Book: Open Grave
Author: Kjell Eriksson (Translated from Swedish by Paul Norlen)
Publisher: Minotaur Books, an imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group
Year First Published: 2009 as Öppen grav by Ordfront Förlag
Genre: fiction, Scandivian fiction, Nordic noir, mystery, suspense
I had such high hopes for Open Grave by Kjell Eriksson -- the book is one of my favorite genres: Scandinavian (or Nordic) noir. It could have been so great if it hadn't been so slow. Please note: Open Grave appears to be the sixth novel in a series by Eriksson -- have not read the first five.
I'm actually rather amazed that I finished this novel. I kept hoping for it to speed up or for there to be some interesting turn around the next page. The writing (or at least the translation from Swedish to English) was just good enough and the suspense just slightly strong enough that I kept reading and turning pages. By the time I finally felt like nothing really interesting was going to happen and had resigned myself to a lack of plot twists ahead, I was so close to the end of the book that I decided to go ahead and just finish it.
Sadly, while there were some great suspenseful chapters and pages, they didn't happen until almost the last 50 pages of this 280+ page novel. I really only enjoyed the last 50 pages or so and felt like the rest was just all warm up. If the first 200 pages had been condensed and the last 50 to 80 expanded, the novel would have been so much better!
Truly, Open Grave did not really begin until nearly its end.
The novel centers on an old man who has won the Nobel Prize for Medicine, but the award has not come without controversy. There is a jealous neighbor and former coworker, a mysterious gardener, two police officers, a lesbian daughter and her partner, and a trio of house keepers. This book seems to want to be several stories at once but none of them is carried through thoroughly enough for this novel to really feel like a strong work of fiction. The "open grave" is referred to a few times throughout, but makes no sense until the very end of the novel and then the book just...ends.
I think I'll go back to Jo Nesbo for my next Scandi noir novel -- read my review of Midnight Sun HERE.
Although the stories aren't at all similar except in that they both involve the Nobel Prize and some suspense and tension, I was reminded of the film he Wife with Glenn Close and Jonathan Pryce (with a cameo by Christian Slater) while reading Open Grave. The Wife does include suspense and a lot of marital tension. It was not what I expected, and although it was slow, I was captivated by Close's character and the warped view of himself of Pryce's character. You can find it on Amazon HERE. I also enjoyed the acting by Max Irons, the son of one my favorite actors, Jeremy Irons.
Follow the Amazon links below to check out some of my favorite Scandinavian noir novels -- but if you decide to read the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series, I suggest you SKIP The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye -- read why HERE.
I was so disappointed by Open Grave that I'm not going to bother sharing an Amazon link with you. If you are curious to read it, see if your local library has it first.
Is there a Nordic noir novel that you just love and think I should read? Drop a comment below!
Please note: This post does contain affiliate links. Shopping through these links is at no additional cost to you, although I may receive a small commission from your purchases. I appreciate every single penny. Thank you!
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