Mission in Malmo by Torquil MacLeod
Anita Sundström has only been with Chief Inspector Erik Moberg’s Criminal Investigation Squad for a year when they have to tackle the aftermath of an armed robbery at a cash handling facility in Malmö. The raid has left one security guard dead and there is no sign of the stolen millions. Though the team make early progress, they soon become frustrated as the investigation stalls. Then a murder with a possible connection to the audacious heist only raises more questions than answers.
In the present day, Anita is just finding her feet as chief inspector. Her first big case is an old couple’s apparent suicide pact, but if it is murder as she suspects, there seems to be no motive or suspects. Complicating her life further is the arrival of an FBI agent whose mission is to track down a Swede accused of a murder in Chicago. As Anita Sundström’s ninth mystery unfolds, the past comes back to haunt her.
About the author
Torquil MacLeod was an advertising copywriter for 36 years. Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, he now lives in north-west England, with his wife, Susan. He came up with the idea for his Malmö detective, Inspector Anita Sundström, after the elder of his two sons moved to southern Sweden in 2000. The first book was MEET ME IN MALMÖ. There are now nine MALMÖ MYSTERIES novels and a novella in the series.
The latest Anita Sundström novel - MISSION IN MALMÖ - is now available.
He has also brought out an historical crime ebook called SWEET SMELL OF MURDER.
He makes regular trips to Malmö and Skåne to visit his Swedish family and friends.
Find out more at: http://www.torquilmacleodbooks.com
Review
‘Mission in Malmo’ is a great return for a character which I absolutely adore! This is the 9th book in the series but it can certainly be read as a stand-alone very easily. You don't really need to know any background information for this story and any you do is given to the reader during this one. ‘Mission in Malmo’ was a twisty story that runs over the the course of a couple of decades. I loved seeing Anita at two different points in her life, the first being when she was still new to the role and dealing with a complex raid on a cash deposit site and then when she returned as Chief Inspector twenty years later. It was very interesting to see how her life and also how she as a detective had changed over the two decades. I don't know whether I am making this up but I seemed to notice that the writing and vocabulary seemed slicker and more prolific in the second half as well, maybe a reflection on Anita getting older and wiser…
Anita has only been with the team for less than a year when the raid on the cash handling facility takes place. One security guard has been killed, one shot and another is pointing towards being an inside man for the gang which raided the place. But when a young Serb is found killed a few days later the case takes a weird and unexpected turn. In the present day Anita is tasked with looking into a couple's apparent suicide pact. Could it be murder and if so why? Also, a member of the FBI has turned up looking for a Swede who has committed a murder of a local mob man in Chicago.
I thoroughly enjoyed the dual timeline for this book as it is a reflection that crime can indeed have consequences and results that echo through the decades. What happens when a criminal is released at the end of their sentence for example? The dive into Anita’s development as an investigator was a great psychological look at how a person changes over the years and a great twist on the normal police procedural that is out there at the moment. Somehow, I have managed to miss two books out of this series but I will be going back and reading books 7 & 8 as I love this series. It is nordic noir combined with the sensibilities of a Scottish writer and I love this! But it also has the true ‘air’ of being set in Skane and I think this is a reflection of the author spending a lot of time there personally.
Let me know if you read this one!
