THE KILLING

If you are like me and have been an avid viewer of the Danish television series The Killing then you will welcome David Hewson’s novelisation of the television series.  The plot of course follows pretty faithfully to the television series but he has (and it is not unexpected) changed some of details.  It is more likely that a book is made into a film with changes being expected than vice-versa.

The plot concerns Sarah Lund a police detective who is about to leave the Copenhagen Police for a posting in Stockholm.  Before she leaves, Lund finds herself investigating (along with her replacement) the disappearance of missing schoolgirl Nanna Birk Larsen.  The body is subsequently found brutally tortured and raped.  As Lund and her colleague Meyer investigate the brutal killing, Lund also finds that the case is taking a toll on her private life and her mental health due to the stress, which they may or may not be able to solve.  As the investigation gets underway, there are they find, a number of links between the offence that has taken place and City Hall.

The author should be commended for writing such a page-turner of a book.  He has cleverly linked the issues that reveal themselves to comment on the cold-heartedness found in politics, unprincipled society and the somewhat underhand methods used by the media to sell a story.  He has also done this with a lightness of touch, which is not often seen in this type of novelisation especially since it is a police procedural.

Full of great characterisation and a sense of place, the reader clearly gets the feeling and atmosphere of all that is going on.  The Killing has enough twists and turns to satisfy not only any avid follower of the series but also readers that are coming to it first time around.  This novelisation is without wanting to sound deferential, well written, full of pace and riveting and if you are a follower of the series then indulge yourself a bit more you will only regret it if you don’t.