“With its tight, staccato chapters and cast of dangerous wraiths lurking everywhere, The Sandman is a nonstop fright.” —Janet Maslin, The New York TimesThe #1 internationally best-selling thriller from the author of The Hypnotist tells the chilling story of a manipulative serial killer and the two brilliant police agents who must try to beat him at his own game.Late one night, outside Stockholm, … own game.
Late one night, outside Stockholm, Mikael Kohler-Frost is found wandering. Thirteen years earlier, he went missing along with his younger sister. They were long thought to have been victims of Sweden’s most notorious serial killer, Jurek Walter, now serving a life sentence in a maximum security psychiatric hospital. Now Mikael tells the police that his sister is still alive and being held by someone he knows only as the Sandman. Years ago, Detective Inspector Joona Linna made an excruciating personal sacrifice to ensure Jurek’s capture. He is keenly aware of what this killer is capable of, and now he is certain that Jurek has an accomplice. He knows that any chance of rescuing Mikael’s sister depends on getting Jurek to talk, and that the only agent capable of this is Inspector Saga Bauer, a twenty-seven-year-old prodigy. She will have to go under deep cover in the psychiatric ward where Jurek is imprisoned, and she will have to find a way to get to the psychopath before it’s too late–and before he gets inside her head.
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This was an INCREDIBLE find, and I’m so happy that I didn’t know that it was book four in a series going in, or I’d never have requested it… (I hate reading series books out of order as a rule.) When I was getting ready to read this one (which intrigued me immensely with its blurb, title, and cover art), I looked it up on GoodReads – there I saw a number of comments about it being the (at least theoretical) last book in the Joona Linna series, and almost immediately didn’t open it. Reading series books out of order is bad enough; reading the final book in a series when you haven’t read any of the others is usually a non-starter, since all the loose ends are usually being tied up at that point and it’s tough to make the story stand alone.
Having not read any of the earlier books, I can’t tell you anything about loose ends. I can, however, tell you that I never once felt lost or behind the eight ball when reading this one. It’s possible (and likely) that I would have found the read to be richer if I’d known backstory – but it’s honestly hard to imagine that the story could have been better for it, because I absolutely LOVED this book…
The characters are immensely compelling, the plot was intricate and sinuous and fascinating to watch develop. There was darkness inside of nearly every character – a roiling, living darkness that varied in degree and complexity but made everyone all the more intriguing for it. The writing was deft and taut and kept me furiously flipping pages to see what would come next. This is not a book for the faint of heart – in my experience, most Swedish thriller fiction is not. But it is an incredible thrill ride of a tale, and I am now dying to get through my review backlog so I can dig in to the first three books in this series!
My review copy was provided by the Penguin First to Read program.
Written by two fellow Scandinavian authors under the pseudonym Lars Kepler, ‘The Sandman’ is one of my favourite Joona Linna books. It’s a scary read that gets under your skin – a real page-turner.
Well-written crime thriller with shades of Hannibal Lecter. This unputdownable book would make a great beach read. This is my first Joona Linna thriller, but it sure won’t be my last.
Kept my anxiety high.
WHAT. The Sandman by Lars Kepler has got to be the best installment of the Joona Linna series yet! I know a lot of people have said this book is fine as a standalone, but I don’t agree with that. I think it is really important to read this series in order, so you don’t miss anything about any of the characters. Plus, reading them in order has really given me a connection to the characters in the book, so this installment was pretty hard-hitting for me. That last chapter just blew me away and I had to immediately start the next book, so you could say this ends in a bit of a cliffhanger. I listened to it entirely on audio, and once again Saul Reichlin blew me away with his narrating. If you want to know a great series for audio it is this one.
The Sandman is gory, violent, disturbing, and it had me on the edge of my seat. As far as suspense goes, I think this one was the most suspenseful of the series so far, and there was just so much action. Kepler knows exactly how to make this book atmospheric and how to bring the characters to life, and I feel as tied to them as I do with any TV series (like Criminal Minds). I thought the books before this were a bit of a slower burn, but this felt more fast-paced and I loved that. There are a lot of layers and it can be uncomfortable to read so if you don’t like triggers or gore I suggest you stay away from this book and series. But for Nordic noir and Scandinavian crime fiction lovers, The Sandman is a dream.
There aren’t really any tangents in this book or repetitive information, and you can definitely tell that this writing duo is honing their craft as they go. I know not all translations to English are going to be perfect, but I think Neil Smith really knocked it out of the park with The Sandman and I highly recommend the Vintage Crime/Black Lizard editions, although I’m sure the books published by Knopf are good as well. I just have the whole series from Vintage Crime so that is what I prefer to stick to. Anyway, just read this series, I highly recommend it!
Quick read, good characters. Left you hanging…
Taut, tight, suspenseful and a real nail-biter.
Loved this book! Overriding sense of doom.
Lovers of Stieg Larsson will enjoy this read!
Thought the epilogue was too long the very last page where Joon disappeared was great. Very unexpected.
I enjoy several Scandinavian authors, with Lars Kepler among the best. His stories are complex and always bring a twist at the end. Joona Linna and Saga Bauer are brilliant detectives who are often caught up by their deep feelings and losses. You can’t do better than reading Kepler.
Love the Nordic noir thrillers… Lars Kepler is among the best!
If you want to have a few sleepless nights, cringe at the horror and torment a deranged mind is capable of, then this novel is for you. Crimes that make your skin crawl and keep your curiosity wondering what possibly could be next.
This author has a gift of painting a vivid picture with words that creates a haunting landscape for the reader to ponder. An adult thriller of frights and suspense right down to the last page.
Short chapters make for a cliff hanger every two or three pages. This book is packed with so much incredible detail with abrupt twists. It’s graphic and chilling with disturbing realism, but it’s also emotionally compelling and has fascinating, fairly well-rounded characters. I kept thinking to myself, “I can’t wait to finish watching this Netflix show,” then remembered that I was reading a book. That’s how vividly the story played in my imagination!
Complete page turner from the very 1st page. A must read for any thriller fan!
I was not at all familiar with this author, but now, after reading Mr. Sandman, I can’t wait to read everything else he’s written! I just found out yesterday that his newest work, The Stalker, was released this month! Can’t wait to get my hands on it!
Gritty and perfectly horrendous.
Great book
If you like Scandinavian noir, this book is for you! Keplar brings back his brooding protagonist, Joona Linna, to solve the mystery of boy who had disappeared years ago, and is found walking along the railroad tracks covered in blood. Lots of twists and turns, with the frigid weather adding to the atmosphere of the plot and characters.