Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

It's been a while since I've read a perfect book-- "The Keeper of Lost Causes," is absolutely phenomenal. The protagonist, Carl (I won't try to spell his last name because it has letters not on my keyboard) is destined to become a cherished lead character in the detective/murder mystery genre. I don't know what is in the water in Scandinavia, but it sure seems to produce stellar writers. The story line may not be unique-- rough, gruff police detective who alienates everyone around him and is sent off to pursue and close 'lost cause' or cold cases that nobody expects him to actually solve. Of course it proves impossible to put Carl down and keep him down. The main murder case in the book is absolutely chilling. It's not your standard predictable and gruesome serial killer. This is some bent and twisted stuff and it took me until about 3/4 of my way through the book until I started to put things together. The book is told from both Carl's and the victim's perspectives and the change of voice from chapter to chapter is incredibly well done. Carl's character alone would have been enough for me to give this book 5 stars (or 6 if I could have!). But the book abounds with interesting, humorous, and 3-dimensional minor characters. From Carl's kind-of-ex-wife Vigga to his new assistant Assad, there is no shortage of fun to read interaction and dialogue. Of course the political situation in Denmark is also fresh (to me, at least) and interesting. Like so many other American mystery readers I've been searching for other authors in the vein of Stieg Larsson. I think this book by Adler-Olsen is not only as good as the Larsson books, it may actually be better. I like Carl's personality and found his cynical (yet still oddly optimistic) style very engaging and frequently laughed out loud. I have my fingers crossed that all of Adler-Olsen's books will make it into the English language. If not, I may actually be compelled to learn Danish....