The Night Ferry (A Konrad Simonsen Thriller)

This is hands down one of the most convoluted books I have ever read. I had to read the first couple of chapters twice because it was so confusing. I am now about halfway through and that doesn’t bode well for the book when you keep checking how much longer you have before you are done. I had such great expectations because it said that it was from the same authors who wrote The Girl in the Ice and that might well be but the one I was thinking about was by Robert Bryndza and so immensely more enjoyable. I finally made it through the book and now I can say that if this book had been edited better it would probably have been much easier to understand and the little bit of excitement you get in the end could have been a culmination of a well thought out book. It was very confusing especially all the abbreviations for different sections, bureaus and whatever. You never had a full grasp on what was going on. I will not read more from this brother/sister team and it is unlikely that I would recommend it. Again I believe it could be a great book. All the bones are there. Now they just need to be put together right. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this book in exchange for my unbiased review. Two stars.

This is the first book I've read in this series, and it was impressive. I thought I was burnt out on the Scandinavian crime genre, but this one reminded me more than other contemporary efforts of Mankell's Wallander series since there was a definite world view focus and effect. The structure ran somewhat true to that model also. The Copenhagen setting and motivation behind the initial shocking scene that sets the plot in motion were handled originally, and there appears to be a great deal of thought behind the creation of the Simonsen and his wife, the Countess, as well as their co-workers. Not a full five star since there was some fat in the middle that could have been trimmed.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the eARC.
Wow, this was an intense read! After The Lake, the 5th book featuring Konrad Simonsen and 'The Countes'; The Night Ferry packs a punch right from the start. A horrific accident involving a boat packed with children from an exchange program and several grownups proves to be intentional. Besides Simonsen's terrific team, many other officers offer their help with the investigation. One of their own was killed and they want...need...to help.
Konrad, in my opinion, is hard to like. He's an excellent copper, but he's terse, abrasive and downright rude. But it doesn't matter, the books in this series are spellbinding and Konrad seems a fairly realistic character.
The parts containing information about the 1990's Civil War in Yugoslavia and Denmark's involvement, in Bosnia and Srebrenica, were new to me and fascinating.
An absorbing read, excellent Scandi Noir and highly recommended.

In "The Night Ferry," by Lotte and Søren Hammer, translated from the Danish by Charlotte Barslund, a stealthy perpetrator commits multiple murders. One of his victims is Pauline Berg, a colleague of Detective Chief Superintendent Konrad Simonsen. Berg had been obsessed with a possible homicide that no one else thought deserved further investigation, but she would not be dissuaded from pursuing the matter vigorously. Could her determination to keep a closed inquiry alive have led to her death? Simonsen, his wife and fellow detective Nathalie von Rosen (nicknamed the Countess), Deputy Homicide Chief Arne Pedersen, and others join forces to find the villain who jumped onto a tour boat with an intent to kill.

This complex police procedural brings to mind wooden nesting dolls. When one is opened, another is hidden inside. At the outset, Konrad and his team have no idea that they are poking sticks into a nest of vipers. Their quest will lead them to discover corruption in high places; a conspiracy to conceal scandalous acts of savagery; and a sobering history lesson about ethnic cleansing in the former Yugoslavia during the 1990s, during which bands of thugs tortured and slaughtered well over one hundred thousand men, women, and children.

Why do terrible transgressions often go unpunished? All it takes is for deceitful people to destroy records and evidence, and pretend that nothing has happened. To reveal the truth, Simonsen and his fellow detectives search for forensic evidence and track down witnesses who have relevant information to share. This novel requires close attention to detail, since it has a large cast of characters and a dense plot that is sometimes difficult to follow. On the plus side, "The Night Ferry" is a suspenseful, powerfully written, and involving thriller as well as a disturbing look at the incredible cruelty of which human beings are capable. Although Konrad Simonsen can be a bit of a curmudgeon, he is intelligent, courageous, a strong leader, and a crafty strategist. He and his colleagues risk their reputations and their lives in order to redress an outrageous miscarriage of justice.