Department Q is the division of the Copenhagen P.D. dedicated to the resolution of cold cases. The staff is not large - it is only Detective Carl Morck and his assistant Assad. The characters and their interplay are a big reason I am so enamoured of this series.
Carl is struggling with some demons, but he is a brilliant detective. He has trouble tolerating other staff and really other people in general. Except Assad. We don't know much about the enigmatic Assad - although in this book Adler-Olsen lets us see a little more behind the ever smiling, tea bearing façade Assad wears. A new member is added to Dept. Q in this book - Rose - just as much as a (brilliant) misfit as the other two. And just as prickly as Carl.
In The Absent One, it is a closed case that lands on Carl's desk. If the case is closed, why is the file here? Who left it? And that's enough to spark the interest of Carl - especially when he's told to leave it be.
The case is the murder of a brother and a sister twenty years ago. A student at a wealthy boarding school confessed to the murders and is still in jail. As Carl digs deeper, he finds that the other students in the student's circle of friends have gone on to positions of wealth and power. But, there are whispers of violence around them. And the one female in the group is living on the streets, hiding from the police and her past.
Enough to whet your appetite? Good - because this is another excellent tale from the Department Q files. Adler-Olsen has imagined a frighteningly creepy plot - gentle readers be warned, there is a fair amount of violence. My interest was grabbed from the first page and held to the last.
Adler-Olsen has just released the fifth book in the Department Q series in Denmark. This reader will be eagerly awaiting the release of number three - A Conspiracy of Faith - to North American markets - due out in May 2013. Carl's life is taking some unexpected turns and I really want to know more about the mysterious Assad. An excellent series and definitely recommended. Read an excerpt of The Absent One.
I read the first two, the European editions with different names and look forward to the 3rd in the series. Quite good. Glad you liked it too.
ReplyDeleteThis series are very popular in Spain too, but really feel lazy when we talk about sagas... I haven't read them.
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to thank you, I discovered this author because of you, read the first book and have "The absent one" just waiting to be started. Pam
ReplyDeleteThey're good aren't they Harvee - I want to know more about Assad!
ReplyDeleteIsi- there are too many good books to choose from sometimes!
Pam - Excellent!!