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Fiction. Mystery. HTML: When Viktor Palmgren, a powerful industrialist, is shot during an after-dinner speech, the repercussions�both on the international money markets and on the residents of the small coastal town of Malm��are widespread. Chief Inspector Martin Beck is called in to help catch a killer nobody, not even the victim, was able to identify. He begins a systemic search for the friends, enemies, business associates and call girls who may have wanted Palmgren dead. But in the process, he finds to his dismay that he has nothing but contempt for the victim and sympathy for the murderer. This is the sixth thrilling installment in the Martin Beck detective series from the 1960s, the novels that have inspired all crime fiction written ever since..… (more)
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A prominent business man is shot dead during a working lunch at the Savoy - in Malmo outside Stockholm. As usual there is a dearth of clues, although the perpitrator was seen jumping out
The plot moves along sloly, and hte only moment of suspense is easily predicted in advance. Marin is much more the focus of this investigation that his fellow tteam members, Much of the 'action' is seems to be a background to allow various characters opportunities to vent over the way life in STockhom (although not the surrounding towns) has declined in quality. No particular cause is attributed to this, merely that something should be done about it by someone else. There seems to be a complete absense on ordinary people, Stockholm is inhabited by bums, drunks, whores, incompitants and various high rise business people who move in other circles.
Again there is a fair amout of causual sex, and graphic descriptions of womens naked bodies - strangely no man every gets described in such a manner, not even a hairy chest or well muscled thigh.
Readable - but more for commentry on Stockholm than the police procedure.
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The mystery was poor and banal, the style compatible with the overall sense of lethargy and lack of focus. I don't understand what the author meant to accomplish.
The thing that strikes you about MURDER AT THE SAVOY is how much detail there is, whether it is description of the main players, police procedures, settings, and interview transcripts.
In the introduction Carlson alerts you to look out for reflection of the authors' socialist views as well as how Sweden's economy is being manipulated by industrialists and magnates. Martin Beck is told to tread carefully in this case because Viktor Palmgren is so powerful, influential with members of the government. There is pressure on Beck and his team to not only catch the murderer quickly but also to avoid releasing any details that might reflect badly on the Swedish government.
In the long run, when the murderer is charged Beck feels that while justice appears to have been served the real criminals have remained free.
Unlike communism or socialism,
Depicting the whole of contemporary society as based on injustice, driven by corruption and held together by exploitation is of course quite ambitious for a police procedural, and while Murder at the Savoy is still clearly and unambiguously a crime novel, the authors just as clearly were not satisfied with the scope that following standard genre conventions offered them. And I would argue that it’s precisely an underlying Marxist analysis of Swedish society that allows Sjöwall und Wahlöö to open up their perspective here, providing a foundation that grounds their criticism and lends it impetus beyond the range of a crime fiction plot.
Which does not mean that the authors are neglecting that aspect of the novel – just like the previous installments in the series, Murder at the Savoy is an excellent police procedural, combining a compelling mystery with realistic descriptions of police work and plausible character portraits. Interestingly, at the same time as the series begins to present a broader perspective on Swedish society at the time, it also spends increasingly more time filling out the smaller details in the lives of its protagonists, painting small pictures inside the big one. In fact, it might even be the most admirable feature of this series how it manages to strike an almost perfect balance between prodesse and delectare – indeed, there are few works in any genre that mix instruction and delight as well as Maj Sjöwall’s and Per Wahlöö’s series.
This is another excellent police procedural from this very good series. It's not just a crime novel though as tthe socio-political message is brought much more to the fore in this installment. While the ills of Swedish society from the late 1960's have been touched upon previously it is definitely more prominent here. While using a crime story to look at the ills of society is not a new concept it was handled well throughout this tale here. There's plenty of familiar characters on show with Beck teaming up with Månsson and Skacke in Malmö while Kollberg and Larsson assist back in Stockholm. Åsa Torell is also involved now that she's working in the vice squad. We also get to learn a bit more of the background of some of these people too. As with the other books in this series the investigation unfolds slowly with leads being followed until they hit a dead-end until finally all the connections are put in place and the murder can be solved. This is another excellent episode featuring Martin Beck and his team.
At the finest dining establishment in Sweden, Malmo’s world renowned Savoy Hotel, a leading industrialist is shot by an unknown assailant. The killer calmly walked through the diners, fired his gun at Victor Palmgran who was giving a little speech. There were about ten people who either work for him or were related to one of the guests seated at the table. The shooter then exited through one of the large windows.
Pressure immediately comes down from high up in the government, is funneled onto Beck, and off he goes.
The case seems impossible. No one can describe the shooter. Was he aligned with some political movement or a rival businessman? What did he even look like. No one can say, but in the usual police procedural way, the grind of police activities soon discovers some clues as to the killer, and the killed. It seems Palmgren was not an innocent victim but rather a vicious businessman who used his property holdings to inflict all manner of terror on his renters. His factories were either very profitable, or they were shut and the workers dismissed without regard.
There is international interest in this case. Foreign agents are soon on site which leads Beck and company to begin looking into the international arm of Palmgren’s business venture, which uncovers dealing arms against government restrictions, but seemingly with it’s tacit approval. And it seems all of Palmgren’s highest ranked associates have tricky dealings to hide.
Eventually the case is solved and all the higher-ups are satisfied with the outcome, but, in true Nordic fashion, Beck is left feeling the wrong people were found guilty.
Just so you know, Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö are considered the godparents of the entire Nordic Noir genre. While they wrote 60 some years ago, the stories hold up even now. The politics have changed, for the better I hope, but there are still many frustrations felt within the population. I highly recommend any of the Martin Beck novels as they do stand the test of time, I have been told that reading them in order of publication is the best way to do so.
I read them as I get them so I don’t know if the “in order” thing will amplify your enjoyment. All I know is that I like them willy-nilly and they give me a little more insight into the newer Nordic writers.