Fiction Pick of the Week: Woman with a Birthmark

Woman with Birthmark: An Inspector Van Veeteren Mystery by Hakan Nesser

This is a fast-paced police procedural, with interesting characters and lots of suspense. The fourth novel to feature intuitive, slightly grumpy Chief Inspector Van Veeteren, it’s also the second to win the Swedish Crime Writers’ Academy best novel award. At her mother’s funeral, a young woman dedicates herself to avenging the tragedy that doomed both her mother’s life and her own to failure. Some months later, a businessman is found murdered, with no obvious motive. The only clue is an anonymous call he received before his death, playing a popular song from the sixties. When, less than two weeks later, a second victim is found, having been murdered in the same way and after the same kind of call, Van Veeteren and his team undertake the painstaking work of putting together their meager pieces to try to solve the crimes before the killer can strike again.