The kiss of death, usually ...

Almost anything I find that has the words, "Translated from the (you name it)" on the cover is prime material for a pass. But Henning Mankell proved me wrong. Mankell's mysteries, translated from Swedish, are solid police procedurals with an engagingly flawed lead character, Detective Kurt Wallander. There are 11 books in the series, with number 12 The Chinaman, slated for release this year. Set in the southern Sweden town of Ystad, the stories are longer and more involved and have more depth than many mysteries. I like a book that spends a few days on the nightstand although an occasional one-nighter is ok.

The series starts with Faceless Killers, published in 1991 (US release 1997,) The Dogs of Riga in 1992, The White Lioness in 1993, and so on. Since we have to wait for the translation and the American release, our books arrive later and not necessarily in the order written. The earliest Wallander stories come in The Pyramid which has 5 short stories that begin in 1979, but in publishing chronology The Pyramid comes after Faceless Killers.

Mankell can be found not on his own website buy on the Kurt Wallander website where one may find more information than one is likely to need, but if nothing else, the site provides publication and release dates for the series. Also mentioned on the site is the likelihood of a British television series featuring Wallander.

Reviewing Faceless Killers, Sue Magee at The Bookbag writes, "Few characters arrive on the scene as fully-formed as Kurt Wallander." I think she nails the feeling I got when I first read him. There are reviews of 2 more of the Kurt Wallender mysteries at The Bookbag.

They do a good job reviewing at The Bookbag, not always positive but usually. I like the depth in the reviews and the way they many times link one review to another with, "If you liked this book you may like this other one ..." type of connection. There are a variety of reviewers at the site so there is a mix of styles and tastes. The site and reviewers are British so there is a bit of a bias towards all things British.