Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Hammarby Book 1 Hammarbyserien 1 by Carin Gerhardsen. From the same Swedish editorial team and publisher as Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy comes a sensational new crime writing talent Ingrid Olsson returns home from a Stockholm hospital to discover a man in her kitchen. She's never seen the intruder before. But he's no threat - he's dead. His team identify the body as that of a middle-aged family man. But why was he there? And who bludgeoned him to death?
And discover they face a serial killer on a terrible vendetta. The pages turn themselves, right up the final startling twist' John Verdon Carin Gerhardsen was born in in Katrineholm, Sweden. Originally a mathematician, she enjoyed a successful career as an IT consultant before turning her hand to writing crime fiction. Carin now lives in Stockholm with her husband and their two children.
She is currently working on the seventh title in the series. Kindle Edition , pages. Published June 20th by Penguin first published To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about The Gingerbread House , please sign up. Does anyone know when the fourth book will be available in English? See 1 question about The Gingerbread House…. Lists with This Book.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia. Book Review I'm giving this 3 stars as opposed to 4 or 5 stars , but only because of two words in the entire novel that I feel are deliberate trickery by the author. It would be a disgrace to reveal to potential readers to what two words I'm referring, but I condsider having written them, a major error on the author's part.
And so I'm giving this a lesser rating that I would have otherwise. I consider this book the beginnings of an author who has yet to mature in certain areas, while showing imme Book Review I'm giving this 3 stars as opposed to 4 or 5 stars , but only because of two words in the entire novel that I feel are deliberate trickery by the author. I consider this book the beginnings of an author who has yet to mature in certain areas, while showing immense promise in delivering a fast-paced crime novel that despite my few objections I found addicting. Every scene is very tightly woven and leads to the plot, despite seemingly innocent and warming scenarios in which we meet the lead detective's family.
The pacing is rapid, you can read the book in a few sittings. The gruesome childhood scenes are horrible and one wonders how this is possible when we, for example, look at our own children and the schools they attend. Is it true that children at the age of six are without ethics, without some sense of right and wrong? The reveal in this novel came as a complete surprise I will leave it to potential readers to judge this for themselves.
Looking for the second in this series, I could find no indication of when it'll be published in translation this book is translated by Paul Norlen, an author in his own right, and translater for other notable Scandinavian writers such as Persson, Grebe, and Jansson. Which led me to inquire with the publisher. No response as of yet.
To foreign audiences we have in mind a peace-loving populace they have managed to stay out of wars , a people protected by state policies in every manner, a relatively crime-free country with a people thought of as blonde, tall and attractive if not sexually mature and free. Not exactly what one would think of as a hot spot for crime fiction and its authors.
To this day Swedes remain proud of this image in spite of some definitive cracks appearing in the foundation: This letting of blood, this expose of what lies beneath the Swedish facade is primarily pomulgrated by crime-fiction authors as opposed to say newspapers and the phenomenon has given birth to a world-wide audience all within what seems to be the span of just a few years. American and British Publishers, at first hesitant to jump into the fray for the fear that Scandinavian Noir is but a fad and that translated fiction will never catch on with English speaking audiences, now are convinced that this group of authors is here to stay and that what lies beneath the tip of the iceberg has yet to be revealed.
One such author engaging in this expose is Carin Gerhardsen. Born in Katrineholm, Sweden on December 6, , Carin Gerhardsen is the author of the Hammarby series , a series of crime novels that take place in the southern parts of Stockholm. Carin Gerhardsen made her literary debut in Sweden fifteen years ago, but for various professional reasons such as pursuing her interests in IT put her career on hold only to resume writing some years later.
That writing effort led to what at the time was a trilogy that predates Larsson's Millennium trilogy. Currently, of course, there are six volumes in the Hammarby series. It is interesting to note that the original Gerhardsen trilogy was finally sold to Ordfront, Henning Mankell's original publisher. Gerhardsen, in translation, is relatively unknown in Britain and the States.
Only the first, The Gingerbread House has been translated into English: Originally a mathematician, which may explain her clever plots and complex characters, the Hammarby books seem to convey an almost cinema-like quality in terms of editing scenes down to essentials only. There seems to be a brilliant mind at work behind these fast paced, addictive, one-or-two-sitting books: Consequently, it is the often gruesome aftermath of such a childhood that is the focus of Gerhardsen's crime novels.
It is well known in Sweden that the Hammarby Series portray many of the scenes that the author admits are self-experienced and based on episodes of Gerhardsen's own childhood.
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Of course, we see a similar focus in Larsson's Millennium Trilogy , in Lisbeth's character and upbringing, but really, it is Gerhardsen that brings the effects of the welfare state on a Swedish childhood to the crime-fiction forefront. To those familiar with Swedish politics, the thorny issues surrounding foster care, some 20, castrations of the ill-informed, social engineering that finds its way into Swedish laws see scathing memoir by the son of Alva Myrdal, a nobel peace winner and prominent Swedish politician , if not an overt concern in Sweden with population control And such fairly recent public disclosures is one answer as to why Scandinavian Noir is both a recent American and british phenomenon, as well as a phenomenon that has a focus on the state, society and questionable laws while maintaining a tight focus on the crime narrative as opposed to say American Noir which is primarly focussed on the crime itself with some notable exceptions.
This relatively unknown author is an important piece to the foundations of Scandinavian Noir. No doubt, as publishers make her known to American and British audiences through careful selection of translators, this will become quite clear. View all 5 comments. I have mixed feelings about this one. It started very well: But soon enough it started to drag along. The police start suspecting the man mentioned in the blurb towards the very end of the book, and before that they don't really have any idea of who the killer might be, actually they take quite long to realize that all I have mixed feelings about this one.
The police start suspecting the man mentioned in the blurb towards the very end of the book, and before that they don't really have any idea of who the killer might be, actually they take quite long to realize that all the murders are linked. It was also very easy to guess who the killer was. Each murder is described from the killer's point of view, and this let only two possibilities for the killer's identity, and very quickly you can exclude one.
The name of the murderer is revealed at the very end but not much is done around it so I wonder if it was intentional from the author to make it so easy to guess who the killer was, but in this case I think it would have been better if she had revealed the name from the beginning and dug deeper into the killer's psychology. Another thing I was quite frustrated about is the side plot about one of the investigators, Petra.
Something happens to her at some point in the book and she starts her own secret investigation about it. It takes a pretty significant part of the story so I was expecting it to meet with the main plot at some point but We don't even get all the answers about this subplot.
But all in all, I enjoyed my reading. Just the way a character turned out to be and the sudden change in speech pattern, it felt wrong to me. Mind you, I'm not a psychologist so for all I know this argument can be valid.
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All I know is that it doesn't gel with my gut feeling. Jul 09, Kelly rated it it was amazing. If you like thrillers, mystery and being completely surprised at the end of the story, I think you will love The Gingerbread House by Carin Gerhardsen. Gerhardsen If you like thrillers, mystery and being completely surprised at the end of the story, I think you will love The Gingerbread House by Carin Gerhardsen.
This evocative story explores schoolyard bullying among young children and the effect it has on them when people look the other way. I found this true! The story starts out with a fairy-tale like description of a preschool just south of Stockholm. A stately building surrounded by tall pines, round corners and white posts making it sound like a wonderful place for young children to spend their days. Gerhardsen goes on to describe a lively group of children bursting out of the doors, all bundled up in colorful winter gear, full of energy after a day of preschool and now on their way home.
Most of the children go running off to their homes. A few, however, linger behind, one of them being 6-year-old Thomas Karlsson, who quickly becomes the target for a brutal beating, even by preschooler-aged children standards and so begins the story. While Thomas lives in a dim, cramped room, all alone with no family, no friends, he can see that Hans appears to be healthy, strong and happy. On a whim and without really even knowing why, Thomas decides to secretly follow Hans home. The next day, Hans is found murdered, head bashed in and his life over in a matter of minutes.
Then follows a string of what seems to be unrelated murders of people in their forties. I really understood the different perspectives of each character.
Each character has their own storyline going, but each story blends in to the main storyline quite well. Thanks to Netgalley and Stockholm Text for sharing the galley with me to read. Possono le azioni degli altri condizionarci a tal punto da rovinarci completamente la vita? Ma Thomas, uno dei personaggi di questo libro, non ha dubbi: Da parte mia ho trovato questo libro davvero scritto bene, dallo stile scorrevole e dinamico e dalla trama ricca di collegamenti e ben congeniata.
Sono rimasta solo un po' delusa di non aver scoperto la risoluzione del mistero che faceva di contorno alla storia principale, quella che vede come protagonista la poliziotta Pedra. Even then I was torn but for me, to get your own characters' names mispelled is a massive transgression and somebody out there aside from myself really should have noticed it. I loved an expression used rather than be hugged by a dirty kid-"Just hug with your face" Another one that made me laugh aloud was "Only Jesus thinks that children are good". I LOVE that one! I only spotted a couple of apostrophe errors as well which was good going but Christopher becoming Cristoffer was a huge no-no.
She also listed some towns beginning with K but put Katrineberg twice so perhaps should've thrown a Katrineburg in there if one exists. She also used incurred where I'd have put inflicted to make better sense. The story wasn't really anything earth-shattering or new but set in a different country with a whole new host of characters who were interesting to meet. I really like Conny and his wife a lot. It was super to read of his interactions with his kids. I had a sense of satisfaction for one character in particular at the end as things were changing for him, which was a good thing.
Certainly scope for a lot more stories and I'll definitely read more of the series. This might be a 5-star rating by the time I finish. It's a very engaging book! I like some of the nuances that flow from it having been written in Swedish and translated into English. Every once in a while there's a slight error in translation -- nothing so garish as to confuse the meaning, just fun little instances of not being quite on target with an idiom of a grammatical convention -- not so many as to become annoying, though.
Written from various characters' perspectives in a way that usher This might be a 5-star rating by the time I finish. Written from various characters' perspectives in a way that ushers you easily right into their lives, this book is hard for me to put down! Jun 25, Christina rated it really liked it. An English language translation from the Swedish, this mystery novel is a tight thriller.
Conny Sjoberg is a police detective who is working on the case of a year old man found murdered in the kitchen of a seemingly unrelated woman. Is there really a connection? When other year old victims turn up murdered as well, the police must race to find a pattern and the killer. This mystery easily kept my attention throughout.
It seemed to be well translated with no language issues. It kept me guess An English language translation from the Swedish, this mystery novel is a tight thriller. It kept me guessing about different parts of the mystery and I liked the characters.
The Gingerbread House: Hammarby Book 1
There was a side story that wasn't really resolved, which was a bit disappointing, although it really was a very small part of the book. Overall, I very much enjoyed this book. Aug 05, Esmeralda rated it really liked it. This book is supposed to be the beginning of a crime series and I certainly want to read more. I haven't read any other Scandinavian crime fiction books and I guess this was a good place to start. In this book the author explores the effects of bullying on young children. This theme is certainly relevant after tragedies like the Columbine massacre. The bullying occurs in preschool and the teacher does not want to get involved.
One of the bullied children winds up being a serial killer, seeking re This book is supposed to be the beginning of a crime series and I certainly want to read more. One of the bullied children winds up being a serial killer, seeking revenge many years later. This book does have it twist and turns. Recommended for anyone who likes crime novels. I had some issues with a couple of violent scenes but overall I loved it and I can't wait to read the next one!
- Gods Healing Hands.
- Whoo-hoo! Whoopee! Funny Poems for Kids.
- Zoe and Beans: Where is Binky Boo??
- COLOMBO: História do Mistério, Censura e Invenção (OS PONTOS CARDEAIS Livro 1) (Portuguese Edition);
Aug 24, Jpucino rated it really liked it. I read this on my Kindle; I thought this was a great story! I was a little disappointed at the sort of abrupt ending, but maybe I was just wishing there was more. I recommend this book for sure! Breathe in, breathe out. Dec 28, loopyloulaura rated it really liked it. I have not experienced Scandinavian crime fiction before despite the popularity of TV shows and books in recent years.
I bought this book months ago as part of a special offer and finally got around to reading it: A man is killed at the home of an elderly woman who finds his body on her return from hospital. The plot centres around a group of children who bullied another. Now it is time for revenge… In an additional sub plot, one for the police officers on the case believes s I have not experienced Scandinavian crime fiction before despite the popularity of TV shows and books in recent years.
There is a huge twist just 40 pages from the end. I really enjoyed this book and have just found out that it is the first of a series involved the police team so am hoping to buy some more! Tai buvo pirmasis mano perskaitytas detektyvas Veiksmas buvo, istorija gera. Jul 11, Liz rated it really liked it. Jul 26, Valerie rated it did not like it. The book opens in the 60s with some horrific schoolyard bullying by 6 year olds which their teacher blatantly ignores.
The children see this as tacit permission to continue torturing 2 of their less fortunate classmates. Fast forward 40 years to We meet the now docile and completely shut down Timothy and the first victim. By the end of this chapter we know the who, the how and they why and I have guessed the storyline. The first killing happens in an empty house, and an eld The book opens in the 60s with some horrific schoolyard bullying by 6 year olds which their teacher blatantly ignores. The first killing happens in an empty house, and an elderly lady comes home to find a body in her kitchen.
The murders are sprinkled between home life stories — the kids, cooking for dinner parties, going out to dinner parties, how much he loves his wife etc etc. Why is this chapter in the book? I was disturbed by this rape chapter for two reasons: You read both of these chapters and tell me what you think. Personally speaking, I like how Ava Lee handles the situation much better. The ending was very abrupt and I found it made no sense to the story line and left questions. Not by a longshot. There is no complexity of storyline and character, you are not kept guessing by anything and nothing surprises.
Will it sell well? It will depend on publicity and marketing, I think. The Gingerbread House actually reads like a movie script, to be frank. If it sells to Hollywood, remember, you heard it here first! Apr 22, Kamilla rated it did not like it. I must revise my previous review - but not by much. After struggling with this book for 4 days, I had to put it down at nearly the half way mark. Nothing made sense, nothing connected to anything, the characters weren't interesting, not even likeable. Paragraphs, even pages, just to move it along.
I simply couldn't care less for any of it. So I gave up, and put it down - there are other more fun books around, I didn't want to waste any more of my time on a crappy one. Then a I must revise my previous review - but not by much. Then a friend of mine said that she's read it, and it was ok, the killer was not what we all thought. So maybe there is something to it. So I picked it up again - which I hardly ever do if I already put it down once. And I finished it. After the half way mark it became slightly more interesting, but the writing still did not grip me, the characters were still unlikeable, the investigation bored me.
The Gingerbread House (Hammarby, book 1) by Carin Gerhardsen
Then about 10 pages before the end we all of a sudden find out who the killer is, out of the blue really, as now it's written in the killer's perspective. And who bludgeoned him to death? Lacking suspect and motive, Sjoberg's team struggle until they link the case to another - apparently random - killing. And discover they face a serial killer on a terrible vendetta Carin Gerhardsen was born in in Katrineholm, Sweden.
Originally a mathematician, she enjoyed a successful career as an IT consultant before turning her hand to writing crime fiction. Carin now lives in Stockholm with her husband and their two children. She is currently working on the seventh title in the series.