinion) who is tormenting the series' detective, Jonna Linna, as he kills his way through the people that Joona loves. It's fast paced, well plotted and interesting. Sometimes gory, but also with characters that you learn to relate to and root for quickly. It's a thriller that might set some to worry about whether their doors are locked, but for your patrons that like this sort of thing, it's a good bet!
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This is a sequel to a book I have not read so there is a back story I did not know. Nevertheless, this is a suspenseful story with well-drawn characters. Even plotting and a great ending.

Is "Lazarus" the kind of book you want to be reading during a pandemic? It's dark, it's deep, it's twisty. You will not be able to stop reading. Are you in the space?

So if you are in the "Yep, I'm up for this" camp, this novel will definitely take you out of the current mayhem and fully involve you in another.

Superintendent Joona Linna of the Swedish National Crime Division has been tormented by Jurek Walter, a genius of horror, who punishes his victims by destroying those closest to them. Trying carefully not to spoil the earlier novels for new readers, Walter is believed to have been dispatched by Joona's colleague Saga Bauer when the skull of Joona's wife is found in a murder victim's freezer.

Saga is sure Walter is dead--she shot him and saw the body. But Joona believes that he is alive and has a new pattern. His number one priority is to keep his college student daughter safe.

"Lazarus" is one of the most satisfying Joona books, and that's saying something. The psychological exploration of the criminal mind is riveting and accessible, Joona and Saga are deep characters with complex relationships with others, fully human and achiching fallible. You can read this novel as a stand-alone, but I recommend new readers start with "The Hypnotist" to fully experience the arc of Joona's story. Kudos to the translator as well for smooth, natural reading text!

~~Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader