The Sandman by: Lars Kepler
The #1 internationally best-selling thriller from the author of The Hypnotist tells the chilling story of a manipulative serial killer and the two brilliant police agents who must try to beat him at his own game.
Late one night, outside Stockholm, Mikael Kohler-Frost is found wandering. Thirteen years earlier, he went missing along with his younger sister. They were long thought to have been victims of Sweden's most notorious serial killer, Jurek Walter, now serving a life sentence in a maximum security psychiatric hospital. Now Mikael tells the police that his sister is still alive and being held by someone he knows only as the Sandman. Years ago, Detective Inspector Joona Linna made an excruciating personal sacrifice to ensure Jurek's capture. He is keenly aware of what this killer is capable of, and now he is certain that Jurek has an accomplice. He knows that any chance of rescuing Mikael's sister depends on getting Jurek to talk, and that the only agent capable of this is Inspector Saga Bauer, a twenty-seven-year-old prodigy. She will have to go under deep cover in the psychiatric ward where Jurek is imprisoned, and she will have to find a way to get to the psychopath before it's too late--and before he gets inside her head.
“Jurek will do anything he can to escape,” Joona says in a somber voice. “You cannot let that happen. You’re like a sister to me, Saga, but it would be better if you died than if he got out.”
I usually cannot stand to read a book in the middle of a series without reading the prior novels first. However, I made an exception with The Sandman and I'm very happy with my choice. Although this is the fourth in Kepler's series, in the US it is being released first. I decided to go with it after reading reviews that said I'd have no problem. I am pleased to report they were right. The Sandman can be read as a standalone. Good luck, though. Because I now need to read all of Kepler's other novels. I'll be reading The Hypnotist in July.
This book was dark and twisted and quite possibly, dare I say it, fucked up! Damn, is it a great read! There are some scenes that get graphic and violent. I did find myself cringing at times, but that kind of thing doesn't bother me. The chapters are short and keep the plot moving rather quickly. Each chapter something happens to make it impossible not to read the next. Trust me when I say this is a very fast-paced book. There are multiple perspectives giving us extra insight to everything. I think I enjoyed Saga the most!
When Mikael Kohler-Frost is found wandering on a railroad bridge, Inspector Joona Linna is called in. The thing is..Mikael went missing thirteen years earlier with his sister. There were officially declared dead seven years ago. Where has Mikael been all this time?! And where is his sister?
The killer, Jurek Walter, has been locked up in a secure criminal psychology unit at a hospital. But Mikael says his sister is still alive and being held captive by "The Sandman." This was Joona Linna's case. And it's a personal one for him. No one scares him, or anyone, more than Jurek Walter. But they have to send someone in to get answers out of him if they want to find Mikael's sister. The plan is to send in Inspector Saga Bauer undercover as a psychiatric patient, but she'll have to work quickly.
I was glued to the pages. My only complaints involved the couple of loose ends that I'm sure are resolved in the sequel. Oh and at one point, one character was just plain stupid out of nowhere. It's surprising this has two authors with how it reads. I am very excited to read more from the husband/wife writing team known as Lars Kepler.
