Finally making it to our shores is Swedish author Karin Alvtegen’s MISSING, which follows a girl who was brought up in the privileged Sibylla family. When we first meet her, she’s in a hotel restaurant trying to scam dinner and a room, targeting a lonely businessman as her mark.
She plays the role of a businesswoman to perfection, with just enough of a tease to lead him on. So even after his advances, she still ends up with a room all to herself, only to be woken up by the police at her door. She figures they caught on she’s a scam artist, only to discover later in the day that her target was killed ritualistically, with her as the prime suspect.
This throws Sibylla into a tailspin. From here, the novel delves into her past in alternating chapters, where you see her upbringing by very cold parents who believe their child should not associate with anyone under her class – a sticking point that forces her to go the route she eventually takes. The point is really drilled home when something happens that causes her parents to wash their hands of her.
Sibylla just tries to survive in the now, carrying all her belongings – and a hidden cache of money – in a rucksack. She tries to live outside of society, only to make front-page news when another brutal killing happens – this time with a sketch of her as the culprit, even though she was nowhere near the area.
Alvtegen never lets up and never goes overboard, keeping the story extremely balanced. As even more information is given about Sibylla’s past, we feel empathy for her and understand her choices. The final outcome – in which she comes to realize why these people are being killed – doesn’t come across as farfetched, which is the sign of a true talent not content to rely on cheap gimmicks.
Also, credit for the way this book flows should go to the top-notch translation, as the prose doesn’t come off as stilted or forced, which is always a death knell to any foreign-language work. I’m just hopeful that more of Alvtegen works make it here sooner than later – probably the best comment you can give to an on-the-rise author. –Bruce Grossman
Related posts:
- The Adventure of the Missing Detective and 19 of the Year’s Finest Crime and Mystery Stories
- Chat
- Death Song
- Stealing the Dragon
- American Outrage
