NATIONAL BESTSELLER
In the Swedish criminal justice system, certain cases are considered especially strange and difficult, in Malmö, the dedicated detectives who investigate these crimes are members of an elite squad known as the Sensitive Crimes Division.
These are their stories.
The first case: the small matter of a man stabbed in the back of the knee. Who would perpetrate such a crime and why? Next: a young woman's imaginary boyfriend goes missing. But how on earth do you search for someone who doesn't exist? And in the final investigation: eerie secrets that are revealed under a full moon may not seem so supernatural in the light of day. No case is too unusual, too complicated, or too, well insignificant for this squad to solve.
The team: Ulf "the Wolf" Varg, the top dog, thoughtful and diligent; Anna Bengsdotter, who's in love with Varg's car (and possibly Varg too); Carl Holgersson, who likes nothing more than filling out paperwork; and Erik Nykvist, who is deeply committed to fly fishing.
With the help of a rather verbose local police officer, this crack team gets to the bottom of cases other detectives can't or won't bother to handle. Equal parts hilarious and heartening, The Department of Sensitive Crimes is a tour de farce from a true master.
"Tucking into a brand-new mystery series by Alexander McCall Smith is a lazy-dazy pleasure ... What binds the stories are the tight relationships of Varg and his colleagues and their hilariously human crotchets."--New York Times Book Review
About the Author :
Alexander McCall Smith is a New York Times bestselling author of several fiction series, including the internationally acclaimed No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. He is professor emeritus at the University of Edinburgh.
David Rintoul, an Earphones Award-winning narrator, is a stage and television actor from Scotland. A former student of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, he has worked extensively with the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company. He has also appeared regularly on BBC television, starring as Mr. Darcy in the 1980 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and as Doctor Finlay in the television series of the same name.
Review :
"I really enjoyed how Professor McCall Smith wove together all these cases in his novel while also highlighting the personal interactions between and interior lives of each member of the squad."
-- "Criminal Element"
"McCall Smith's engaging book teeters between comedy and pathos as the squad tussles with bizarre activity."
-- "Wall Street Journal"
"The master of the gentle mystery kicks off a brand new series with an appealing cast."
-- "BookReporter"
"With a subdued delivery laced with menace, Rintoul dryly portrays the quirky Swedish police department tasked with solving strange and difficult crimes.
-- "Booklist (starred audio review)"
