This book was really difficult to get into. A murder at a secluded wedding weekend. A man dies and leaves his brother an amusement park on the brink of bankruptcy. And then a series of interesting events start to happen. Just couldn’t get into the story. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I like reading internationally and figured why not revisit Finland. The first trip with Tuomainen was fun, although Mine was a very, very different book.
This one is practically lighthearted by comparison. Sure, there’s death, there’s crime, but ultimately, it’s one of those uplifting and romantic stories that people seem to like, and Scandinavians, despite their normally rather dour output, seem to do well.
The formula is as follows: take a main character and make him odd not too much just endearingly nerdy or off-beat, show how he’s stuck in life, then put him through a major upheaval. Throw in a cast of quirky side characters and a love interest (with maybe a secret), stir, and simmer.
And thus, you have a tale of a mild-mannered actuary who’s only wish for life is that it should be sensible. He loses his job for being too upright and stick in the mud-like for a hip, modern workplace and simultaneously inherits an adventure park from his free-spirited (and now dead) brother. Reluctantly but dedicatedly, the protagonist throws himself into operating the park and realizes just how elaborate of an inheritance his brother left him, including the demanding and challenging employees and a considerable gambling debt to some rather dangerous individuals.
He resolves to sort it all out through his beloved mathematics. If he can stay alive long enough and if he can sort out his romantic feelings for one of his employees, the artist who may or may not reciprocate.
The book is rather charming, it reads quickly and easily for its length, and entertains considerably. The formula and cheeriness and the overdone romance take something away from the overall reading experience, but it’s fun enough. Thanks Netgalley.

The Rabbit Factor is an odd and entertaining book. Dark humor, quirky characters, and mystery to be solved.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC for an honest review.

To say this is quirky is an understatement. I started and stopped multiple times. I never finished the book. I am sure this has an audience but it just was not for me. I am not posting this to Goodreads as I did not finish. I appreciate the opportunity to read this book.

The Rabbit Factor is a blackly humorous comedy of errors with mystery and a fair bit of slapstick by Antti Tuomainen. Released 15th Nov 2022 by Orenda Books, it's 300 pages and is available in hardcover, paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is one of the weirdest / quirkiest books I've read this year (and having read something shy of 650 books thus far in 2022, it's a pretty wide field). It definitely made a deep impression. It's a fair play mystery and darkly funny action/situation comedy with a fun-house-mirror collection of oddballs who are supposedly working for the protagonist (a truly nerdy hapless actuarial mathematician) in the adventure park (don't call it an amusement park) he inherited from his deceased brother. 

There are aspects of mystery, as mentioned before, some light heist movie vibes (Ocean's 11, but made by a tag team of Joel Cohen and Quentin Tarantino), and a generous portion of The Office. As the book progressed, I confess I became quite worried that the whole was going to melt down into a distressing slag heap of dystopian death and destruction. I was delighted and satisfied with the climax, denouement, and resolution. 

There is some rough language and some graphic descriptions of violence which are integral to the plot and used effectively. 

The English language translation, from the original Finnish, is a thing of beauty. It's seamless and truly doesn't read like it was written in another language (especially Finnish). I don't know how much translators generally get paid, but David Hackston deserves every bit of whatever sum they tossed at him. 

Four stars. Five if you're a fan of movies like Fargo, Twin Peaks, and the like.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

I’ve been intrigued by Antti Tuomainen’s books for quite some time now; his books give off a very definite impression of dark mixed with some quirky comedy. The Rabbit Factor definitely maintained this impression.

Henri is the star of this story, needless to say, his life was turned upside down when he lost his job crunching numbers and began managing the people at the amusement…sorry, “adventure park” that he inherited from his brother. It was fun following Henri as he navigated the illogical life he inherited. I really enjoyed how Henri would apply his mathematical logic to situations that are completely unpredictable and based on human emotional decisions. This juxtaposition made for a really fun read.

The Rabbit Factor is on the lighter side of Nordic Noir. There is a criminal element, but our protagonist is more interested in survival than taking down the bad guys. Unlike most of the Nordic Noir that I’ve read, Henri doesn’t really have a dark side, he is a special kind of person, but he doesn’t have a dark cloud following him around. Did I miss this aspect? Not really, it was refreshing to have a protagonist who was friendly and upbeat. Henri had a checkered past, but it seems to have made him stronger, he doesn’t allow it to keep him down.

The Rabbit Factor was a fun book to read. It was a different type of story. It reinforced that I really should add more Antti Tuomainen to my reading list.

*4 Stars

Three cheers for Antti Tuomainen’s The Rabbit Factor, Nordic Noir with a comic twist!

Think of a main character such as Fredrik Backman’s Ove or Graham Simsion’s Don Tillman caught up in a life-or-death struggle against villains bent on torturing or killing him. Henri Pekka Olavi Koshkinen is an anti-social, no-nonsense math wizard and insurance company actuary hoping for a promotion but who, instead, suddenly finds himself unemployed due to his refusal to adapt to the new open-concept workplace where he cannot deal with his coworkers’ human sides. Then along comes a lawyer informing him that his brother Juhani has died and left a will naming Henri as sole heir.

Of all things, Henri has inherited an adventure park swarming daily with children enjoying all the indoor park has to offer. As the book opens, the new owner is alone in the park after closing time when suddenly attacked by a knife-throwing assailant.

The adventure park is not Henri’s only inheritance. He has also inherited Juhani’s 200,000 euro debt and a diverse staff of employees, including one still on the payroll without showing up for work, one insisting he and Juhani had a deal and now expecting Henri to fulfill it, and another sparking feelings new to Henri. Why was Juhani deeply in debt as the park raked in the cash from large crowds of excited young customers? How will Henri deal with the rising debt and his employees? And exactly what does a giant German rabbit have to do with it all? Read Antii Tuomainen’s The Rabbit Factor for on-the-edge-of-your-seat laughter and suspense.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orenda Books for an advance reader copy. I will be reading more books by Antti Tuomainen.

It’s been a long time since I have been this surprised by a book. When I firstly started reading The Rabbit Factor, I was instantly taken in. Why is this man being attacked while fixing a giant, 10 foot rabbit? You can really visualize that opening scene, It just draws you right in to the action.

Then I had to put the book down. The release date got pushed back and I had so much to do, that I just decided to pick it up again later. Which I did yesterday. I quickly reintroduced myself to Henri and his life. After fighting for his life, I was pretty sure this was going to be an adventurous book (rather than an amusement book-that will be funny after you read it).

When you get to the flashbacks of less than 4 weeks prior you get a completely different story. Henri is a logical man who sees no need for chaos. He saw enough for a lifetime. So he lives by the numbers. But even his actuary job is moving into the warm and fuzzies and he is let go. At the same time, his brother dies and leaves him his adventure park. Which is not an amusement park. Nope,

All Henri wants to do is straighten out his brother’s mess and get away from the whole chaotic mess. He meets and tries to stay aloof from the employees. But they start to get to him,. So do a bunch of others. Henri tries to make it all work out but he keeps getting into more and more trouble. You find yourself wanting this awkward man to win. To find his new home.

So while this was a bit of an adventure, it was more about the relationships of a group of people. Most doesn’t come out until the very end. One loose end is tied up in a particularly unsatisfying way. It didn’t ruin my enjoyment of the book. I just wish the whole thing had been left out completely. So glad I got to finally finish this book.

Actuary Henri Koskinen has his life firmly under control. He keeps it that way as he’s a mathematician and calculates everything. No room for error. But then he inherits an adventure park when his brother dies and after that things gradually escape that firm control which he so much treasures. Comedy and crime come together in this quirky and amusing novel, which I found great fun. Possibly the book itself begins to get a bit out of control as the plot becomes more and more complicated and the situations more and more bizarre but overall it’s a fun and original read.

The Rabbit Factor is the first novel in the Rabbit Factor series by award-winning Finnish author, Antti Tuomainen. It is translated from Finnish by David Hackston. Within a few days in late September 2020, Henri Koskinen has lost his actuarial job, his brother, Juhani, and inherited an Adventure Park on the outskirts of Helsinki. Worse still, when he takes a quick look, he discovers that YouMeFun, despite being a relatively successful business, has a mountain of unpaid bills and a massive loan to repay.

Henri was never really close to Juhani, who had more in common with their chaotic parents. “Juhani was fun and flexible. Humorous and quick-witted. Spontaneous and amiable” while Henri “had only one deep-held wish. I wanted everything to be sensible”

“He used to joke, saying I would die of stiffness. I told him I was very much alive and not at all stiff, I just wanted things to occur in a good, logical order and that I based all my actions on rational thinking” but now Henri wishes he knew more about his brother, and what Juhani could possibly have done with so much money.

Even before he has met all the staff and had a decent look at the books, a reptilian organised-crime type and his heavy turn up to demand payment of his brother’s two-hundred-thousand-euro debt, with interest. Not that Henri has the money to pay but, as an actuary, what he really objects to the exorbitant interest rate: ten per cent over just two and a half weeks? Henri narrowly escapes losing a finger, but he knows that won’t be their last visit.

Sure enough, a few days later, as he’s trying, after hours, to repair the broken ear on a giant rabbit statue, a nasty fellow with a knife (or two) turns up to deliver him an unambiguous message. Another narrow escape that sees Henri taking action he could never have envisaged when he was working for the insurance company, and he really has to figure out something to get them off his back.

What is really puzzling is how Knife Man knew Henri was there alone, and how he got into the park. Juhani gave the staff free rein with running the place: could one of them be in cahoots with the crooks? They are an unusual bunch, and Henri knows his directness can be off-putting:
“‘I can be frank with you, yes?’
‘I believe it’s for the best,’ I say. ‘Some people say it can be rude, but I think the benefits far outweigh the possible drawbacks. I’m not sure of the exact ratio, but in my experience I can say that the probability of causing offence can’t be higher than ten percent. That gives being frank around a ninety-percent chance of success. Those are exceptionally good odds.’”

Needing to pay the loan, the bills and trying to keep the adventure park running, Henri comes up with a bold plan and presents his criminal creditors with an audacious proposal, the sort only an actuary could convince the big man will be viable. His radical idea includes starting a bank and offering park patrons pay-day loans, but can it really work?

As if he doesn’t have enough on his plate, the reptilian guy tries to blackmail him, someone might be sabotaging park structures, and he finds himself falling for the park’s manager. Laura Helanto is an artist whose murals are transforming the park and have Henri inexplicably fascinated. The mathematician in him tries to analyse why, without success. Oh, and a Helsinki Police DI is looking for Knife Man…

As well as the artist, his team consists of Kristian (a maintenance man who was promised the position of General Manager), Minttu K (an alcoholic marketing and sales manager), Esa (a head of security who wants to be a US marine), Samppa (an earringed, tattooed children’s entertainer), Johanna (a fitness-freak café manager) and Venla (a ticket-seller who has yet to turn up for work).

There’s plenty of humour in this novel, some of it quite black, and a delicious irony when Henri uses the exact same touchy-feely language that drove him from his last job to handle Kristian’s promotion demands. Henri will remind some readers of Don Tillman: with his reliance on maths and logic, his imaginative problem solving and good intentions. More of this protagonist, in The Moose Paradox, will be most welcome. Recommended!
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Orenda Books

Though this book has a good amount of crime thrown in, it is actually a good light read which you can get through pretty quickly.

Henri Kosknen is an actuary. He prides himself on his mathematics skills and is also very unsociable. So much so that the insurance company he works for gives him an ultimatum – he needs to participate in team building exercises or take an isolated seat on the ground floor and work as instructed or hand in his resignation. Henri chooses to leave and is in the process of finding a new job. At this time, his brother passes away and he inherits an adventure park his brother owned and ran. As he takes over the adventure park which has seven permanent employees, he finds the financials in a total mess. Added to that, his brother had some contacts with some unsavory characters who now issue threats to Henri. Henri finds himself drawn to Laura, who helps in managing the park and has an artistic touch. She, however, has some secrets which Henri realizes much later. Then there is Kristian who says he was promised to be elevated to the General Manager. Henri unleashes a lot of meaningless theories on him to make the point that he is not yet ready such as the below:

“Learning about self-relevance isn’t just a linear-psychological or a cumulative emotional learning curve, you know”.

As Henri does his best to get things on track, more threats and violence ensue.

As I mentioned, this is a good book to relax with. The humour is pretty good, though overdone in parts – such as during the date Henri and Laura go on. The story has quite a bit of violence, but there are no gory details in any of the episodes.

My rating: 3.75 / 5.

This book was a fun read! I didn’t love it but I did enjoy it and would buy a finished copy in November. A solid 4 stars for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this novel. I am rating this book based the stars due to lack of time to leave a full review.

Logical on the one hand and ridiculous on the other, The Rabbit Factor presents readers with a new set of perspectives on a rather ordinary crime and "ordinary" people. I had the pleasure of hearing Antii Tuomainen speak at the recent CrimeFest in Bristol, UK. His comments and very humorous responses to prompts and questions led me to think that The Rabbit Factor was pure mindless entertainment. After all, the vision of someone being beaten to death with a rabbit's ear makes for an outlandish picture. But The Rabbit Factor offers readers more than that; it offers a look at the challenges and ultimately the flexibility of a person whose entire life has been bounded by rules, by mathematical formulas, and by logical thinking and thus makes us question the ways in which we each face life's challenges and make assumptions that while based on logic, turn out not to be entirely true. The Rabbit Factor is a very good read and I look forward to the author's next efforts.

Thanks NetGalley, Orenda Books and Antti Tuomainen for an ARC to review.
Wow. Incredible read that I enjoyed every second reading it. I don't know actually how to describe it though I highly recommend it.

Review based on an ARC provided by the publishers.

Unfortunately I didn't find this as funny as it was made out to be. I pushed the book off several times before I finished reading it.

The idea, an actuary inheriting an adventure park and coming up with weird ideas to make up for his late brother's gambling debts, was good, but the book wasn't able to hook me.

*Thank you @Netgalley and Independent Publishers Group, Orenda Books for this ARC*

I have no idea how I would categorize this book but I will say it was a perfect mix of sarcastic humor, drama, mystery, and a bit of romance. Set in Finland, mathematician Henri's regimented lifestyle is turned upside when his brother suddenly passes away and he inherits an adventure park (which I learned is NOT the same as an amusement park). Henri's no nonsense approach to life and work made him completely relatable (to me) - even in the midst of all the insane scenarios he finds himself in. I was pleasantly surprised with this book - a feel good story with a bit of gritty darkness and humor. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I loved this book and read it very quickly. The start paints such a picture of this man who has been forced out of his depth and yet it is both funny and full of pathos.

Will for sure read more by this author soon.

One of the first Scandi thrillers that I have read. The book is written from the viewpoint of Henri, an actuary. Having lost his job, he inherits an adventure park from his brother who died suddenly. When he gets to the park, it becomes apparent that there are problems, the staff are unusual and his brother seemingly had debts and was involved with the criminal underworld. Henri is a logical thinker. In the writing style he almost comes across as some one on the Autistic spectrum. He sets about dealing with the park's problems and in doing so, gets himself into trouble.
The plot is complicated, though becomes clearer as the book progresses . Henri tells the story factually and it does become bizarre, though his no nonsense approach keeps it grounded. I did not find the book laugh aloud funny, though at times events are absurd. Set in Finland, references are made to localities which were lost on me, though will look into this more. Presumably a translation, I thought it was well done.
Thank you to NEt Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. I will look out for more from this author

Touting an author as 'the funniest writer in Europe' is a big claim (as The Times claims) and writing crime fiction with genuine humour is a difficult trick to pull off - while many try I often find the efforts, from big name authors or indie writers a bit eggy. In this case, I enjoyed the book and can see why it would be bought as a screen option (and can see Steve Carrell in the main role, although I can also see a loss in the quirkiness of it to a broader slapstick style comedy if not done sympathetically).
The premise is interesting - Henri Koskinen, an actuator, inherits an adventure park from his brother. Reluctantly taking the role of owner on he finds there is a lot more going on than he could have bargained on.
The main character is, while never explicitly described as such, on the spectrum. Whether you can find humour in this will, to a large part, determine whether you find the novel amusing or not - much of the action and reaction, and in particular the interplay with other characters relies on his extremely literal take on things. Indeed, the crime element of the novel is relatively tab A into slot B in terms of complexity and resolution.
For me, I thought it was an enjoyable read. Some of the humour worked well, a few parts less so. I understand this might be the first in a series of books, and there's certainly mileage in learning more about the various secondary characters from the park.

Thank you to Orenda and Netgalley for the copy in return for an honest review.