Broken
Karin Fossum's Broken is an unusual book - part thriller, part literary fiction. The author is astonished when one night, Alvar Eide, a potential literary creation, approaches her and demands to be featured in her next novel. Alvar is a very unassuming man, who appears to have a boring life, he lives alone without even a pet, works in an art gallery, and seems a very usual type of guy.
Following his launch into literature Alvar meets Lindys, a young heroin addict. Step by step he becomes entangled in her life, until an horrific event precipitates him into the public gaze, and forces him to confront his own nature - is he really a good guy? How responsible is anyone for their fellow man? What do you need to do in order to do good?
This is a good read, with a most unusual style. I don't know that I would necessarily want to read the rest of Karin Fossum's output if it's all written in the same style - but I'm certainly curious enough to want to read more of her works. She's a very chilling writer, great at building atmosphere - and this is a smashing book to start with if you're looking for something more than the normal run of crime fiction.
Following his launch into literature Alvar meets Lindys, a young heroin addict. Step by step he becomes entangled in her life, until an horrific event precipitates him into the public gaze, and forces him to confront his own nature - is he really a good guy? How responsible is anyone for their fellow man? What do you need to do in order to do good?
This is a good read, with a most unusual style. I don't know that I would necessarily want to read the rest of Karin Fossum's output if it's all written in the same style - but I'm certainly curious enough to want to read more of her works. She's a very chilling writer, great at building atmosphere - and this is a smashing book to start with if you're looking for something more than the normal run of crime fiction.
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