I'm still giving it four stars, but it just wasn't as good as her first three. It was slow to get going and unrelated side stories (i.e. Mellberg's personal drama) were tedious. About half way through the book picked up and started to have the spark that made me love her first three books. Yes, it's VERY easy to figure out who the killer is, but Läckberg does keep decent suspense as to why and what the connection is. There are a few surprises I didn't see coming. She does a bit of a cliffhanger into her next book which I'd already planned on reading so I don't mind, but usually I hate them.

Läckberg lets the reader know each character deeply, which makes for a compelling story. The detectives are practically useless, though. For instance, one time a detective says something to a priest, and the priest's face turns white. As the detective walks away, he thinks to himself, "Gee, I wonder why the priest reacted that way." And nobody on the police force bothers to look into the backgrounds of murder victims OR the people they date.

Epa não desgostei do livro, teve uma história interessante, mas descobri os "maus" demasiado cedo... Foi TÃO óbvio! Também não fiquei fã por aí além das personagens.. Deviam ter sido mais desenvolvidas.. Ah, houve outra coisa que também adivinhei que ia acontecer.. Epa posso dar uma nova oportunidade, mas não fiquei fã por aí além...

I have enjoyed Camilla Lackberg's previous novels about detective Patrick and mystery writer Erica. In The Stranger, as the fourth entry in the series is translated into English, the two of them are looking forward to their wedding as a reality tv show is filming in town. Two murders lead to opening cold cases and eventual solutions. Erica's sister and her two children are staying with Erica and Patrick and they and Patrick's coworkers provide good diversions.

Even though this is # 4 in a series, it was good as a standalone. There were lots of characters and storylines, but I didn't get confused (except that two of the male characters had similar first names). I found the various storylines interesting and humorous at times. The only weak part for me were the short chapter introductions from a mysterious, unnamed character. I found them more distracting and creepy. They didn't add anything to the story as far as I was concerned.

I would definitely read this series again. Who knows, maybe I've found my next Stieg Larsson.

Mais ce qu'ils en boivent du café les suédois!!! C'est fascinant, on dirait que tout le monde a toujours une cafetière prête chez-lui.
Détail : quand même un peu drôle que les policiers utilisent encore des disquettes rendu au milieu des années 2000...