Review To the top of the mountain – Arne Dahl

The book ‘To the top of the mountain’ is the third in its series. Maybe I should’ve started with the first. I know of this famous Swedish author but had never before read one of his books. I must admit that I found this one very confusing at first.

Halfway

This confusion stayed with me until well over halfway in the book. Now Scandinavian authors are known for their unpredictability and confusing stories. I must confess that this author made up for all this confusion at the end of his book. Arne Dahl is very well known. His books, including this one, have received numerous prizes. All his books have been made into movies. So who am I to doubt this story.

Finished

I muddled on. And yes, its very surprising and well thought out when all the, many, persons in the book come together in the end. I couldn’t see it happen, but it did. And how. The story begins with a stabbing in a pub. Football fans against each other. When the police interview the many witnesses, I never saw the significance between all of them.

Power and money

Yes, this crime story is all about money and power. But it goes a little deeper than that. Like his fellow Scandinavian authors, he gets to the core of relationships and seemingly insignificant banter. I slowly came to realize why this Arne Dahl is as famous and well loved as he is.

Arne Dahl

Born in 1963 in Sweden as Jan Arnald, he decided to use the name one Dahl for his books. Now I had heard of him before, who hasn’t, but I was pleasantly surprised to see a photo of him. OK, I admit I have a bit of a crush on Northern gentlemen, But wow. Does this make me superficial? Probably. I know his good looks have nothing to do with his writing. Still, he’s nice to look at. And in the end I really enjoyed his book. Especially its end. When I finally realized how the story was meant to confuse the reader and have this superb end.