Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Series
Genres
Publication
London : Penguin Books, 2014.
Description
Chief detective Carl Mørck, recovering from what he thought was a career-destroying gunshot wound, is relegated to cold cases and becomes immersed in the five-year disappearance of a politician.
User reviews
LibraryThing member lit_chick
Carl Mørck, Copenhagen Homicide Detective, has just returned to work after a shooting which left one colleague dead, another paralyzed, and him seriously injured. Unexpectedly, Mørck learns he has been “promoted” to head up the newly established Department Q, an investigative division which
Mørck is not long on the job when he stumbles across a cold case which piques his interest: prominent politician Merete Lyngaard disappeared without a trace five years ago. When the case finally went cold, she was presumed dead. Merete was custodian to disabled younger brother, Uffe, tragically injured in the two-vehicle car crash which killed both of their parents more than two decades prior. Between an uber-busy solid, professional career, which did not include social time with colleagues, and a very quiet, private personal life, Morck will be hard put to determine who might have wanted Merete Lyngaardte dead – if she is dead. Did she encounter in political circles a high profile magnate with a lot to lose if a certain policy were enacted? Surely the connection was political? Or was it?
I thoroughly enjoyed my first Adler-Olsen, and will look forward to his next. The crime story was solid and suspenseful, and the partnership of Mørck and Assad was perfect! I was delighted at how well the two were drawn; and I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Adler-Olsen has a delectable sense of humour. I found myself laughing aloud on more than one occasion. In this next passage, Assad, who has assured Mørck he is an experienced driver, first takes to the streets of Copenhagen with his boss in the Department’s new Peugeot:
“Assad started the engine, put the car in reverse, and sped backward along Magnolievangen, stopping only when the rear of the vehicle was halfway up on the grass embankment on the other side of Rønneholt Parkvei. Before Carl’s body could even react, Assad had slammed through the gears and was now cruising along at ninety kilometers an hour, where the speed limit was only fifty.” (81)
Highly recommended for lovers of crime fiction.
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will handle cold cases. Appointed as Mørck’s assistant is the incorrigible newly-hired Syrian ex-pat, Assad, who proves himself an invaluable asset to the Department: custodian, secretary, administrative assistant, driver, and self-appointed junior detective – oh, and he also knows “people” who can decipher forged documents more effectively than police experts.Mørck is not long on the job when he stumbles across a cold case which piques his interest: prominent politician Merete Lyngaard disappeared without a trace five years ago. When the case finally went cold, she was presumed dead. Merete was custodian to disabled younger brother, Uffe, tragically injured in the two-vehicle car crash which killed both of their parents more than two decades prior. Between an uber-busy solid, professional career, which did not include social time with colleagues, and a very quiet, private personal life, Morck will be hard put to determine who might have wanted Merete Lyngaardte dead – if she is dead. Did she encounter in political circles a high profile magnate with a lot to lose if a certain policy were enacted? Surely the connection was political? Or was it?
I thoroughly enjoyed my first Adler-Olsen, and will look forward to his next. The crime story was solid and suspenseful, and the partnership of Mørck and Assad was perfect! I was delighted at how well the two were drawn; and I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Adler-Olsen has a delectable sense of humour. I found myself laughing aloud on more than one occasion. In this next passage, Assad, who has assured Mørck he is an experienced driver, first takes to the streets of Copenhagen with his boss in the Department’s new Peugeot:
“Assad started the engine, put the car in reverse, and sped backward along Magnolievangen, stopping only when the rear of the vehicle was halfway up on the grass embankment on the other side of Rønneholt Parkvei. Before Carl’s body could even react, Assad had slammed through the gears and was now cruising along at ninety kilometers an hour, where the speed limit was only fifty.” (81)
Highly recommended for lovers of crime fiction.
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LibraryThing member Yogamom67
I loved this book. I simply couldn't put it down once I picked it up. "The Keeper of Lost Causes" is the first in a series featuring Copenhagen homicide detective Carl Morck. He reminds me of another detective - John Corey, who is featured in several books by Nelson DeMille. Both detectives are
There have been hundreds of reviews of this book, illuminating many aspects of it. I decided to focus my review on one of the two main characters in the story - Merete Lynggaard (Carl Morck being the other). Merete is a young liberal politician whose career is on the rise. While she's not necessarily liked by everyone, she is admired and respected for her savvy, intelligence, beauty, and no-nonsense demeanor. Very early in the book she is kidnapped and held captive by unknown individuals. Because her kidnappers never demand a ransom, Merete is believed to be dead by the outside world. Years later, when Carl Morck is given her case to review, he discovers that many valuable leads were never explored. Carl re-opens the case and the majority of the book is split between his attempts to unravel what really happened to Merete and Merete's experience at the hands of her captors.
Note: while my the rest of my review does not reveal Merete's kidnappers or ultimate fate, I do focus on her confinement and experiences as a victim. Some aspects of this discussion may be considered "spoilers" by some readers. Please consider this before reading the rest of this review.
After I finished The Keeper of Lost Causes'" I went on Amazon to read others readers' reviews. I was particularly struck by two negative reviews by readers who were basically put off the book by what one of the readers described as "torture porn." The other reviewer commented: "I just got angry with the author's insistence on drowning the reader in his never ending pathological preoccupation with relentlessly putting into multiple pages of print the increasingly sadistic and horrifying reality based years of torture of the victim by the criminals."
I can relate to these reviewers' disgust. I am frequently confused and discomforted by the graphic depictions of violence and torture, often unimaginably sadistic, in the novels I read. I often skip over those passages and in those instances when I do read them, I distance myself psychologically in order to take it all in.
However, I didn't experience Adler-Olson's depiction of the violence Merete experiences at the hands of her captors as gratuitous violence. What I later learned about the author's childhood helped me make sense of this.
According to Wikipedia, Jussi Adler-Olson was the youngest of four kids and the only boy. He was also "the son of the successful sexologist and psychiatrist Henry Olsen (and) he spent his childhood with his family in several mental hospitals across Denmark."
A later Department Q novel - "The Purity of Vengeance," deals with Scandinavians' shameful history of eugenics, focusing on the story of a young woman who seeks revenge against those who subjected her to forced sterilization. The publishing notes for “The Purity of Vengeance’’ state that "Adler-Olsen’s father, a psychiatrist, briefly worked at Sprogo, and his stories of the harsh hand dealt the women there seem to have profoundly impressed the son."
While I haven't yet read "The Purity of Vengeance," knowing this about Adler-Olson's childhood helped me understand my reaction to Merete's captivity and suffering in "The Keeper of Lost Causes." As the story unfolded, I was repeatedly struck by how much her experiences mirrored those of countless women during the 1800s and much of the 1900s, when women could be confined (and basically imprisoned) in psychiatric asylums by their fathers, husbands, and brothers for nothing more than their refusal to conform to the accepted norms of "womanly behavior."
Merete's story is horrific and the description of her suffering at the hands of her psychotic captors seems unimaginable, and yet, as her story unfolds, I increasingly became aware that what at first seemed incomprehensible, was not just Merete's story, but the story of countless women who have been falsely committed to psychiatric hospitals and subjected to mental and physical abuse couched as "treatment" at the hands of sadistic doctors, nurses, and orderlies. Often, these women served as nothing more than human lab rats - completely dehumanized by their captors, they were subjected to invasive experiments and observation for no reason other than to satisfy the curiosity of the ruling "medical establishment."
The summer I was ten years old, I remember my grandmother, a nurse, telling me about her experience as a young woman working in a psychiatric hospital. She described to me how out-of-control patients were placed in a warm pools of water, with a covering that only allowed their heads to be above the surface. This was alternated with wrapping their naked bodies mummy-like in cold wet towels. This treatment supposedly calmed the patients, making them more pliable and cooperative. My grandmother's horror when describing this and other "treatments" she observed was apparent.
Some years later I found out that my grandmother had suffered a "nervous breakdown" when my mother, her daughter, was twelve years old. My grandmother spent the summer in a psychiatric hospital and I've always wondered how much of what she'd told me earlier was drawn from her experience as a patient, rather than her experience as a young nurse.
What I know of my grandmother's experience pales, of course, in comparison to the absolute degradation and agony Merete's captors subject her to. However, reading about it brought to mind what my grandmother shared with me so long ago and I can't help but think that Adler-Olson's experience as child growing up in the shadow of various mental health hospitals has infused his work and his description of the plights and suffering of his victims at the hands of their oppressors.
And so, in this light, I think to describe Adler-Olson's work as "torture porn," is misinformed and misguided. It is true that gratuitous violence permeates almost every part of our culture, especially our entertainment. Every time I fast forward through a TV show, close my eyes in a movie, or skip through a particularly graphic description of violence in a book, I think to myself - "Why in the hell am I watching/reading this?" I tell myself that it's because the rest of the story is so interesting, but I'm aware of, confused, and disturbed by my ability to tolerate greater degrees and amounts of violence. The idea that I could actually find that violence entertaining is perverse.
However, I don't think Adler-Olson's work falls into the category of gratuitous violence that serves no purpose other than to entertain. There is nothing sensationalized about his descriptions of Merete's experiences. Her captivity reminded me of a psychiatric patient in solitary confinement; a lab rat subjected to sadistic experiments that serve no purpose other than to fulfill the capricious whims of its captors. I have no doubt that Adler-Olson's own experiences have infused his work and I feel certain that I am not alone in my reaction to it. In this light, while his depiction of Merete's degradation is brutal in its honesty - the courage, determination and strength she demonstrates is all the more remarkable. He illuminates her spirit. In doing so, Adler-Olson shines a light on all that is good in humanity, even when it is faced with unimaginable evil.
And at the end of the day, it is the brightness of Merete's soul that I will remember best from "The Keeper of Lost Causes."
Show More
darkly humorous, deeply flawed, completely irreverent, and bitingly ironic. Moreover, they have a deep understanding of and appreciation for the bittersweet hilarity of the absurd.There have been hundreds of reviews of this book, illuminating many aspects of it. I decided to focus my review on one of the two main characters in the story - Merete Lynggaard (Carl Morck being the other). Merete is a young liberal politician whose career is on the rise. While she's not necessarily liked by everyone, she is admired and respected for her savvy, intelligence, beauty, and no-nonsense demeanor. Very early in the book she is kidnapped and held captive by unknown individuals. Because her kidnappers never demand a ransom, Merete is believed to be dead by the outside world. Years later, when Carl Morck is given her case to review, he discovers that many valuable leads were never explored. Carl re-opens the case and the majority of the book is split between his attempts to unravel what really happened to Merete and Merete's experience at the hands of her captors.
Note: while my the rest of my review does not reveal Merete's kidnappers or ultimate fate, I do focus on her confinement and experiences as a victim. Some aspects of this discussion may be considered "spoilers" by some readers. Please consider this before reading the rest of this review.
After I finished The Keeper of Lost Causes'" I went on Amazon to read others readers' reviews. I was particularly struck by two negative reviews by readers who were basically put off the book by what one of the readers described as "torture porn." The other reviewer commented: "I just got angry with the author's insistence on drowning the reader in his never ending pathological preoccupation with relentlessly putting into multiple pages of print the increasingly sadistic and horrifying reality based years of torture of the victim by the criminals."
I can relate to these reviewers' disgust. I am frequently confused and discomforted by the graphic depictions of violence and torture, often unimaginably sadistic, in the novels I read. I often skip over those passages and in those instances when I do read them, I distance myself psychologically in order to take it all in.
However, I didn't experience Adler-Olson's depiction of the violence Merete experiences at the hands of her captors as gratuitous violence. What I later learned about the author's childhood helped me make sense of this.
According to Wikipedia, Jussi Adler-Olson was the youngest of four kids and the only boy. He was also "the son of the successful sexologist and psychiatrist Henry Olsen (and) he spent his childhood with his family in several mental hospitals across Denmark."
A later Department Q novel - "The Purity of Vengeance," deals with Scandinavians' shameful history of eugenics, focusing on the story of a young woman who seeks revenge against those who subjected her to forced sterilization. The publishing notes for “The Purity of Vengeance’’ state that "Adler-Olsen’s father, a psychiatrist, briefly worked at Sprogo, and his stories of the harsh hand dealt the women there seem to have profoundly impressed the son."
While I haven't yet read "The Purity of Vengeance," knowing this about Adler-Olson's childhood helped me understand my reaction to Merete's captivity and suffering in "The Keeper of Lost Causes." As the story unfolded, I was repeatedly struck by how much her experiences mirrored those of countless women during the 1800s and much of the 1900s, when women could be confined (and basically imprisoned) in psychiatric asylums by their fathers, husbands, and brothers for nothing more than their refusal to conform to the accepted norms of "womanly behavior."
Merete's story is horrific and the description of her suffering at the hands of her psychotic captors seems unimaginable, and yet, as her story unfolds, I increasingly became aware that what at first seemed incomprehensible, was not just Merete's story, but the story of countless women who have been falsely committed to psychiatric hospitals and subjected to mental and physical abuse couched as "treatment" at the hands of sadistic doctors, nurses, and orderlies. Often, these women served as nothing more than human lab rats - completely dehumanized by their captors, they were subjected to invasive experiments and observation for no reason other than to satisfy the curiosity of the ruling "medical establishment."
The summer I was ten years old, I remember my grandmother, a nurse, telling me about her experience as a young woman working in a psychiatric hospital. She described to me how out-of-control patients were placed in a warm pools of water, with a covering that only allowed their heads to be above the surface. This was alternated with wrapping their naked bodies mummy-like in cold wet towels. This treatment supposedly calmed the patients, making them more pliable and cooperative. My grandmother's horror when describing this and other "treatments" she observed was apparent.
Some years later I found out that my grandmother had suffered a "nervous breakdown" when my mother, her daughter, was twelve years old. My grandmother spent the summer in a psychiatric hospital and I've always wondered how much of what she'd told me earlier was drawn from her experience as a patient, rather than her experience as a young nurse.
What I know of my grandmother's experience pales, of course, in comparison to the absolute degradation and agony Merete's captors subject her to. However, reading about it brought to mind what my grandmother shared with me so long ago and I can't help but think that Adler-Olson's experience as child growing up in the shadow of various mental health hospitals has infused his work and his description of the plights and suffering of his victims at the hands of their oppressors.
And so, in this light, I think to describe Adler-Olson's work as "torture porn," is misinformed and misguided. It is true that gratuitous violence permeates almost every part of our culture, especially our entertainment. Every time I fast forward through a TV show, close my eyes in a movie, or skip through a particularly graphic description of violence in a book, I think to myself - "Why in the hell am I watching/reading this?" I tell myself that it's because the rest of the story is so interesting, but I'm aware of, confused, and disturbed by my ability to tolerate greater degrees and amounts of violence. The idea that I could actually find that violence entertaining is perverse.
However, I don't think Adler-Olson's work falls into the category of gratuitous violence that serves no purpose other than to entertain. There is nothing sensationalized about his descriptions of Merete's experiences. Her captivity reminded me of a psychiatric patient in solitary confinement; a lab rat subjected to sadistic experiments that serve no purpose other than to fulfill the capricious whims of its captors. I have no doubt that Adler-Olson's own experiences have infused his work and I feel certain that I am not alone in my reaction to it. In this light, while his depiction of Merete's degradation is brutal in its honesty - the courage, determination and strength she demonstrates is all the more remarkable. He illuminates her spirit. In doing so, Adler-Olson shines a light on all that is good in humanity, even when it is faced with unimaginable evil.
And at the end of the day, it is the brightness of Merete's soul that I will remember best from "The Keeper of Lost Causes."
Show Less
LibraryThing member 1gerigraves
refreshing story line, not the usual cop shop for sure, all the threads weave together to create
a fascinating tapestry.
a fascinating tapestry.
LibraryThing member RidgewayGirl
This is the first in another crime series by a Scandinavian author and featuring a detective who does not work well with others. A Danish detective was involved in an incident in which one officer died and another was left paralyzed. He's shunted into a basement room and promoted to head up
The first case they tackle is that of a Danish politician who disappeared on a ferry crossing to Germany and who was assumed to have fallen overboard. She was actually abducted, and the reasons are revealed slowly, over the course of the book. The Keeper of Lost Causes fits well with the other translated Scandinavian crime series and I'll be happy when the next installation is released.
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"Department Q", a sort of cold case squad with a head count of two; him and the immigrant sent to make his coffee and sweep up. The first case they tackle is that of a Danish politician who disappeared on a ferry crossing to Germany and who was assumed to have fallen overboard. She was actually abducted, and the reasons are revealed slowly, over the course of the book. The Keeper of Lost Causes fits well with the other translated Scandinavian crime series and I'll be happy when the next installation is released.
Show Less
LibraryThing member froxgirl
Hooray for a new Scandinavian detective series! This one is set in Denmark, allegedly the happiest country in the world after Bhutan, but it's still pretty dark. The book cover is a blatant ripoff of Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, but the main character here is a sexist and difficult detective who is
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in recovery from a shooting where one of his partners was killed and one paralyzed. Carl Morck holds himself responsible for the killer's escape. Because he's impossible to work with but effective, he gets banished to the basement and to a new Department Q for cold cases that remain politically hot. His admin Assad is a man of mystery who proves to have skills beyond cooking spicy MidEastern food and cleaning. Their first case is that of a politician, Merete Lynggaard, who has been missing for almost five years and who also has a dreadful life altering event in her background. The suspense level starts low and ratchets up steadily, building to a most satisfying outcome and to the next in the Department Q series. I can't wait! Show Less
LibraryThing member wbwilburn5
Loved this book, great characters. Definitely want to read more by this author.
LibraryThing member Suzanne_Mitchell
Love this series
The #1 international bestseller from Jussi Adler-Olsen, author of The Absent One—perfect for fans of Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Carl Mørck used to be one of Copenhagen’s best homicide detectives. Then a hail of bullets destroyed the lives of two fellow
Darkly humorous, propulsive, and atmospheric, The Keeper of Lost Causes introduces American readers to the mega-bestselling series fast becoming an international sensation.
The #1 international bestseller from Jussi Adler-Olsen, author of The Absent One—perfect for fans of Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Carl Mørck used to be one of Copenhagen’s best homicide detectives. Then a hail of bullets destroyed the lives of two fellow
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cops, and Carl—who didn’t draw his weapon—blames himself. So a promotion is the last thing he expects. But Department Q is a department of one, and Carl’s got only a stack of Copenhagen’s coldest cases for company. His colleagues snicker, but Carl may have the last laugh, because one file keeps nagging at him: a liberal politician vanished five years earlier and is presumed dead. But she isn’t dead … yet.Darkly humorous, propulsive, and atmospheric, The Keeper of Lost Causes introduces American readers to the mega-bestselling series fast becoming an international sensation.
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LibraryThing member mausergem
This is a Scandinavian crime fiction. This is a police procedural. Carl Morck was a detective with the Copenhagen police squad. In a shooting incidence Carl had lost a partner and his other partner was paralyzed. Carl after returning to his regular duties was being difficult and hence what made the
A good crime thriller. And moreover it's the first installment of a series.
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chief of a new department called department Q which dealt with high-profile cold cases. The first case which he investigates is of Merete Lynggaard an upcoming young politician who suddenly disappeared while on a ferry. On deeper investigation Carl and his assistant Assad discover various discrepancies in the previous investigations and discover certain new things. The story ends with a thrilling climax. A good crime thriller. And moreover it's the first installment of a series.
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LibraryThing member DeltaQueen50
The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen interested me right from the start, the author allows the story to build slowly but as the tension mounts I found the pages turning faster and faster. This is an excellent thriller with dark undertones, a combination of painstaking detective work
Merete Lynngaard is a well known political figure in Denmark and her disappearance in 2002 was a huge story. But by 2007 when this case becomes the first cold case to be investigated by the newly formed Q Department,, it had quietly faded. Detective Carl Morck was positive she was long dead, probably a suicide. As the pieces are slowly put together, a truly horrifying picture emerges and soon Morck and his assistant, Assad, are in a race against time.
The author has delivered a top-notch, original story and peopled it with vivid characters. Both the damaged Carl Morck and his mysterious assistant Assad have a lot more to reveal and, with the quality of this story to go by, I can see that this is a series I will enjoy following.
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alongside a ticking clock as the readers become aware that there is a definite timeline at work here. Merete Lynngaard is a well known political figure in Denmark and her disappearance in 2002 was a huge story. But by 2007 when this case becomes the first cold case to be investigated by the newly formed Q Department,, it had quietly faded. Detective Carl Morck was positive she was long dead, probably a suicide. As the pieces are slowly put together, a truly horrifying picture emerges and soon Morck and his assistant, Assad, are in a race against time.
The author has delivered a top-notch, original story and peopled it with vivid characters. Both the damaged Carl Morck and his mysterious assistant Assad have a lot more to reveal and, with the quality of this story to go by, I can see that this is a series I will enjoy following.
Show Less
LibraryThing member majkia
Carl Morck is just back to work with the detective bureau in Copenhagen. He was shot, one partner killed and another paralyzed from the neck down. To say he’s depressed and feeling guilty is no stretch of the imagination. He’s burned out, tired, and just wants out. Instead he finds himself
His only employee, a naturalized citizen from Syria, who is supposed to have been hired to clean, ends up pushing Carl into picking up one of the cases, that of a missing female politician. Carl reluctantly begins to look at the case, but is drawn into it, more by the cleaners plan than by his own, until he begins to think he might have found out where the first investigation went wrong.
Very very noir mystery. Grim situation, horrible bad guys, and a detective who’s barely hanging on to his own sanity, all come together for a nail-biting conclusion.
Great characterization and a fascinating slow but steady build to the finale.
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promoted to head up a new division. He’s locked away in the basement, away from everyone and left to stew alone, with a pile of old unsolved cases. His only employee, a naturalized citizen from Syria, who is supposed to have been hired to clean, ends up pushing Carl into picking up one of the cases, that of a missing female politician. Carl reluctantly begins to look at the case, but is drawn into it, more by the cleaners plan than by his own, until he begins to think he might have found out where the first investigation went wrong.
Very very noir mystery. Grim situation, horrible bad guys, and a detective who’s barely hanging on to his own sanity, all come together for a nail-biting conclusion.
Great characterization and a fascinating slow but steady build to the finale.
Show Less
LibraryThing member lkernagh
I don't as a general rule read police procedural or gritty crime novels. I watch them on TV but usually I don't read them. My attention is prone to wander when a crime novel gets bogged down in details that don't interest me. Having finally gotten around to reading the Stieg Larsson Millennium
Adler-Olsen takes his time in framing his characters and the crime for the reader. The reveals are gradual, one piece of information at a time, and the story progresses at a more moderate, dare I say, sedate pace. Now, I like a story that has a slow build and takes it time with me. It makes it a lot easier for me to read the book in intervals spread out over time and not feel as thought I have to backtrack and refresh my memory when I do come back to it. I also like stories that are a bit of a mental puzzle to figure out. If I were to compare book one of the Larsson trilogy with this first book in a series I would have to say that while I prefer Larsson's characters, in particular the enigmatic Lisbeth Salander, Adler-Olsen has provided a better crime puzzle, IMO, to mentally analyze and figure out. For me, reading [The Keeper of Lost Causes] fit into my comfort zone as a read because I found it to be an interesting blending of the Larsson books with one of my favorite British TV series New Tricks, a cop show that follows the work of the fictional Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad for the London Metropolitan Police as they investigate old unsolved crimes.
For those of you who haven't already read this one, the ending makes the rather slow pace of the story worth while. Adler-Olsen has also left a lot of unfinished business as it relates to Carl Mørck, a character I admit to having difficulties to warm up to. While I wasn't riveted to the story, I found it to be a very satisfying read and I will continue with the series as I want to see how things progress in Department Q with Carl and Assad.
Best of all, this one contains the following fantastic book quote:
"She'd been lying on the floor thinking about books. That was something she often did in order not to think about the life she might have had, if only she'd made different choices. When she thought about books, she could move into a whole different world. Just remembering the feeling of the dry surface and inexplicable roughness of the paper could ignite a blaze of yearning inside of her. The scent of evaporated cellulose and printer's ink. Thousands of times now she'd sent her thoughts into her imaginary library and selected the only book in the world that she knew she could recall without embellishing it. It was not the one she wanted to remember, not even the one that had made the greatest impression on her. But it was the only book that had remained completely intact in her tortured memory because of the liberating bursts of laughter she associated with it.
A great big smile came to my face when the I discovered what book was being referred to by this quote.
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Trilogy last year, I can see where some novels of this type has a certain appeal. While Larsson and Adler-Olsen each place their own stamp on the crime novels they have written, they do have similarities that made it easy for me to make a side-by-side comparison of their first books. One characteristic both books share is the focus on the person and not the process. My preference is to read about complex characters and not the actual nitty-gritty of police work. Adler-Olsen provides my psychologically-driven mind with enough information to keep my mind in analysis mode regarding Carl's very dark and moody persona and his damaged past while at the same time providing a rather entertaining assistant in Assad, a political-refugee immigrant with a mysterious past of his own. Adler-Olsen takes his time in framing his characters and the crime for the reader. The reveals are gradual, one piece of information at a time, and the story progresses at a more moderate, dare I say, sedate pace. Now, I like a story that has a slow build and takes it time with me. It makes it a lot easier for me to read the book in intervals spread out over time and not feel as thought I have to backtrack and refresh my memory when I do come back to it. I also like stories that are a bit of a mental puzzle to figure out. If I were to compare book one of the Larsson trilogy with this first book in a series I would have to say that while I prefer Larsson's characters, in particular the enigmatic Lisbeth Salander, Adler-Olsen has provided a better crime puzzle, IMO, to mentally analyze and figure out. For me, reading [The Keeper of Lost Causes] fit into my comfort zone as a read because I found it to be an interesting blending of the Larsson books with one of my favorite British TV series New Tricks, a cop show that follows the work of the fictional Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad for the London Metropolitan Police as they investigate old unsolved crimes.
For those of you who haven't already read this one, the ending makes the rather slow pace of the story worth while. Adler-Olsen has also left a lot of unfinished business as it relates to Carl Mørck, a character I admit to having difficulties to warm up to. While I wasn't riveted to the story, I found it to be a very satisfying read and I will continue with the series as I want to see how things progress in Department Q with Carl and Assad.
Best of all, this one contains the following fantastic book quote:
"She'd been lying on the floor thinking about books. That was something she often did in order not to think about the life she might have had, if only she'd made different choices. When she thought about books, she could move into a whole different world. Just remembering the feeling of the dry surface and inexplicable roughness of the paper could ignite a blaze of yearning inside of her. The scent of evaporated cellulose and printer's ink. Thousands of times now she'd sent her thoughts into her imaginary library and selected the only book in the world that she knew she could recall without embellishing it. It was not the one she wanted to remember, not even the one that had made the greatest impression on her. But it was the only book that had remained completely intact in her tortured memory because of the liberating bursts of laughter she associated with it.
A great big smile came to my face when the I discovered what book was being referred to by this quote.
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LibraryThing member cay250
Five years after Danish stateswoman Merete Lynggaard vanished without a trace from a ferry crossing, Danish detective Carl Mørck head of the two man Department Q, reopens the cold case. Assistant Carl is an enigmatic Syrian refugee Hafez al-Assad. Comparison to Stieg Larsson is inevitable but I
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think this novel can stand on its own merit. Show Less
LibraryThing member cameling
A liberal politician, is last seen on a ship with her disabled brother. Her brother is later found wandering,confused and hungry. Nobody is able to get him to speak and he is sent to an institution.
Carl Mørck, a homicide detective, who blames himself for the death of one of his colleagues and the
Alternating between present day and a period covering the previous 5 years, the mystery surrounding the disappearance of Merete, the politician, is slowly unraveled. But the mystery has its roots in her past, of a vengeance born out of madness and an accident. Will the mystery be solved before more harm is caused?
The delicate web of tension is skillfully spun and I was held a willing captive.
Carl Mørck, a homicide detective, who blames himself for the death of one of his colleagues and the
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crippling shooting of another, now finds himself shunted away in a basement, head of a new department. Department Q is to solve cold cases, and Mørck and his assistant, a mysterious but ever helpful Assad are the only employees in Department Q. With a large stack of cold case files in front of him, Mørck finds himself drawn into the puzzle surrounding the missing politician. Alternating between present day and a period covering the previous 5 years, the mystery surrounding the disappearance of Merete, the politician, is slowly unraveled. But the mystery has its roots in her past, of a vengeance born out of madness and an accident. Will the mystery be solved before more harm is caused?
The delicate web of tension is skillfully spun and I was held a willing captive.
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LibraryThing member TheBoltChick
Carl MØrck was once one of the premier homicide detectives in all of Copenhagen. One day a bullet nearly ends his life. One of his colleagues dies in the incident, and the other is paralyzed. Carl blames himself because he never fired his weapon. When Carl returns to work, he is put in charge of a
Carl requests an assistant because after all someone needs to make coffee and clean up. Carl himself is perfectly content to just sit back with his feet on the desk. Carl's assistant is much more than a housekeeper, though. Assad is more like a jack of all trades, and very interested in the workings of the new department. Carl ultimately takes a case not from his own motivation, but because he wants to keep Assad busy.
The case is of Merete Lyngaard, a politically connected woman who disappeared five years earlier while on a trip with her mentally challenged, mute brother. Everyone presumes her to be dead, but with Assad's prompting, soon Carl's motivation to get to the bottom of the disappearance is reinvigorated.
I listened to this book in audio form, and I must say I got through it in spite of the narrator. While I am certain he is probably marvelously successful in reading other books, I found his Danish accents annoying. Honestly, would Danish people in Denmark speak to each other in English with a Danish accent? And every time he spoke in Assad's voice, I felt I was listening to Count Dracula.
Narration aside, this is an excellent book. The suspense starts in the very beginning, as we are introduced to Merete Lyngaard immediately. She becomes not just a cold case, but a living breathing character in which the reader is wholly invested. The book takes us back and forth from 2002 to 2007, keeping both time periods fresh in our minds. There is a fair amount of torture and just plain twisted stuff going on, so the story is not for the squeamish. But for those out there who, like me, love edge-of-your-seat suspense, this is an excellent read. I can't wait for the second book in the series to come out.
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new department that investigates cold cases. He isn't just in charge, he is the whole department... and is relegated to the basement.Carl requests an assistant because after all someone needs to make coffee and clean up. Carl himself is perfectly content to just sit back with his feet on the desk. Carl's assistant is much more than a housekeeper, though. Assad is more like a jack of all trades, and very interested in the workings of the new department. Carl ultimately takes a case not from his own motivation, but because he wants to keep Assad busy.
The case is of Merete Lyngaard, a politically connected woman who disappeared five years earlier while on a trip with her mentally challenged, mute brother. Everyone presumes her to be dead, but with Assad's prompting, soon Carl's motivation to get to the bottom of the disappearance is reinvigorated.
I listened to this book in audio form, and I must say I got through it in spite of the narrator. While I am certain he is probably marvelously successful in reading other books, I found his Danish accents annoying. Honestly, would Danish people in Denmark speak to each other in English with a Danish accent? And every time he spoke in Assad's voice, I felt I was listening to Count Dracula.
Narration aside, this is an excellent book. The suspense starts in the very beginning, as we are introduced to Merete Lyngaard immediately. She becomes not just a cold case, but a living breathing character in which the reader is wholly invested. The book takes us back and forth from 2002 to 2007, keeping both time periods fresh in our minds. There is a fair amount of torture and just plain twisted stuff going on, so the story is not for the squeamish. But for those out there who, like me, love edge-of-your-seat suspense, this is an excellent read. I can't wait for the second book in the series to come out.
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LibraryThing member maneekuhi
DISCOVERING A SERIES THAT'S BEEN AROUND A WHILE....
I bought a paperback edition of this book in 2011 and never read it - the book always sunk to the bottom of my pile. When I recently read a very favorable comment about author Adler-Olsen I thought I'd give the series a try and finally read the
In one of the early chapters, Danish police detective, irascible Carl Morck, and two fellow officers are shot while investigating a homicide. Carl's recovery is painful; one of his colleagues is dead, the other severely disabled. Upon his return to duty, Carl is promoted - he is named head of the new, one man Dept. Q. His office is in the (unoccupied, unfurnished, uneverything) basement of police headquarters. Carl's been around more than a few years and before too long he has some budget dollars; he's even been assigned support, a walk-in-off-the-street named Assad. Their mission - cold cases. Their orders - prioritize the files and pick one to start with. There first case will be the five year old kidnapping of a young and up and coming attractive political leader; her body has never been found.
And the case begins. And here's where I got lost a bit. Do yourself a favor and note the characters' names, especially those that had contact with the victim. The devil is in the details here. KLC is an excellent story, well paced, good tensions, nice turns here and there, and a rather novel imprisonment scheme - you'll learn more about Bernoulli's principle than even Bernoulli wanted to know. But it's always great to learn something new in a crime fiction novel, right? For those of you that don't have a Masters in Physics, no worries, you can skim occasional yawny paragraphs and still not miss a heartbeat (pun). The ending is a tad melodramatic but that's only a minor blip in my book.
Perhaps you are thinking "No, not another gloomy, wintry, depressing Scandinavian mystery". No, absolutely not. The entire story has a bit of a light tone, lots of smile moments, and at least one laugh-out-loud. Why? Assad. Yes, Assad, perhaps one of the great sidekicks of all times. As a matter of fact I will read more books in this series because of Assad. He ranks with the greats - Siobhan Clark, Dr. Watson, Sam Ketchum, Nellie Fox, Oreo cream filling. No, I'm not going to give examples. You have to read him in context. You will like Assad very much.
I have a lot of confidence that this is a very good series; I expect to read a number of the remaining books, likely all of them, but we'll see. Take a look at Amazon's rankings and the number of reviews for each. KLC has 955 reviews and a 4.4 rating (did you know that if you hold your mouse pointer over Amazon stars it will show you the decimal rating e.g. 4.4 and the distribution of each star category?) The second book (see fantasticfiction.com for a chrono list) is 4.2 and 587 reviews; I believe it is the lowest rated and 4.2 is very good, so the quality of the series is very even.. The third book is 4.5 with 477 reviews; the three remaining books which have been released for at least a year have between 400 and 450 reviews and comparable ratings as above. Conclusion - even though there is the usual dropoff after the very first in the series, the subsequent reviews are high in volume for crime fiction and the ratings are very stable. "If it walks like a winner, and talks like a winner..."
I bought a paperback edition of this book in 2011 and never read it - the book always sunk to the bottom of my pile. When I recently read a very favorable comment about author Adler-Olsen I thought I'd give the series a try and finally read the
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first, "Keeper of Lost Causes" KLC. (Couldn't find the #$%^@* paperback, bought the Kindle version). It was worth the investment! There are currently seven books in the series. All of them are well rated (for the Analytics amongst you be sure to read my last para.)In one of the early chapters, Danish police detective, irascible Carl Morck, and two fellow officers are shot while investigating a homicide. Carl's recovery is painful; one of his colleagues is dead, the other severely disabled. Upon his return to duty, Carl is promoted - he is named head of the new, one man Dept. Q. His office is in the (unoccupied, unfurnished, uneverything) basement of police headquarters. Carl's been around more than a few years and before too long he has some budget dollars; he's even been assigned support, a walk-in-off-the-street named Assad. Their mission - cold cases. Their orders - prioritize the files and pick one to start with. There first case will be the five year old kidnapping of a young and up and coming attractive political leader; her body has never been found.
And the case begins. And here's where I got lost a bit. Do yourself a favor and note the characters' names, especially those that had contact with the victim. The devil is in the details here. KLC is an excellent story, well paced, good tensions, nice turns here and there, and a rather novel imprisonment scheme - you'll learn more about Bernoulli's principle than even Bernoulli wanted to know. But it's always great to learn something new in a crime fiction novel, right? For those of you that don't have a Masters in Physics, no worries, you can skim occasional yawny paragraphs and still not miss a heartbeat (pun). The ending is a tad melodramatic but that's only a minor blip in my book.
Perhaps you are thinking "No, not another gloomy, wintry, depressing Scandinavian mystery". No, absolutely not. The entire story has a bit of a light tone, lots of smile moments, and at least one laugh-out-loud. Why? Assad. Yes, Assad, perhaps one of the great sidekicks of all times. As a matter of fact I will read more books in this series because of Assad. He ranks with the greats - Siobhan Clark, Dr. Watson, Sam Ketchum, Nellie Fox, Oreo cream filling. No, I'm not going to give examples. You have to read him in context. You will like Assad very much.
I have a lot of confidence that this is a very good series; I expect to read a number of the remaining books, likely all of them, but we'll see. Take a look at Amazon's rankings and the number of reviews for each. KLC has 955 reviews and a 4.4 rating (did you know that if you hold your mouse pointer over Amazon stars it will show you the decimal rating e.g. 4.4 and the distribution of each star category?) The second book (see fantasticfiction.com for a chrono list) is 4.2 and 587 reviews; I believe it is the lowest rated and 4.2 is very good, so the quality of the series is very even.. The third book is 4.5 with 477 reviews; the three remaining books which have been released for at least a year have between 400 and 450 reviews and comparable ratings as above. Conclusion - even though there is the usual dropoff after the very first in the series, the subsequent reviews are high in volume for crime fiction and the ratings are very stable. "If it walks like a winner, and talks like a winner..."
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LibraryThing member lauri804
It should be enough to say that I read it in one day. That I liked it as much as a Stieg Larsson book. That the lead character was a detective so loveable he reminded me of John Rebus in Ian Rankin's novels. That the last hundred or so pages could not go fast enough, just to see what was going to
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happen. And the sidekick should have his own TV series. Is that enough ? Show Less
LibraryThing member EdGoldberg
In 2002, Merete Lynggaard, a prominent Danish politician, went missing on a car ferry from Denmark to Germany. She left behind her younger brother, Uffie, who had not spoken for 15 years, since an automobile accident they were involved in took their parents’ lives. Merete hasn’t been heard from
In 2007, unpopular Police Detective Carl Morck was involved in a shooting in which one of his partners died and the other is in critical condition, probably paralyzed for life. Upon his return from medical leave, his boss Marcus Jacobsen couldn’t figure out what to do with him. Luckily, Parliament granted the police department an appropriation to create a department to re-examine cold cases, Department Q. Locate it in the basement which would minimize the risk of Morck interacting with other policemen and it would be a perfect place for Morck who can be abrasive at times.
Forced to chose a case to work on, Morck and his Syrian assistant Hafez al-Assad, unintentionally pick the Lynggaard disappearance–high profile and never solved. Morck initially shows no interest in the case but as Assad uncovers interesting information, Morck begins a real investigation.
Of course the officer who handled the initial call was the bumbling Bak. And, of course, Morck and Assad find many avenues of inquiry never pursued during the initial investigation.
Adler-Olsen has created a good detective in Morck and his comical sidekick Assad. Morck is the Danish version of the chain smoking brooding cop we’ve all come to know and love in American crime fiction. He’s estranged from his wife who lives in a cottage next door. His stepson lives upstairs and sponges off Morck and he’s got a finicky tenant who lives in the basement.
The Keeper of Lost Causes has an interesting premise which I won’t tell you about since it will spoil the fun. Adler-Olsen does go back and forth between 2002 and 2007 but that merely enhances the plot. Readers will be guessing until almost the end about ‘who done it’.
Although I enjoyed The Keeper of Lost Causes and would read the next book in this 5 book series, I did find it a slower read than most mysteries, even the other Nordic translations I’ve read. Possibly a little tighter editing might have helped, but all in all, it’s a good series.
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since and it is presumed she went overboard and drowned.In 2007, unpopular Police Detective Carl Morck was involved in a shooting in which one of his partners died and the other is in critical condition, probably paralyzed for life. Upon his return from medical leave, his boss Marcus Jacobsen couldn’t figure out what to do with him. Luckily, Parliament granted the police department an appropriation to create a department to re-examine cold cases, Department Q. Locate it in the basement which would minimize the risk of Morck interacting with other policemen and it would be a perfect place for Morck who can be abrasive at times.
Forced to chose a case to work on, Morck and his Syrian assistant Hafez al-Assad, unintentionally pick the Lynggaard disappearance–high profile and never solved. Morck initially shows no interest in the case but as Assad uncovers interesting information, Morck begins a real investigation.
Of course the officer who handled the initial call was the bumbling Bak. And, of course, Morck and Assad find many avenues of inquiry never pursued during the initial investigation.
Adler-Olsen has created a good detective in Morck and his comical sidekick Assad. Morck is the Danish version of the chain smoking brooding cop we’ve all come to know and love in American crime fiction. He’s estranged from his wife who lives in a cottage next door. His stepson lives upstairs and sponges off Morck and he’s got a finicky tenant who lives in the basement.
The Keeper of Lost Causes has an interesting premise which I won’t tell you about since it will spoil the fun. Adler-Olsen does go back and forth between 2002 and 2007 but that merely enhances the plot. Readers will be guessing until almost the end about ‘who done it’.
Although I enjoyed The Keeper of Lost Causes and would read the next book in this 5 book series, I did find it a slower read than most mysteries, even the other Nordic translations I’ve read. Possibly a little tighter editing might have helped, but all in all, it’s a good series.
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LibraryThing member bas615
I just loved this book. It has just about everything I want from a mystery. The story is tense and taut with little superfluous writing. The character development is phenomenal. Carl is one of the best characters I have read about in quite a while. He is tormented like many other Scandinavian
While the crime and Carl's back story are both quite dark, the book is very enjoyable. I can't say much more than that I enjoyed it greatly and I think any other mystery fan will too. The only downside is having to wait for new installments in the series to come out now that I am hooked.
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detectives recently. But something about him makes him more enjoyable to read. Assad is an excellent addition and their relationship is quite fun.While the crime and Carl's back story are both quite dark, the book is very enjoyable. I can't say much more than that I enjoyed it greatly and I think any other mystery fan will too. The only downside is having to wait for new installments in the series to come out now that I am hooked.
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LibraryThing member cmwilson101
The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen is an excellent, beautifully written, thought-provoking novel featuring deeply disturbed chief detective Carl MØrck, who has just returned to work after a shooting incident which left him injured, another detective paralyzed, and another dead. The
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department doesn't know what to do with the bitter and sarcastic Carl, so they promote him to Dept. Q, a new section intended to solve cold cases. Carl is given new immigrant Assad as secretary/helper, but quickly discovers that the cheerful and simple-seeming man has a natural instinct for detecting. The two work on a cold case involving a missing politician. It's wonderful to watch the relationship between Assad and Carl develop as they work on the case together. Looking forward to more Dept. Q stories. Show Less
LibraryThing member KarenHerndon
This was a very well written detective story that keep me interested and not wanting to put the book down even though I figured out who-dun- it probably a third of the way through. I will definitely read more by this author :)
LibraryThing member smik
By 2007 Carl Monck had been in the Danish police force for 25 years. He was once an experienced criminal investigator who lived and breathed for his work. He used to be an elegant man whom people noticed. But all that changed the day he and his team were sent to a murder investigation where hidden
Six months on, Monck is back at work but a bit of an embarrassment that his superiors don't how to handle. The answer comes in the shape of a new section, Department Q, that Monck will head, that will deal only with unsolved crimes designated as cases "deserving special scrutiny."
The first case Monck decides to deal with is a high profile one of popular politician Merete Lynggaard who vanished from a ferry from Germany docking in Copenhagen Harbour in 2002. Successfully solving this case will be a big feather in the cap for Department Q.
Department Q consists of Carl Monck and his assistant, a political refugee from Syria, a civilian called Hafez el-Assad. Assad is primarily meant to do clerical and cleaning duties but as Monck increasingly involves him in the investigation, it becomes obvious that Assad has experience and talents no-one knows about. They make an unlikely but strangely complementary detective duo.
Their investigation into Merete Lynggaard's disappearance reveals elementary pathways that the original team missed and sloppy methodology. As they begin to make progress, the investigation into the shooting of Monck's team six months before ramps up, and Monck himself has panic attacks over what it will reveal.
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snipers killed one them, paralysed a second, and took away Monck's fire.Six months on, Monck is back at work but a bit of an embarrassment that his superiors don't how to handle. The answer comes in the shape of a new section, Department Q, that Monck will head, that will deal only with unsolved crimes designated as cases "deserving special scrutiny."
The first case Monck decides to deal with is a high profile one of popular politician Merete Lynggaard who vanished from a ferry from Germany docking in Copenhagen Harbour in 2002. Successfully solving this case will be a big feather in the cap for Department Q.
Department Q consists of Carl Monck and his assistant, a political refugee from Syria, a civilian called Hafez el-Assad. Assad is primarily meant to do clerical and cleaning duties but as Monck increasingly involves him in the investigation, it becomes obvious that Assad has experience and talents no-one knows about. They make an unlikely but strangely complementary detective duo.
Their investigation into Merete Lynggaard's disappearance reveals elementary pathways that the original team missed and sloppy methodology. As they begin to make progress, the investigation into the shooting of Monck's team six months before ramps up, and Monck himself has panic attacks over what it will reveal.
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LibraryThing member SamSattler
The best writers of crime fiction, those whose work is translated into a dozen or so languages every time out, have a way of reminding the reader of just how much we all have in common. These authors do not settle for writing a series of formulaic whodunits. They, instead, develop complex,
Chief Detective Carl Morck was one of Copenhagen’s finest policemen for a long, long time. That all changed on the day that Morck and his two partners were ambushed at the scene of a murder they had just begun to investigate. When the shooting finally stopped, one cop was dead, one was paralyzed, and Morck blamed himself for letting it happen. Now finally back on the job, Morck is so grumpy, cynical, and uncooperative that no one, including his direct superiors, really wants to work with him. So, spying the opportunity to get rid of Morck by promoting him to a dead end job while, at the same time, locking in a larger departmental budget for themselves, the higher-ups jump all over it.
Thus does newly created Department Q, a one-man, cold-case shop located deep in the department’s basement, become Carl Morck’s baby. Only after tiring of reading magazines and working Sudoku puzzles (and learning about the extra money allocated to the department on his behalf), does Morck demand that someone be hired to make coffee and organize the departmental files. He gets more than he bargains for in Hafez al-Assad, a political refugee from somewhere in the Middle East who seems to think that he has been hired as an investigator, not as a broom-pusher.
When, as much to humor Assad as anything else, Morck agrees that they should study a five-year-old file involving the disappearance of a prominent Danish politician, he is surprised that the case actually captures his interest. Merete Lynggaard was a beautiful woman with unlimited political upside when she disappeared from her holiday ferryboat but, despite her high profile, no trace of her was ever found and it has been assumed that she either fell or jumped to her death. The more Morck learns from the file, the less he is impressed by the original investigation into the woman’s disappearance. Might she still be alive after all this time?
The Keeper of Lost Things is a definite thriller, a real race against the clock in every sense, but its particular strength is in the unusual relationship it portrays between Danish detective Carl Morck and mysterious Middle Eastern refugee Hafez al-Assad. Morck is a burned-out cop and Assad is a man who was hired for his coffee-making and janitorial skills – but together they add up to something much greater than the sum of their parts. They become one of the most effective, and one of the most entertaining, crime fighting teams in modern crime fiction. This one is fun.
Rated at: 4.0
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imperfect characters whose personal side-stories are often as interesting as the mystery within which they are intertwined – and they use setting as if it were another main character. In recent years, so many Scandinavian and Icelandic crime thriller writers have found success in the U.S. that they have carved out their own little subgenre. Now, it is time to welcome Danish writer Jussi Adler-Olsen, author of The Keeper of Lost Things, to the club.Chief Detective Carl Morck was one of Copenhagen’s finest policemen for a long, long time. That all changed on the day that Morck and his two partners were ambushed at the scene of a murder they had just begun to investigate. When the shooting finally stopped, one cop was dead, one was paralyzed, and Morck blamed himself for letting it happen. Now finally back on the job, Morck is so grumpy, cynical, and uncooperative that no one, including his direct superiors, really wants to work with him. So, spying the opportunity to get rid of Morck by promoting him to a dead end job while, at the same time, locking in a larger departmental budget for themselves, the higher-ups jump all over it.
Thus does newly created Department Q, a one-man, cold-case shop located deep in the department’s basement, become Carl Morck’s baby. Only after tiring of reading magazines and working Sudoku puzzles (and learning about the extra money allocated to the department on his behalf), does Morck demand that someone be hired to make coffee and organize the departmental files. He gets more than he bargains for in Hafez al-Assad, a political refugee from somewhere in the Middle East who seems to think that he has been hired as an investigator, not as a broom-pusher.
When, as much to humor Assad as anything else, Morck agrees that they should study a five-year-old file involving the disappearance of a prominent Danish politician, he is surprised that the case actually captures his interest. Merete Lynggaard was a beautiful woman with unlimited political upside when she disappeared from her holiday ferryboat but, despite her high profile, no trace of her was ever found and it has been assumed that she either fell or jumped to her death. The more Morck learns from the file, the less he is impressed by the original investigation into the woman’s disappearance. Might she still be alive after all this time?
The Keeper of Lost Things is a definite thriller, a real race against the clock in every sense, but its particular strength is in the unusual relationship it portrays between Danish detective Carl Morck and mysterious Middle Eastern refugee Hafez al-Assad. Morck is a burned-out cop and Assad is a man who was hired for his coffee-making and janitorial skills – but together they add up to something much greater than the sum of their parts. They become one of the most effective, and one of the most entertaining, crime fighting teams in modern crime fiction. This one is fun.
Rated at: 4.0
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LibraryThing member BookDivasReads
There has been much hype and hoopla written The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen and it is all well deserved in my opinion. Some books that are best sellers in one language and subsequently translated seem to lose a bit in the translation process. I can only say that if The Keeper of Lost
The story begins by introducing Carl Morck, a police investigator. Carl is recovering from a shooting that has seriously injured one of his partners and killed the other. Now that he is back at work, his attitude results in no one wanting to work with him. So his bosses promote him to the newly crafted Department Q, a national cold case file department. The intention is anything but a promotion. The hope is to exile and silence Morck until he either retires or quits. Morck is assisted in Department Q by a non-police employee and Syrian refugee, Hafez Al-Assad (even Morck finds it interesting that his assistant has the name of the deceased Syrian President). Initially Morck isn't very interested in doing much of anything other than biding his time in his basement banishment. Eventually he is forced into picking a case and launches an investigation into the disappearance/murder/suicide/accident of Merete Lynggard.
Ms. Lynggard was a Member of Parliament and she disappeared five years earlier while on a ferry. It is presumed she was either the victim of foul play, she accidentally fell overboard, she committed suicide or she has simply taken off to parts unknown. The few people that know her realize she would never kill herself or take off and leave her disabled brother Uffe behind. Both she and Uffe survived a horrible car accident as young teenagers that took the lives of both of their parents and occupants of another vehicle. Merete walked away without permanent injury but Uffe suffered brain damage. She has been taking care of Uffe ever since.
The investigation in Merete's case starts off with little care or consideration by Morck. However, Hafez is quite excited to be participating in a police investigation and prods and pushes to get Morck more involved, primarily by asking questions and providing information. One of the things that kept my attention was the constant switching between Morck and Merete's points of views. The suspense is allowed to gradually build until the very end. I found the beginning a little slow but after reading a few chapters the pace picks up. The characters are all interesting and have the right amount of quirkiness to make them believable. Although this is slightly longer in length, over 400 pages, it is worth reading. The Keeper of Lost Causes is scheduled to be released on August 18, 2011, if you don't have this on your TBR list and you enjoy mystery-suspense novels add it. I'm looking forward to getting this in ebook format when it's released.
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Causes has lost anything in the translation process, good riddance. The story begins by introducing Carl Morck, a police investigator. Carl is recovering from a shooting that has seriously injured one of his partners and killed the other. Now that he is back at work, his attitude results in no one wanting to work with him. So his bosses promote him to the newly crafted Department Q, a national cold case file department. The intention is anything but a promotion. The hope is to exile and silence Morck until he either retires or quits. Morck is assisted in Department Q by a non-police employee and Syrian refugee, Hafez Al-Assad (even Morck finds it interesting that his assistant has the name of the deceased Syrian President). Initially Morck isn't very interested in doing much of anything other than biding his time in his basement banishment. Eventually he is forced into picking a case and launches an investigation into the disappearance/murder/suicide/accident of Merete Lynggard.
Ms. Lynggard was a Member of Parliament and she disappeared five years earlier while on a ferry. It is presumed she was either the victim of foul play, she accidentally fell overboard, she committed suicide or she has simply taken off to parts unknown. The few people that know her realize she would never kill herself or take off and leave her disabled brother Uffe behind. Both she and Uffe survived a horrible car accident as young teenagers that took the lives of both of their parents and occupants of another vehicle. Merete walked away without permanent injury but Uffe suffered brain damage. She has been taking care of Uffe ever since.
The investigation in Merete's case starts off with little care or consideration by Morck. However, Hafez is quite excited to be participating in a police investigation and prods and pushes to get Morck more involved, primarily by asking questions and providing information. One of the things that kept my attention was the constant switching between Morck and Merete's points of views. The suspense is allowed to gradually build until the very end. I found the beginning a little slow but after reading a few chapters the pace picks up. The characters are all interesting and have the right amount of quirkiness to make them believable. Although this is slightly longer in length, over 400 pages, it is worth reading. The Keeper of Lost Causes is scheduled to be released on August 18, 2011, if you don't have this on your TBR list and you enjoy mystery-suspense novels add it. I'm looking forward to getting this in ebook format when it's released.
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LibraryThing member bfister
A woman is held in captivity; a detective is sidelined with a new job (running Department Q, a cold case squad of one) and a seemingly incompetent assistant from Syria. The assistant turns out to be sharp, the cases not so cold, and the woman quite a hardy specimen. I was disposed to hate the book
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given its prologue, but by the end I was won over. A Dane proves there is humor in Scandinavian crime fiction. Show Less
LibraryThing member kasey007
One of my co-workers, who turned me on to netgalley.com, highly recommended The Keeper of Lost Causes. If you like the current Scandinavian detective mysteries, then don't miss this new series. It is the story of Carl Morck, a world-weary Copenhagen homicide detective, who is struggling to come
I liked the way the author sucked me into the story, slowing pealing away the layers of Merete's story, as well as Carl's and Assad's. Carl and Assad make a good team and I look forward to the next Department Q adventure.
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back from a shooting where he was shot, one colleague was paralyzed and one was killed. He is barely hanging on when he gets promoted to run Department Q. Department Q is his boss's way of getting more money for the police department and a way of putting Carl out to pasture. This new department of one has given Carl a bunch of the city's coldest cases. No one is more surprised than Carl when one of the cold cases piques his interest. Did progressive politician Merete Lynggaard who disappeared without a trace 5 years ago really commit suicide? Maybe this cold case isn't so cold after all? Is Carl, along with his assistant Assad, pursuing a lost cause? Maybe those dormant skills that made Carl such a good homicide detective have come back?I liked the way the author sucked me into the story, slowing pealing away the layers of Merete's story, as well as Carl's and Assad's. Carl and Assad make a good team and I look forward to the next Department Q adventure.
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Awards
Dublin Literary Award (Longlist — 2013)
Barry Award (Winner — Novel — 2012)
Prix des Lecteurs du Livre de Poche (Polar — 2013)
Language
Original language
Danish
Original publication date
2007
2011-06-07 (English Translation)
Physical description
512 p.; 20 cm
ISBN
1405919760 / 9781405919760