“Settling Accounts” by Iwona Kienzler

I read the book thanks to the author's courtesy. 

Thank you!

 

Published by Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd

London ⁎ Cambridge ⁎ New York ⁎ Sharjah

Original title: Uppgőrelser på Gotland

Two daughters of a prominent Swedish politician head to Alanya on the Turkish Riviera for a holiday, accompanied by the elder daughter’s boyfriend. In the picturesque resort, they befriend a charming young man who takes a special interest in the younger sister. But idyllic vacations never last. The elder sister and her boyfriend mysteriously vanish, and days later, their bodies are discovered. The murder of a politician’s daughter and her partner shocks the nation, but the crime goes unsolved for years. That is, until the younger sister comes face-to-face with the killer. Meanwhile, their father – a well-known Swedish figure – refuses to wait for justice. Investigators Klaudia Jassem and Erik Lindberg are drawn into a complex case that unfolds into not just a double, but a quadruple murder. Blending political intrigue, social commentary on contemporary Sweden, and a gripping romantic subplot, this thriller will captivate readers from start to finish. How far would you go to protect your family? With twists that linger long after the final page, this novel promises to ignite discussion and leave a lasting impression.

Settling Accounts by Iwona Kienzler – a Polish writer best known to Polish readers for her historical biographies and series of books about the British Royal Family – is a gripping crime novel that masterfully combines suspense with an excellent description of the setting. In addition, it is a story that is intriguing on the one hand and sophisticated on the other. The daughters of a well-known Swedish politician enjoy the beauty of sun-bathed Alanya, only to be suddenly thrown into a world of darkness and mystery when their holiday proves tragic in its consequences. The juxtaposition of the idyllic holiday atmosphere with unexplained deaths and successive disappearances is striking and sets the scene for a plot-complicated thriller.

The individual characters are brilliantly created, especially the sisters, whose relationships with each other are put to the test by dramatic events. The tragic end of the older sister and the ensuing chaos not only act as a catalyst for the narrative, but also underline how quickly one's world can be turned upside down, which is palpably felt throughout the novel. Jan Wetterberg, a devastated father, becomes the embodiment of parental desperation as he sets out to find truth and justice, which – as a thriller read – demonstrates the author's remarkable ability to create emotionally resonant characters.

The shift of the narrative from Turkey to Gotland adds another fascinating layer to the story, creating a sense of dislocation and intrigue. The author makes excellent use of her experiences gained during her time on Gotland, adding colour and depth to the setting while hinting at the darker aspects of the place. The island, often associated with opulence, is a stark contrast to the mysteries hiding there, making for a fascinating backdrop to the unfolding story.

Iwona Kienzler's writing is crisp and engaging, making the reader fall into a web of intrigue from which it is difficult to escape. The twists and turns keep the viewer hooked, and the investigative duo of Klaudia Jassem and Erik Lindberg provide a familiar but effective framework for the detective genre. Their pursuit of the truth brings a sense of suspense to the plot, especially when it intertwines with Wetterberg's personal vendetta.

While the novel touches on themes of loss, guilt and the search for answers, it also prompts readers to reflect on the consequences of unsolved mysteries – the ever-present shadows of the past. Iwona Kienzler deftly navigates these themes without overshadowing the plot, allowing the story to unfold at a pace that keeps readers engaged until the final page.

In short, Settling Accounts is an exceptional crime novel that demonstrates Iwona Kienzler's talent for creating complex plots with richly detailed character descriptions and atmospheric settings. It is a story that resonates on many levels, balancing personal grief with a relentless pursuit of justice. Intended for fans of the genre and those looking for an engaging read, it firmly establishes the author's position as a notable voice in contemporary crime fiction.

In 2023, the novel was originally published in Swedish, while it is now premiering in English. This year, the book was also published in Polish by the Polish Publishing House LIRA. So if you would like to read my review in Polish, please click here.

Agnes Anne Rose

translator, essayist, journalist, author

 

 

“The Undertaker” & “The Last Hurrah” by Carmel McMurdo Audsley

Carmel McMurdo Audsley

Carmel McMurdo Audsley is an Australian author who lives in Brisbane. She worked as a Journalist and Editor. She wrote thousands of news stories and feature articles. Now she spends her time researching and writing her novels. She is not only a Journalist and Editor, but also she holds a Bachelor's degree majoring in Literature and Philosophy. 

A few years ago she published a trilogy of novels which is set in Scotland. The books are based on the true history of her own family and they are entitled: Ours, Yours and Mines (2012), Far Across The Sea (2013) and Faeries, Farms and Folk (2013). In Faeries, Farms and Folk she brings to life the stories of people living in the 1600s and 1700s in farming communities in lowland Scotland. In Ours, Yours and Mines she follows the family and their transition to coal miners living in the miners' rows of Ayrshire in Scotland in the mid-1800s and early 1900s. The final instalment in the trilogy, Far Across The Sea, follows the main character as he sets out after the second world war to find a new life in Australia. All three novels have received good reviews on the Internet. 

Carmel and her husband Iain both had Scottish fathers, share a mutual love of Scotland and have walked in the footsteps of their ancestors to get a feel for how life must have been for them. Recently Carmel McMurdo Audsley has written and published two more novels.

The Undertaker

The novel was published in 2015. The Undertaker is set in Edinburgh (Scotland) in 1858. The main character is Kate Grainger who is a young, ambitious and very intelligent woman. She works as a female gravedigger. This specific work helps her to solve some mysteries associated with dead people. So, in 1858 Kate Grainger, who is twenty-three years old and lives in Edinburgh, inherits her father's undertaking business, where she has helped him until the day of his death. You must know that life for an ambitious and intelligent woman in Edinburgh in Scotland in 1858 could be frustrating. According to the common belief the only job, which every woman should do, was to be exemplary wives and mothers. However, Kate wants something more. She wants to become a doctor, but unfortunately women are not allowed to study at the prestigious Edinburgh School of Medicine – although one young woman was able to do it in 1809. Then that brave woman disgusted herself as a man in order that she could study to become a doctor.

Published by CreateSpace Independent
Publishing Platform
United States (2015)

Kate, however, has a close male friend called James, who is a doctor. He is smitten with her and wants to marry her, but she has made it clear that she has no such intentions. She spends a lot of time with him looking through his medical books to learn all that she can. She has drive and ambition – and a special gift. Kate can communicate with people who have passed over. She had, what her father thought, an imaginary friend when she was a child. Kate also has a visit from a little girl from her childhood. The child is a spirit of the little girl who died in the Great Fire of Edinburgh in 1824. 

When Kate discovers that her first client at Grainger Undertakers has been murdered, she sets out on a journey that takes her deep into Edinburgh’s underground and into the spirit world to catch a serial killer. Her quest takes her to London and Dundee and into the underground vaults of Edinburgh with its brothels and opium dens and she follows the trail of a serial killer. Will she find a killer? Maybe she will also become his another victim? Will Kate be able to stop the murderer before he kills his next victim?

The Undertaker is the novel about not only an original character, but also a very interesting idea of the story. Kate Grainger is the character that you can really like. In addition – as a woman – she follows an incredibly unusual profession. The author presents her as a very strong young woman who does not want to marry in order to have financial support and be safety. She is not also afraid of risking her neck to find the truth. There are not too many imitable role models around her. We must remember that almost none of young women living in the mid-nineteen century had female people to follow them. However, Kate is determined in her action. On the pages of this novel you can witness some really beautiful scenes. An example of this fact is the meeting a small dog which became famous in Edinburgh for sitting by the grave of his dead owner for fourteen years. Because of Kate’s extraordinary gift, she is able to see the spirit of this man who now is walking down the street.

This is a photo of Kate Grainger as she is about to enter The Vaults which
were underground chambers.

The plot of the novel is not just about a female gravedigger, who can communicate with dead people, what could be far depressing for a reader. This is primarily a moving story about death which should be treated with great respect. In addition, the idea associated with creating the character that is able to communicate with dead people, is commendable. Moreover, this story can help to find the answers to three fundamental questions which are usually posed during the discussion about crime fiction: Who did it?, Why did he do it? and How did he do it?

As we know historical fiction is a genre of literature that has many enthusiasts among readers. Every author who creates historical fiction must do research work very reliable so that both the reality and the characters come to life in the reader’s imagination in a really powerful way. Many people say that it is possible only by using “Voice” which the author can hear in her/his head to communicate with her/his characters. Carmel McMurdo Audsley uses her “Voice” so skillfully that we can actually hear how the individual characters speak to us. This is the kind of going back in time, so that we are able to meet the social realities of nineteenth-century Scotland and get to know the mentally of people living then. In addition, the historical background is so authentic that we can accurately hear even a Scottish accent and see the place where the story is set. The plot of the novel is also connected to some extent with the occult, but in spite of that the author does not go into this problem too much detail. So, the story of Kate Grainger is designed primarily for readers who like historical fiction, but do not avoid the story in which there is no lack of mystery, suspense and situations that may be true in the spiritual world. It all makes the story incredibly addictive from the first page.  

The Last Hurrah

The novel was published in 2016 and it is associated with an extremely serious and controversial problem of death on your own terms. This time this is not historical fiction, but a contemporary novel of manners. A severe fatal disease, that affects ourselves or people who are our close relatives, is never easy to be accepted by us. Although you try to believe and hope that everything will be fine, in your head there is a thought which tells you that this time the doctors will be helpless, your body will just give up and soon you will have to say goodbye to your loved ones who spent with you many years of their lives. So, when Bob and Anna McAllister are both diagnosed with terminal illnesses within weeks of each other, they try to reach out to their adult children but everyone is too busy to hear the devastating news.

Published by Theatricks Publishing
Australia (2016) 

Bob, who now is 78, moved from Glasgow to Brisbane in 1960 and worked as an accountant.  He met Brisbane born and bred Anna, a school teacher, a few years later they married and raised three children. They had been retired for eighteen years and enjoyed being together and taking cruises. 

In 2016, after a year in remission from breast cancer, Anna, who is 75, discovers that her cancer has returned and has spread to other parts of her body. She must decide whether to endure more gruelling bouts of surgery and therapy or enjoy the short time she has left to live. In a sad twist of fate, Bob suffers another major heart attack and his congestive heart failure has progressed to a stage where he also has only a short time to live. Rather than spend their remaining days in care, they decide to take one last cruise to the South Pacific – have one last hurrah – and not return from their holiday.

The story is a work of fiction but covers a topical subject – the right to die on your own terms. The storyline in no way reflects the author’s views and she does not have a barrow to push. She is simple the teller of a story that may make you think about your life and the people in it. It is a sad love story, about two elderly people who are devoted to each other, and the disconnect to notice they are needed.

The Last Hurrah is primarily a very moving story about the elderly people who has just realised that their time has come and they must prepare for the way forward into the unknown world. The last cruise on the Pacific is a kind of their farewell to the living world. They do not also want to burden their family with their own problems. It seems that the only solution can be death which is getting closer. The novel is a very well-written story that compels readers to stop and reflect on their own lives and their behaviour associated with their family’s members. So, we can ask ourselves if now the young people are not too busy to notice that an elderly parent really needs their support. Besides, for readers who have ever participated in taking a cruise to the South Pacific, the book can also become a kind of their cruise memory, because it contains a lot of very interesting descriptions of the places that they could see during the cruise. In this novel Bob and Anna can see them. For someone else these descriptions can also be an encouragement to take a cruise to the South Pacific.

As you can read above both Carmel McMurdo Audsley’s books relate to death – although each of them does it in a completely different way. Dying is a common denominator here, and only a reader is able to discover the real message hidden between the lines. Apart from that both books teach us how to respect death.

If you want to read an interview with Carmel McMurdo Audsley, please click here. 

If you want to read this review in Polish, please click here. 

All my novels contain elements of true crime...

Interview with Jørn Lier Horst

by Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak

Jørn Lier Horst is a Norwegian author of crime fiction and a former Senior Investigating Officer at Vestfold Police district. His first novel (Key Witness) was based on a true murder story. The best known of his works is the series of mystery novels, whose protagonist is detective William Wisting.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak:  For many years you worked as a chief inspector, how did it happen that you started to write crime stories? Does your experience of working as a police officer and a detective help you in writing?

Jørn Lier Horst: I have never had any dream of becoming either a cop or a writer, but ended up being both.

I actually remember the night I started writing what eventually became my debut. It was late autumn of 2001. I was home in bed, finishing a Norwegian crime novel. I threw it in the wall and said out loud to my wife, who lay beside me, that this I was able to do better myself - whereupon she replied that then I should do it. I turned off the light and I was lying and turn me in bed for half an hour before I got up and began to write.

My first novel, The Key Witness, is based on what has been described as one of the most bizarre and brutal killings in recent, Norwegian criminal history, namely the murder of Ronald Ramm in 1995.

I started my career as a writer on my first working day in the police. This was the day when Ronald Ramm was found raped and murdered in his own home in my hometown Larvik. It was a thrilling experience to be in such a crime scene. Seeing how there had been a fight to the death going on from room to room until it ended up in the outer corridors where Ramm was found slain and with hands tied. For a young policeman it was a very special feeling to stride over the threshold into a murder crime scene and knowing that I went in the footsteps of an unknown killer.

What really happened at that time almost 20 years ago is still not be known. The killer has never been caught, but the mystery is getting a fictional solution in my novel.

I left the police in September 2013, after nearly 20 years of service. There has been an occupation that in many ways has shaped me as a human being, and traces of that is visible in my books. My work as chief investigator allowed me to go behind the barrier tapes and to walk among the remains and traces of sever crimes. See the remains of a relentless struggle. Stepping into rooms that has been closed and contains unexplored secrets. That's where I like to bring readers. A part of my job was getting to know the killers and rapists, to put me into how they think. Talk to crime victims and their families. There are experiences that help to create an authentic nerve in my books.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: In Poland you have been compared to Jo Nesbo but to me the protagonist created by you, William Wisting is closer to Mankell’s Kurt Wallander than Nesbo’s Harry Hole. What do you think about such a comparison? Whose prose do you feel closer to?

Jørn Lier Horst: I have been compared to Jo Nesbø also in Norway. The reason is that I was the first Norwegian crime writer who tipped him down from the top of the bestseller list. We have different style of writing, but we have the same writing pleasure and perhaps the same claim for ourselves the servers the best story we can put together. We have a direct and sober, yet detailed writing style that has made that we also have in common that we hit a wide audience. You're probably right when you say that I have more in common with Swedish authors Henning Mankell and Håkan Nesser.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: While working on “The Caveman” (the Polish title “Jaskiniowiec”) you were inspired by Highway of Tear murders, weren’t you? How big influence was it and why did you decide to use exactly this story in your book?

Jørn Lier Horst: I was introduced to the stories about this alleged serial killer from Canada by an American investigator at a seminar many years ago. It has since then been in my head and was the backdrop when I first was going to write a novel with a serial killer. TThe serial killers we know from the literature are often brightly murderers who commit agonizing murder, collect trophies from their victims and communicating with police through coded messages. Using a real murder hunt as background gave authenticity to the setting for my story.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: Do you often base your books on cases of real murders? Your debut novel, Key Witness, was also inspired by a true murder story, wasn’t it?

Jørn Lier Horst: It is only the first book my that is based on a real case, but all my novels contain elements of true crime. I have worked as an investigator for 20 years. It is a profession that has affected my life, and it is visible in all my books.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: There are nine William Wisting books but “The Caveman”, the ninth in the series, is the first one that has been published in Polish. Do you know anything about plans to translate the others?

Jørn Lier Horst: The Caveman is the latest book of William Wisting, and the ninth in the series. Many of my foreign publishers choose to go late into the series. There is no problem, as each book can be read independently.

When I write books, I like not only to tell what Wisting do with the case, but what the case does to him - how the police work affects him as a person. A lot has happened in Wistings life through the first nine books. It's been almost ten years, his daughter Line has become an adult, he has become a widower, and he has a new girlfriend who has left him. Several of the earlier stories will also be translated into Polish.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: Your second book series, CLUE, is addressed to young readers and you also started crime fiction series for children. Is it easier to write for them than for adults? What gives you more satisfaction?

Jørn Lier Horst: I'm thinking of books for children and young people as a literary rest room. I get the opportunity to do something else. It is necessary for me, before I return to my main project, which is the books about Wisting. I need a little break, but have pleasure in writing for children and young people. The books have become very popular, and to be part of creating a new generation of readers is a powerful feeling for a writer.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: What are you working on now and can you say something more about it?

Jørn Lier Horst: I'm writing a new crime novel about William Wisting to be published in Norway next year*.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: And what kind of books do you like reading? Do you have a favourite author or a book? Have you ever read anything by a Polish author?

Jørn Lier Horst: I read many crime novels, but also other contemporary literature. However, I have no favorite author. Very few Polish writers are translated into Norwegian. I have read some short stories by Stanisław Lem, but I'm afraid I have little knowledge of Polish literature. I have heard many good things about Marek Krajewski and Irek Grin, but none of them have yet been translated to Norwegian.

Katarzyna Chojecka-Jędrasiak: Thank you a lot for the interview.

If you want to read this interview in Polish, please click here. 

_____________________________________________________________

* This interview was done in September 2014 so the new books will be probably published this year.