Back From the Dead

I would like to thank Netgalley and Muswell Press for an advance copy of Back from the Dead, the third novel to feature crime reporter Jensen and DI Henrik Jungersen of Copenhagen Police.

MP Esben Nørregaard asks Jensen to quietly look into the disappearance of his driver Aziz Almasi while Henrik is investigating a headless body pulled from the water. Could it be Aziz? Jensen and Henrik will have to navigate spiralling events to find out.

I thoroughly enjoyed Back from the Dead, which has an absorbing plot with plenty of twists and turns, a dash of humour and some genuinely sad moments. In short it has a bit of everything.

The narrative is split between Jensen and Henrik, which in a sense presents its own problems as they are former lovers and it complicates their interactions, but not fatally so as they have a good working relationship. The split narrative works well as they both have contributions to make by pursuing different lines of enquiry. It rounds out the story and maintains the mystery as it is all told from the investigative side. It also allows a good comparison of their characters. Jensen is rather gung-ho in her approach while Henrik is more cautious and jaded. She is sunny while he broods.

The plot is fairly outrageous, asking the reader to believe some very unrealistic events, actions and attitudes, so go with the flow and you won’t be disappointed. It is meticulously constructed and offers the reader an interesting and at times tense and exciting read that continually moves forward. There are no dull moments as there is always a new development or twist to consider.

Back from the Dead is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Back From the Dead is the 3rd book in Heidi Amsinck's quirky "Jensen" series about a Danish journalist and her motley group of friends and acquaintances.

When a headless body is found in Copenhagen Harbour during a heatwave Jensen's friend, and admirer,MP Esben Norregaard, asks her to investigate the disappearance of his driver Aziz. In turn she turns to former lover D.I. Henrick Jungersen for help. Jensen is a popular lady and just to complicate matters she's recently moved in with her boyfriend and there's plenty of testosterone-fuelled rivalry for her attentions to add spice to what becomes a complex and dangerous enquiry. As well as these fine gentleman the usual cast of oddball characters get involved and I'd strongly advise reading the first 2 books in the series if you haven't already to understand the various relationships and histories behind the main characters.

I've come to really enjoy this series,most of the characters are either eccentric or appear to have intriguing backstories that promise many more enjoyable and twisty stories to come.

A good story overall. I think the plot would have been much better though if not so much had been written about the main characters' lives and their states of mind. It took away much of the tension of the thrilling plot. I was also a bit surprised at Jensen's new boyfriend. Somehow it did not fit with her character. I had enjoyed the previous books and still want to read the next one.
I received a digital copy of this novel from NetGalley and I am leaving voluntarily an honest review.

‘Back From the Dead’ is a thrilling and dark book that is full of humour, and brilliant characters and is completely engrossing! This is the third book in the series but it could be read as a standalone, but I thoroughly recommend reading the whole series. They are cracking reads and you have the benefit of knowing more about the character interactions and backgrounds. Also, I see this as a series which will go on for a long time so getting in at the start is always good!

The story is told from two different viewpoints, firstly the spunky journalist Jensen. She is having to deal with changes in the paper she works for as they are increasingly going digital, plus there have been a raft of redundancies which resulted in her actually being promoted to Chief Crime reporter. She is still working with her ‘intern’ Gustav who brings such a lightheartedness to this series. I adore him! We also see the story from DI Henrik Jungerson's viewpoint and he and Jensen have a complicated history.

Jenson has been asked by her friend and member of parliament, Esben Norregaard to help look into the disappearance of his driver Aziz. He wants to keep it under the radar as Aziz is very worried about him and his family being sent back to Syria. As Jensen looks into this, Henrik is investigating the discovery of a headless corpse. As the pair investigate the threads weave together to throw them into a dangerous investigation for both of them!

This was a the well-thought-out mystery that sent both Jensen and Henrik into various misdirections and wrong turns. The pace was excellent and built up to a thrilling conclusion. I flew through this book in one day as it's always a delight to return to Amsinck’s brilliant writing. I just could not put the book down, it was a real page-turner. Although it deals with some heavy and dark topics it has a lightness through the narrative and at times I was laughing out loud!

Let me know if you pick this one up!

This is the third book in the Jensen series and I love Heidi Amsinck's writing, and the characters Jensen, a journalist and Henrik a police officer. They have history together and an attraction, but Henrik is married so Jensen is trying to move on with Kristoffer, her rich, handsome boyfriend. Jensen gets involved in the disappearance of Aziz, the chauffeur of Esben, a friend and politician, who wants to keep the police out of it. Henrik is investigating a headless corpse. Both cases are linked and they need to find the person orchestrating these crimes. I think you need to read the earlier books to appreciate this one. I recommend the complete series.