Brief Book Review: Roseanna

Roseanna is the first in the Decalog 'The Story Of A Crime' written by left wing husband and wife partners Sjowall & Wahloo featuring the famous Swedish detective Martin Beck. The title character is an American tourist holidaying in Sweden who is raped and murdered on a pleasure cruise.

Martin Beck is the cop who has to find the murderer. The story is partly about sexuality in 1960's Sweden and how society copes, or fails to cope with the cultural changes taking place at that time.

Its also about boredom, and the tedium of work and life and working life. Martin Beck is a character whose sould has become somewhat shrevilled by his obsession about his work with no love for his home and only residual affection for those that live within.

The narrative is engaging and the book is easy to read despite the fact that the characters spend an awful lot of time waiting around. If you enjoy police procedurals then this book is for you.