The Scandi Man Can

I’ve been curious to learn more about the work of Norwegian detective novelist Gunnar Staalesen ever since reading this piece in Crime Fiction Lover, in which noted UK critic Barry Forshaw identified his “top 10 Nordic classics”—one of which is Staalesen’s The Consorts of Death (released in an English-language translation in 2009). Only recently, I was sent a copy of Where Roses Never Die (Orenda), the 19th installment in Staalesen’s series featuring Varg Veum, a committed, compassionate private eye on the order of Ross Macdonald’s Lew Archer. You can read my critique of that novel today on the Kirkus Reviews Web site.