My ‘lil star guest reviewer, Claire Knight is sharing her thoughts on Antti Tuomainen’s The Man Who Died today on my blog! Grab a cuppa and enjoy ?
Synopsis:
A successful entrepreneur in the mushroom industry, Jaakko Kaunismaa is a man in his prime. At just 37 years of age, he is shocked when his doctor tells him that he’s dying. What is more, the cause is discovered to be prolonged exposure to toxins; in other words, someone has slowly but surely been poisoning him. Determined to find out who wants him dead, Jaakko embarks on a suspenseful rollercoaster journey full of unusual characters, bizarre situations and unexpected twists. With a nod to Fargo and the best elements of the Scandinavian noir tradition, The Man Who Died is a page-turning thriller brimming with the blackest comedy surrounding life and death, and love and betrayal, markinng a stunning new departure for the King of Helsinki Noir.
Claire’s Rating: 4/5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Claire’s Review:
“Because yesterday was the day I died. Because yesterday I finally came to life.”
Who’d have thought the world of mushrooms could be so complicated? Poison, adultery, murder, betrayal! “The Man Who Died” is set around a dried mushroom outfit which is unusual to say the least!
I really felt for our main character, from the start we know he’s dying and from that point onwards his life is turned upside down both by his nearest and dearest and those further afield.
I don’t know if it’s me, but I’ve found the Scandinavian novels that I’ve read so far aren’t as fast paced as some of their modern UK or US cousins. This is far from a bad thing. It simply changes my reading style, I slow down so I can absorb the narrative.
This is the first book I’ve read by Antti Tuomainen but it won’t be the last. I heard him read an extract from The Mine at an Orenda event earlier this year which also piqued my interest. I have to say despite this being crime fiction, it has humour thrown into the mix. Quite dark humour really which was a distinct change for me. I’ll definitely be reading some of Mr Tuomainen’s other novels!
Huge thank you to the amazing Karen Sullivan of Orenda Books for sending me a copy of The Man Who Died!
Thanks for this fab review, Claire! I had the pleasure of listening to this author speak at Hull Noir this year and it was awesome …so I downloaded this book!
Grab your copy here:
