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| Edited By: Ritika Jain |Source: DNA |Updated: Dec 05, 2017, 02:04 PM IST
Brother and sister duo Lotte and Soren Hammer's third book, The Vanished, in the Konrad Simonsen series starts with a promise that does not quite deliver as the plot progresses. The original title of the book, Ensomme Hjerters Klub, translates to 'Lonely Hearts Club' and this sentiment is echoed as a recurring theme among all characters throughout the book.
In the first scene, we are confronted with a shootout, a reminder of the increasing gun-related violence in schools across the developed world. Through the investigation of this event. we are reintroduced to Detective Chief Inspector Konrad Simonsen – the protagonist of the book who has returned to work after he suffered a heart attack in the second volume of the series. No longer the head of the department, the post has temporarily been assigned to Arne Pedersen. Simonsen tries to adjust not only to his new duties, but also has to deal with the new dynamics of the department.
While the book has all the promising ingredients of a potboiler, it falls short of a fantastic explosion, evident in the shootout scene that could have been replete with drama to set the tone for events to come.
Throughout the book, the reader is kept at an arm's distance by the authors, who do not not really let them into the lives of the characters. The feeling is echoed in the remainder of the novel, as the characters are not fully conceptualised and given the depth one looks for. There is a lot left to assumption, and while there is beauty in imagination, there must be clues and scenarios to pick on.
Sympathy could be evoked for Pauline Berg, a detective with a tragic past, or Jorgen Kramer Neilson, the dead postman around whom the plot revolves. The remaining cast and characters of the series are reintroduced, though not much seems to have changed.
However, since the book is a translated copy, benefit of doubt must be given to the authors and the translator. In the past decade, many thrilling books and series have emerged from Scandinavian writers. The Millennium Series and books by Jo Nesbo have taken the world by storm. Readers around the world have been introduced to the wonderful Nordic regions, giving us a glimpse of the stark climate and the warm people, and what makes them tick.
Books by Lotte and Soren Hammer are immensely popular in the original language they have been penned in. Perhaps the nuances of characters, the plot lines and emotions have been lost in translation.
The Vanished is a slow read, not what you expect from a thriller that one expects to be fast paced. On a positive note, however, there is a silence that loners and lovers could perhaps identify with. The book is reflective; it takes the reader, especially a solitary soul, on a journey that makes you feel you are not alone. That there are others like you and it is all right to be lonely and comfortable with yourself and silence.
