This is the new instalment in the Joona Linna series that deliberately reconnects the series to Jurek Walter. The book opens with the myth of Medusa as a woman who is victimised and then punished instead of her attacker, becoming a monster because of the injustice done to her. That idea becomes the model for […]
Adrian is a long, reflective novel about friendship, literary ambition, ageing, class, exile, desire, failure, and the disappearance of the world that once seemed to promise meaning. The plot moves back and forth in time, but its emotional centre is Adrian Maroof, a beautiful, awkward, intensely serious young man who wants to write a great […]
Cassi is a thirty-seven-year-old woman who has been working as a head waiter with a sommelier training background in a Stockholm restaurant. She is engaged to Jarmo, a few years older, and has recently sold her apartment in the city to move back to her hometown. Cassi now rents a basement flat from a single […]
Set mainly in Stockholm in the 1990s, the novel is narrated in the first person, each of its four chaptersdedicated to a different character who has somehow left an indelible mark on the protagonist, a writer.As the author ponders on past lovers, tumultuous friendships and her relationship with her owntroubled mother, she reflects on the […]
Jonas senses a deep connection with Evelyn that goes beyond shared culture. Later, his father reveals he donated sperm to the Mikkola sisters’ mother, adding another layer to their bond. The narrator, Jonas, shifts the point of view between himself, Ina, Anastasia, Evelyn, and occasionally others like Ina’s partner Hector and Anastasia’s daughter Nina. As […]
In Sweden, the narrator receives a large bill for over five million kronor. Assuming it is a mistake he goes about his life, working in a video store. Eventually he receives more bills and hears people on the street discussing large bills as well. He calls the information telephone number to inquire about the number […]
This novel is an engaging, albeit perplexing and disconcerting read, leaving readers with a bittersweet aftertaste. Primarily, the book delves into Walden’s exploration of his identity through the lens of seven ‘fathers’ he encountered over seven years, all while his mother remains an enigmatic figure, relegated to the role of ‘just a mother.’ This examination […]