The Savage Altar (Rebecka Martinsson 1) Book + PRICE WATCH * Amazon pricing is not included in price watch

The Savage Altar (Rebecka Martinsson 1) Book

The days when crime in translation was regarded as some kind of exotic hothouse flower are long gone – nowadays, a book like Asa Larsson’s The Savage Altar will be eagerly picked up by those seeking something out of the ordinary in the crime field. The reasons are twofold: the promise of an unusual setting (here, a vividly realised Sweden) and writing of more style and elegance than can be found in much native product (not always the case, of course, as a novel in translation is only as good as the skill with which its translator renders it into English). Asa Larsson’s compelling novel features a strongly drawn protagonist who is to feature in a projected series: corporate lawyer Rebecka Martinsson, reluctantly enlisted by her friend Sanna, who is under suspicion regarding the grisly death of a famous writer of religious books, Viktor Strandgård; the latter has had both hands and eyes removed in a bloody killing in a church in Northern Sweden. Also involved in the subsequent investigation is canny police inspector Anna-Maria Mella, dragooned into the case by a colleague, despite being incapacitated by her advanced state of pregnancy. Like Lynda la Plante’s Jane Tennison, these are women who are struggling in a world of unsympathetic men (and Larsson peoples her cast with some extremely nasty males), but Larsson’s writing is more ambitious than her British colleague, with a level of plotting that excels in both ambition and achievement. It will be interesting to see what the author cooks up for her beleaguered heroine in future books. --Barry ForshawRead More

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  • Amazon

    The days when crime in translation was regarded as some kind of exotic hothouse flower are long gone – nowadays, a book like Asa Larsson’s The Savage Altar will be eagerly picked up by those seeking something out of the ordinary in the crime field. The reasons are twofold: the promise of an unusual setting (here, a vividly realised Sweden) and writing of more style and elegance than can be found in much native product (not always the case, of course, as a novel in translation is only as good as the skill with which its translator renders it into English).

    Asa Larsson’s compelling novel features a strongly drawn protagonist who is to feature in a projected series: corporate lawyer Rebecka Martinsson, reluctantly enlisted by her friend Sanna, who is under suspicion regarding the grisly death of a famous writer of religious books, Viktor Strandgård; the latter has had both hands and eyes removed in a bloody killing in a church in Northern Sweden. Also involved in the subsequent investigation is canny police inspector Anna-Maria Mella, dragooned into the case by a colleague, despite being incapacitated by her advanced state of pregnancy. Like Lynda la Plante’s Jane Tennison, these are women who are struggling in a world of unsympathetic men (and Larsson peoples her cast with some extremely nasty males), but Larsson’s writing is more ambitious than her British colleague, with a level of plotting that excels in both ambition and achievement. It will be interesting to see what the author cooks up for her beleaguered heroine in future books. --Barry Forshaw

  • Amazon

    Before Stieg Larsson, there was Asa Larsson..."The Savage Altar" is a truly absorbing, atmospheric and fast-paced thriller featuring lawyer Rebecka Martinsson, a fantastic character in the mould of "The Silence of the Lambs"' Clarice Starling. A church in the glittering frozen wastes of northern Sweden. Inside, a sacrifice: the body of a man - slashed to pieces, hands severed, eyes gouged out. The victim's sister, Sanna, is first to discover the body and immediately finds herself the police's only suspect. Terrified and confused, she calls on a friend: got-shot city lawyer Rebecka Martinsson. Rebecka hardly wants to return to Kiruna - the small town she fled in disgrace years ago. But Sanna is frightened and she needs a loyal friend to clear her name. Someone not scared to dig deep and find the true killer. Yet Rebecka is not especially welcomed into the closed-lipped community. She might know the town, the people and how suspicious they can be of strangers but she has still to find out how dark the town's secrets have become in her absence. "A chilling plot knee-deep in blood-spattered snow". (Jim Kelly). "A labyrinthine conspiracy, superlative storytelling". ("Independent")."A nail biting, suspense-filled mystery". ("Sunday Telegraph"). Asa Larsson was born in 1966 and lives in Sweden. Her second novel, "The Blood Spilt", is available from Penguin now and she is the winner of Sweden's best first crime novel award.

  • Foyles

    'A breath of fresh cold air . . . a dangerous edge to gladden fans of Lisbeth Salander' Boyd TonkinThe first in the Rebecka Martinsson series from the million-book bestselling author, for fans of Stieg Larsson, The Bridge and The Killing TV series.A church in the glittering frozen wastes of northern Sweden. Inside, a sacrifice: the body of a man - slashed to pieces, hands severed, eyes gouged out.The victim's sister is first to discover the body and she soon finds herself the police's only suspect. Terrified and confused, she calls on an old friend: hot-shot city lawyer Rebecka Martinsson.Can Rebecka dig beneath the surface of the community that she once fled, and find the truth? 'A chilling plot knee-deep in blood-spattered snow' Jim Kelly'A labyrinthine conspiracy, superlative storytelling' IndependentA nail biting, suspense-filled mystery' Sunday Telegraph

  • Play

    There is a church in the glittering frozen wastes of Northern Sweden. Inside a sacrifice: the body of a man - slashed to pieces hands severed eyes gouged out. The victim's sister Sanna is first to discover the body and immediately finds herself the police's only suspect. Terrified and confused she calls on a friend: hot-shot city lawyer Rebecka Martinsson. Rebecka hardly wants to return to Kirana - the small town she fled in disgrace years ago. But Sanna is frightened and she needs a loyal friend to clear her name. Someone not scared to dig deep and find the true killer. Yet Rebecka is not especially welcomed into the closed-lipped community of Kirana. She might know the town the people and how suspicious they can be of strangers. But she has still to find out how dark the town's secrets have become in her absence.

  • BookDepository

    The Savage Altar : Paperback : Penguin Books Ltd : 9780241956441 : 0241956447 : 22 Sep 2011 : A church in the glittering frozen wastes of northern Sweden. Inside, a sacrifice: the body of a man - slashed to pieces, hands severed, eyes gouged out. The victim's sister is first to discover the body and immediately finds herself the police's only suspect. Terrified and confused, she calls on a friend: got-shot city lawyer Rebecka Martinsson.

  • Penguin

    A church in the glittering frozen wastes of Northern Sweden. Inside, a sacrifice: the body of a man - slashed to pieces, hands severed, eyes gouged out. The victim's sister, Sanna, is first to discover the body and immediately finds herself the police's only suspect.

  • 0241956447
  • 9780241956441
  • Asa Larsson
  • 15 September 2011
  • Penguin
  • Paperback (Book)
  • 416
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