The Scarred Woman (Department Q, #7) (2024)

We all know how picky I am when it comes to jumping into the middle of a long running series; while I appreciate books that have the feel of a standalone, I also immensely enjoy the backstory of reoccurring characters and the development of their personalities and individual storylines. That said, Abby @ Crime By The Book assured me I would survive reading this particular novel out of order; as I trust all of her recommendations I decided to commit to readingThe Scarred Womanand see if it left me wanting to go back and fill myself in with the first 6 novels in the series.Spoiler Alert- it did!While many fellow readers gasped and guffawed at my choice to skip ahead and start where I did, I have to say that it was an abnormally satisfying experience! Yes, I'm dying to go back to the beginning, just let me be me but all in all it worked so well as a standalone!

One of the many reasons I've had this series on my radar is the fact that I've adored all the designs gracing the US covers, and TSW may be my favorite one to date.I have serious heart eyes for the color green.Color me relieved when I discovered that the writing was just as fascinating as the front that I so clearly judged. Novels that simultaneously contain a standalone case and a continuing backstory of the main characters will always be my storytelling form of choice; I have such high respect for authors who can pull this off as flawlessly as Jussi Adler-Olsen, which is clearly amongst the many reasons why he is so highly esteemed internationally. While I don't want to touch on the plot in detail, I was swept away to another world, particularly with the personal details surrounding Rose and her past. Even during the uglier moments, the author crafted a breathtaking beauty into the narrative just with the words he chose. If you enjoy reading translations, the Department Q series is one you'll want to add to your list, as it's one of the best english translations I've read yet.

Again, I can't really speak for the previous novels in the series, unless you count my anxious excitement to read them as soon as possible, but if they are anything likeThe Scarred WomanI'm in for a serious treat. Nordic crime fiction is a genre I've grown highly fond of over the past year, and I'm pleased as punch to be adding this author and series to my fast growing list of international favorites. At the moment I can't think of another author who writes quite like this, but if you're a fan of the genre in general you really should jump on the Jussi train! Highly recommended as dark literature written with beauty and class, I think we'll be seeing the DQ series going on for many more years to come.

*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my copy; it was a pleasure to provide my honest thoughts here!

3.5 stars

Detective Carl Mørck is the head of Department Q, a cold case squad that works out of the dingy basem*nt of a Copenhagen, Denmark police station. Carl's unit consists of himself and three others, Assad, Rose, and Gordon.

- Assad, originally from Syria, is Carl's partner. He's a smart, congenial fellow with an oddly sophisticated skill set.....but he doesn't talk about his mysterious background. (I'm guessing secret police.)

- Rose, an office manager/investigator, is a troubled woman who exhibits multiple personalities. Her problems come to a head in this book.

- Gordon is relatively new to the cold case squad and excels at background searches and other computer work. He has a crush on Rose.

*****

The story: When Department Q is threatened with budget cuts - or even closure - because of low solve rates Carl is furious. After all, his squad has successfully closed 65 percent of their cases. Turns out the alleged poor statistics are due to a clerical error, but a fire has been lit under Carl. Against the orders of his boss - Head of Homicide Lars Bjørn - Carl decides to investigate a CURRENT case.

An elderly woman named Rigmor Zimmermann was killed by a blow to the head and robbed of 10,000 kroner. Oddly enough, the Zimmermann murder resembles a cold case from a decade ago, when a schoolteacher called Stephanie Gundersen was killed in a similar fashion. Carl and his cohorts get on the job, looking for a connection between Zimmermann and Gundersen, and investigating who might have wanted them dead.

Meanwhile, the Head of Homicide has his own plans to keep the kroner flowing into the police station. Lars Bjørn arranges for Olaf Borg-Pedersen - host of a true crime television show - to film Carl and his team while they work. Carl wants no part of this publicity, and his efforts to evade and elude Pedersen provide some comic relief in the book.

As Department Q looks into the Zimmermann/Gundersen homicides, a handful of women in Copenhagen are making their own nefarious plans. Anne-Line Svendsen (Anneli), a case worker for Danish social services, is fed up with the useless young women - beautifully dressed with perfect hair and make-up - who parade through her office on a regular basis.

The fashionistas have myriad excuses for not working, and invariably demand handouts and favors. On top of that, Anneli overhears several of these layabouts making fun of her.

When Anneli gets breast cancer, it's the final straw. Since she might die soon anyway, Anneli resolves to kill women who abuse the Danish welfare system, especially three young ladies named Michelle, Denise, and Jazmine....as well as others who get on her nerves.

Anneli decides on 'hit and run' as her modus operandi, and - after carefully consulting the internet - practices stealing cars, staking out her victims, making a getaway, and so on. When she's ready, Anneli starts mowing down her good-for-nothing clients. I can't say more because of spoilers.

For their part, Michelle, Denise and Jazmine - who always need money - decide to embark on their own life of crime. They've heard that Anneli won a huge lottery some time back (she didn't), and - ironically - decide to kill the social worker and steal her jackpot. Before that, though, the trio rob a nightclub that employs Michelle's boyfriend as a bouncer.....and this leads to plenty of drama, including a death and an abduction.

While all this is going on, Department Q's Rose Knudson is having a mental breakdown. She comes to work late, neglects her job, shouts at Carl, drinks too much, writes all over her apartment walls, etc. Pressured by her sisters, Rose enters a mental health facility.

The Knudson sisters tell Carl that Rose was psychologically abused by their father for years; that Rose saw her dad killed in a horrific industrial accident; and that Rose has been keeping journals since she was a child. Wanting to help his colleague, Carl reads the journals....which turn out to have VERY odd entries. Department Q spends a lot of time analyzing Rose's diaries, which seriously delays their other work. (The journal rigmarole gets a bit boring, IMO, and takes up too much of the book).

All these plot threads slowly and cleverly come together..... and it's fun to see each puzzle piece click into place. Saying more would ruin the fun for readers.

As usual with this series, we get a peek at Carl's personal life. Carl shares his home with a former partner named Hardy who - injured in the line of duty - is now a quadriplegic. Carl moons over the police psychologist, Mona, whom he once dated. And Carl decides to find out about the factory 'mishap' that killed Rose's obnoxious father.

The novel is entertaining, with an interesting array of characters and a nicely wrought plot. Highly recommended to mystery fans.

Though this is book seven of the series, it can be read as a standalone.

You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot....

The seventh book in this excellent series and I have enjoyed all of them so far.

The Scarred Woman is maybe a little darker than the earlier books but not surprisingly since we have watched Rose's descent into mania over the last couple of books and this time she really reaches bottom. The suspense surrounding her story kept me on the edge of my seat for the whole book. Would they get to her in time or not?

There is not as much humour as in previous books, again not surprisingly given the degree of worry Rose causes to both Carl and Assad. The story is intense and convoluted but always clever. Many crime books have lots of murders. This one has lots of murderers and a commensurate number of murders as well of course.

A interesting epilogue contains a meeting between Carl and Mona which made me keen to get into the next and the latest book.

My first GR giveaway win!

The Scandi Nordic series Department Q has been an enjoyable one. Some are better than others, but historically most of the books are good. Unfortunately, the latest translation was a disappointment. This is a police crime series where Department Q works cold cases. The characters all have their idiosyncrasies which are entertaining.

The Scarred Woman is about four young women using the social services system to live a life of leisure. They use the state’s money to buy clothes, make-up, etc. and house their boyfriends. They are extremely selfish. It’s all about them and to hell with anyone else. Despicable creatures. The plot which has their social services contact deciding to pick them off is too unrealistic for me.

Thanks to the publisher Dutton Books for the giveaway.

3 out of 5 stars

'The Scarred Woman' is phenomenal. Absolutely love this series, and can't wait to move on to book #8 - Jussi Adler-Olsen never ceases to amaze.

Two or three stars is my question? This is the 7th book in the Department Q series by Jussi Adler-Olsen. This whole series has been a solid four stars for me, so I was surprised I didn't care for this one. It never grabbed me. It had less mystery and it was more about Rose. I just wasn't taken hostage like I've come to expect from this author. Three stars seems generous. I'll go with two.

4.5/5

The Scarred Woman had one complex, elaborate plot, there were so many plot threads that I kept wondering how in the world they would all come together?! Don’t get me wrong, there wasn’t too much going on and I wasn’t overwhelmed or anything like that. It actually made the book really exciting, it just made me think really hard about where things were headed. At one point Carl and the rest of the Department Q team are working on five different cases at once and trying to figure out if they’re related or not. When the puzzle pieces started to fit together I was truly blown away by how intelligent and well thought out this book was.

Department Q is down to just Carl, Assad and Gordan as Rose is dealing with some severe mental health issues. I thought the author did a remarkable job of tackling a sensitive subject with delicacy and sensitivity as he explored Rose’s mental health. Her illness puts extra strain on her fellow team members and adds an additional layer to the story.

One of the biggest surprises here (for me at least) was how funny this book was! It’s definitely not a comedy or anything and it’s still very dark but there was a ton of humor added. Carl himself has a very dry wit and ironic sense of humor. Assad mangles several common phrases and Carl is always quick to correct him and every time I snorted with laughter. It made Assad so adorable and endearing though there is a sense of mystery surround his background that I’m hoping is explored further in the next book. These characters are extremely well drawn and well considered, you can tell that Adler-Olsen did his homework.

I do want to point out that this is a rather dense read with heavy themes such as mental illness, benefit fraud, prostitution, etc. It was just under five hundred pages but I never felt like it was overdone at all. It’s set in Denmark and the sense of place is excellent, having never been there myself I felt like I had a strong grasp of what it’s like there and how it would feel to live there.

Since I didn’t end up having the time to read the first six books before I jumped into this one I was a tad apprehensive about forming a connection to the characters but I shouldn’t have worried. I will be going backwards and reading some of the earlier books though since I enjoyed this one so much! I just wanted to encourage those of you who may be hesitant to start with the seventh book, do it! I don’t think you’ll regret it.

All of my reviews can be found on www.novelgossip.com

I always loved his books. They count to my favorites, but now I have to say that this story wasn't as good as the previous books.

I have to say it was catchy and very intense. But it was a bit too much. What i mean is, Carl Mrøck tried to solve five different cases and they have all been connected to each other. It wasn't the typical story where he starts to review and old case which is somehow connected to the present. It didn't leave enough room for the individual characters.

In my opinion the characters weren't deep enough and there have been too many side rolls. Too many people who were affected somehow. I was a little bit disappointed that they didn't pay more attention to the grandfathers past, which could have been very interesting. But instead this case was closed very quickly and very shortly.

All in all I'd say it was a good story, but too superficial with too many poorly described characters.

3.5

This book is part of an on-going series starring Detective Carl Mørck of Department Q. In this novel, woman are murdered and what appears at the beginning to be disconnected cases are related by one of the characters. The plot involves murder, conniving, police procedural, and a team of likable police detectives.

The book is told from the alternating point of views of its characters including Detective Carl, Assad, Rose and others. This was my first book by the author and you do not have to read the previous books in the series to be able to enjoy this one.

This book reminded me of non-fantasy thrillers by Stephen King, specially Mr. Mercedes. It's dark and can be described as an Scandinavian noir. The novel was a bit long and I felt that some sections could have been excluded.

Overall I liked the book and recommend it to all those who enjoy thrillers.

Review posted on blog.

Thanks to First To Read, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this publication in exchange for an honest review.

Oh my lord this was so tangled! And I loved it!!

As with the previous books in the series, we're trying to solve several cases all at once, so it never gets boring. This time there are a ton of psychopaths to deal with and don't hold me to it but ... is Carl actually starting to mellow a little?

BE WARNED: This review contains minor spoilers for the previous books in the series.

First, we've got the cold case, which bears striking resemblance to a new case - a murdered woman, skull caved in by an unidentified object.
Then you've got Anneli, who is a social worker having to deal with a bunch of good-for-nothing women who are clearly not stable themselves.
So Carl, Assad and friends are trying to solve the mystery while bodies continue turning up, and meanwhile they're trying to figure out how to help Rose, who is 100% losing the plot after the events of the last book. She's not in a good way, and honestly it was the most heartbreaking part of this whole book for me.

The camel cracks have been dialled back and there's less grumbling from Carl and I think it's all out of respect for just how debilitating Rose's condition is. They're her friends, so they're really worried, so there's a solemnity that hasn't been present in previous novels. They have her back, though, and that really made me happy. They just want her to be okay, so they'll do whatever it takes to help her. Good friends right there.

The split POVs are one of my favourite aspects of this series, because we get insight into the minds of the killers, and yet the full explanation is never revealed. You know these people are criminals, and they're doing horrible things, but you still have to work out how their actions tie in to the investigation, and how much they're actually responsible. For the amount of detail in these books, I always seem to stay firmly in the dark.

The dynamic between the characters is always fun and, as mentioned, the team seems a tighter unit this time around, as though they're being extra-nice to each other to make up for Rose's absence. It's really interesting to go from the comedy of her having pretended to be one of her sisters to the sombre exploration of her background and just how not-funny her situation is.

Like I said: heartbreaking.

It's not all depressing, though, as there's a nice tangled crime (or six ... ish) to sink your teeth into and once again you'll find yourself questioning your own beliefs of right and wrong, and how far you might go when you're pushed too far.

Another solid addition to the series and of course I'm keen as ever for the next one!

Thank you Penguin Random House for the ARC.

This is the first book that I have read in this series.

The author took a group of plot lines and tied them together in one thrilling story. He took themes such as benefits fraud, mental illness, and retribution to a new level. The author also dealt with a bit of the dark past of WWII. But I won't say what it is because it will spoil the story line.

I have read other Scandinavian authors before and because of this book I will keep on reading even more.

I have read and enjoyed a number of Jussi Adler-Olsen's books but I absolutely could not get into this one. I read about a quarter of it and was bored from the beginning to the moment I put it down. It could well be me because the book received a good number of very positive ratings but, like George Washington, ¨I cannot tell a lie,¨ I was bored to tears, well, not actually to tears - that's just an expression but..... well you get the idea.

The Scarred Woman is the seventh in Jussi Adler-Olsen’s Department Q series featuring Carl Mørck and his growing squad of cold case detectives. The first, The Keeper of Lost Causes, was one of the most memorable and disturbing mysteries I have ever read. Adler-Olsen followed up with several other good installments in the series. The squad grew, adding Assad, Rose, and Gordon. There were the usual bureaucratic squabbled and conflicts with superiors that seem to be a requisite trope in mystery series. No one wants a series where the detective is the departmental golden boy.

In The Scarred Woman, Adler-Olsen has constructed a very complex collection of interconnected crimes and threads. Most personally pressing for Department Q is the storyline featuring Rose who is suffering a psychic break. They suspect it was triggered by an earlier case with a person who reminded Rose too much of her abusive father. They believe investigating her past might offer guidance in how to help her.

Meanwhile, they are urged to investigate an old murder of a schoolteacher – unsolved for many years that might connect to a recent murder of an old woman because so few people are killed by being hit on the head. Meanwhile, a bitter social worker is thinking about murdering her clients, women she perceives as parasitic leeches draining society. And then there are the parasitic leeches on her list who have some criminal plans of their own. It’s quite a mixture of villains and villainy and sadly, it turned out to be quite a mess.

Not that I don’t admire the complexity of it all. Adler-Olsen successfully brought together five separate cases into one Grand Guignol of the macabre. However, the people are so one-dimensional that they seem like caricatures. The social worker is a pathetic old, bitter woman who resents her clients and learning she may die, sets out to kill them with maniacal glee. She has not one redeeming value. The young women are beyond vapid and are written to produce disgust. We are not allowed to care about them. They are so extremely, deliberately parasitic that they seem to have been conjured straight out of Paul Ryan’s objectivist fever dreams.

But sadly, as someone who really likes the Department Q series, the main characters seem parodies of themselves. The amusing misapprehended idioms that Assad frequently fractures are too frequent. I suppose there is an implicit recognition of how much that quirk is over-exploited when Assad asserts he is sick of Mørck’s constant corrections. However, for me, what was once a dash of humor leavening the grim stories was overdone to the point of parody. Mørck’s somewhat madcap detecting persona and conflicts were equally hyperbolic. At moments I was reminded of Janwillem van der Wetering’s Grijpstra and De Gier whose mysteries are hilarifying. (I know it’s not a word, bear with me.) However, that madcap sensibility was appropriate because the ethos of the stories was very different. Department Q’s mysteries involve horrific crimes, horrible people, and are often very gruesome. Adler-Olsen usually balances the mix of comic and macabre more artfully, but this time he parodied himself.

So yes, The Scarred Woman is disappointing, but in comparison to the rest of his series. It is still an engaging, complex mystery that satisfies. There is ample suspense and moments when you will want to shout at the detectives and yes, the suspense is occasionally fraught. I will be eager to read the next in the series because I hope this is a singular disappointment in a very good collection of books.

The Scarred Woman was released today. I received an advance e-galley through NetGalley.

The Scarred Woman at Penguin Random House
Jussi Adler-Olsen author site

https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre...

An elderly widow is found bludgeoned to death in a Copenhagen park and her murder resembles that of a young teacher 10 years previously; a case which remains unsolved. Across town, a hit-and-run driver is targetting young women, three of whom are planning to rob the safe at a nightclub where the boyfriend of one works as a bouncer. Department Q, as always, is under pressure of closure from unsympathetic superiors; a pressure made worse for Carl, Assad and Gordon when Rose has a breakdown, being haunted by ghosts from her family past.
In fact, there are a myriad of interconnected threads running through the whole novel, but it’s a testament to the author’s skill that I still found them all easy to follow. Also, as always, despite the seriousness of the crimes, the narrative is frequently interlaced with bursts of what I can only think of as typical Danish humour.
The final third of the novel is a thrilling merry-go-round as all the loose ends of the threads get tied together and Carl and Assad are on a desperate chase to save Rose, although neither is sure from what or whom.
In all, another very worthy addition to this unique series.

This is a work book for me, so I'm not reviewing it! Just tracking it here :) thrilled to be working on this one!!!

Since my brain seems to be craving nothing but crime fiction these days (I think it must be the whole problem-resolution aspect of the genre that appeals right now), I've decided to just go with it and dig out books I've been meaning to read.

I had not yet read this sixth entry in the Department Q series when I received a copy of the seventh, Victim 2117 in a giveaway. I considered that one fabulous (my gushing review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...). This one doesn't reach that level but it is still an engaging read.

The four odd characters making up Department Q investigate cold cases in Copenhagen. Actually, Carl Morck, the department head, is pretty normal himself, but both his home and work life are populated by offbeat individuals. A big part of the enjoyment of the series is observing Carl learn to accept and appreciate them.

Three distinct plot lines become entwined about halfway through this book. One involves several opportunistic young women who take advantage of social services to get by in life without actually holding down jobs. Another tracks the family of a Nazi war criminal who manages to change his identity and build a successful life in Denmark. And the last is a deep dive into the background of Department Q member Rose Knudsen, who suffers a breakdown at the beginning of the book.

Authorial voice is paramount in this series. Yes, there are clever plots and generally some acute commentary on cultural or political issues. But it is Adler-Olsen's ability to successfully combine cynical humor with compassion for society's victims that has me addicted to this series. Book 8 is due out this year and I'm looking forward to it.

I loved this! Jussi Adler-Olsen has done it again - delivered a fascinating story of murder and mayhem with our favorite cast of characters from Department Q. In this particular book, Rose is the main character. Her lack of reports has resulted in the department being threatened by dismantling. Carl sorts that out quickly enough. That doesn't prevent Rose from having a complete nervous breakdown and being committed. Carl, Assad and Gordon start to dig into Rose's past. They not only discover that she was badly bullied by her father. He died in an accident. Or did he?

The main plot is the murders of two women that are similar but seem to be without connection. These two murders tie into the delicious travesty of social clients - the murdered women are both connected to one of them, Denise - versus a derailed social worker, Anneli. I have to admit I was quite thrilled without how Anneli plots to save society from some of its unproductive members. I realize that this is totally immoral and that all humans have their own intrinsic value. That didn't prevent me from wishing Anneli success in her endeavours. Particularly as Michelle, Denise and Jazmine are truly zits on the chin of society.

What I had completely forgotten was how incredibly funny Jussi Adler Olsen can be. That's what distinguished the Department Q series from all the rest of the Scandinavian crime novels, of which there are a true inflation. He's funny, gives a glaring social commentary and manages to tie all the ends together in a neat little bow. So this was Rose's book. I hope Assad's coming soon!

3.5 stars. Having read all the books in the Department Q series, I would place this one somewhere in the middle, but still a satisfying read. There a lot of threads throughout the book. At one point Carl and his team are working on 5 cases, and the reader is left wondering if any of them can be related.

I would urge readers unfamiliar with the series to read the first book, The Keeper of Lost Causes. It tells with a lot of humor why Department Q was created and how the mysterious Assad came to work there. There are several Danish movies based on the series available on Netflix, but I preferred the books.

The detectives of Department Q are working on a series of murders which complicates the plot, but not to the point of making it difficult to follow. It also focuses on the mentally ill Rose, secretary and unofficial detective. We get to learn about her tragic background, which sheds light on her strange behavior in a previous book. Carl, Assad and Gordon are working under a strain due to Rose being admitted to a mental hospital, her leaving and then disappearing. There is great concern for the fragile woman's safety.

Apart from the police cases, and the solution of the mysteries involved, my greatest pleasure has been in the well developed, intriguing characters. Assad has many secrets, as yet to be revealed. I would also like to read more about the very unusual situation at Carl's home. We will probably learn more in further books. We are left with the further need to know about Rose's outcome.

A many tentacled mystery. Crimes connected to WWII, to Denmark’s faltering social services system, to old love jealousies and family grudges, and a painful incident, concealed, which may destroy a fragile woman after years of devastating abuse have the trusty Department Q run off their quirky feet. Carl Mørk, Assad and Gordon find themselves crippled by Rose’s latest psychiatric breakdown, yet unwilling to leave her to her demons and find her in the middle of this unwieldy case.

Every one of Jussi Adler-Olsen’s novels begin with substantial plot setting, in their first chapters. The Scarred Woman follows the same format but I found the introduction oddly flat, its phrasing awkward and wondered when, if ever, Department Q’s best self might finally emerge to bring its previous charming character and energy. Perhaps, I thought, someone different to Jussi’s novels had translated this one. But no... it is the novel structure itself.

Too many subplots, many uninteresting digressions and such a bunch of convoluted scenarios: Adler-Jussi lost me. I needed resolution in a big way with Rose, more fun with Assad and a finer grump in Mørk, all of whom were the characters I’d invested deeply in earlier novels.

Maybe next time. I’m hoping...

So-so three stars.

This was a pretty complicated story with the team working on about 5 different cases, not all of them cold cases. They were all intertwined in some way or another, which I prefer. I've read books with more than one unrelated cases, and I don't like it - I usually assume everything that happens in a story is somehow relevant. But this had so much going on that it was a little hard to keep up with who was who.

There was a lot of dark humor in this one, and a lot of wacky characters. Rose was her usual wacky self, although no so funny in this one as previous stories. Then there were some young women on welfare that were unable to understand why they should do any work to pay for their stylish clothes, and should be supported by the government until they found a rich man. One of them even hated her mother and grandmother who helped support her. Another kept getting pregnant to avoid work, and then let them take the baby away, without caring at all. They resented their case worker for wanting them to work, and made fun of her for not being stylish. They picked the wrong woman to ridicule. But then, they made a lot of bad decisions in this book, as did some of the others. I found it hard to sympathize with any of the girls when things went badly for them.

The story never got boring with so much happening, and of course, Dept Q figured it all out in the end, tying together all the cases.

The Scarred Woman is a gritty, dark, Nordic thriller that immerses you in the Q department as they not only take on a cold case that may turn out to be more complex than anyone could have imagined and similar to more recent crimes but also the investigation into the terrifying past of one of their own.

It's entertaining, twisty, and intricately crafted and I highly recommend it for anyone who loves a good police procedural.

In this seventh Dept Q venture, Jussi A-O throws in everything AND the bathroom sink (literally), whose location serves as a pivotal part of the story, as do the functions performed therein. Ugh.

But fans of the series (as I am) can rest assured that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Thankfully.

This installment is a love letter to Rose.

A story also known as “Selfies” and a series I’m all caught up on now!

A lively start as we begin in 1995, in the past, as we always do with Department Q, who investigate old crimes from the depths of their basem*nt dwellings. The gang, Carl, Assad & Rose are all present although since the prior story Rose has had an “episode” & some more (a fair bit actually come the end....) of her backstory is unravelled...... It’s something that I hoped to see more of during the series, but to date Assad & Rose have mostly been tight lipped about their pasts, which I felt was maybe missing a trick in an otherwise engaging series. I’ll leave you to find out more about Rose!

Normally we have parallel stories in the past/present which conjoin to a conclusion, however in this we have stories running in 2016 about a few weeks apart which involve connected groups who are all introduced early on to the reader. We also have a known murderer fairly rapidly so it’s fair to say the pattern as with prior books doesn’t really follow in this one..... and it’s a really enjoyable story which had me wanting to read “jus one more chapter” finding all the characters engaging in their own way, both the new & the regulars. We also have the “old” case to be dealt with...... The timelines soon merge......

As to the outcome..... well lets jus say that the dots in this book, are tremendous! The story keeps on giving every chapter, never a dull moment & lots to marvel at as it all comes together.

A clear 5 stars for me, not its normal formulae but a winning one for me as the threads all worked & kept me hooked through to the end.

Dual review with Swedish first and then English!

SWEDISH REVIEW

Selfies är bok 7 i Avdelning Q och är den första boken jag läser i serien. Nu är det så att jag länge velat läsa serien, då böckerna verkar väldigt bra, men jag har inte hunnit med dem (Så många böcker, så lite tid). Men då jag fick hem denna bok för att läsa och recencera tyckte jag att det var ett utmärkt tillfälle att se om denna serie var för mig. Jag har sett varje film som gjorts av böckerna och tack vare det så kände jag att jag var bekant med både Carl Mørck och Assad.

Handlingen var lätt att komma in i, det är flertal sidospår varav flera av dem har länkar till varandra, vilket visar sig längre fram i boken. Detta är en av de sällsynta fall där jag faktiskt känner sympati för mördaren i boken (den galna bilisten som verkar vara ute efter en viss typ av offer), inte för att jag tycker att mord är acceptablet, utan för att personen i fråga har verkligen drivits till bristningsgränsen samt att offfren är inte direkt några personer man känner sympati för. Tre utav tjejerna som blir måltavlor får vi följa i ett sidospår och det är skrämmnade att läsa hur de snyltar på samället.

Men utav allting som pågår i boken är det ändå Rose som jag känner mest för, den del av boken som är mest intressant och mest tragiskt. Hennes levandsberättelse är verkligen hemsk och jag hoppades verkligen genom bokens gång att allting skulle gå vägen för henne.

Selfies är en mycket bra bok och jag ser fram emot att läsa de sex tidiagre böckerna i serien!

Tack till Albert Bonniers Förlag för recensionsexemplaret!

ENGLISH REVIEW

The Scarred Woman is book seven in the Department Q series and is the first book I read in the series. I have for a long time wanted to read the series because the books seem very good, but I haven't had time (so many books so little time) to read them until I got this home to read and review. I was very happy to get the chance to read this book to see if this series would be something for me. I have seen every movie made by the books and thanks to that do I feel that I'm familiar with both Carl Mørck and Assad.

The story was easy to get into, there are several side stories, many of them have links to each other, which will be clearer later on in the book. This is one of the rare cases where I actually feel sympathy for the killer in the book (the crazy motorist who seems to be looking for a certain type of victim), not because I think murder is acceptable, but because the person in question really has been pushed to the limits and that the victims are not directly any people you feel sympathetic to. Three of the girls who become targets do we get to follow in one of the side stories and they are the kind of freeloader that don't want to work, and just get money from the state to spend on themselves.

However, of all the things that are going on in the book, is it Rose that I feel most for. Her part of the book is the most interesting and most tragic. Her life story is really terrible and I really hoped through the book that everything would work out for her.

In the end, I just want to say that The Scarred Woman is a very good book and I look forward to reading the six past books in the series!

Thanks to Albert Bonniers Förlag for the review copy!

5 Stars. Detective Mørck is not at his best in this fascinating but rudderless entry. There are so many things happening, and Carl doesn't seem to be in charge. One could argue that Assad is at the helm more often. Gordon also takes a step forward for Q Team. Most, if not all the matters we are watching do find resolution but, I asked myself more than once, "Are there connections between these murders, accidents, and incidents?" So disparate. First a rich and old but ugly woman, and I don't mean her looks, is clubbed to death in a Copenhagen park. Years ago, a younger one, a substitute teacher, died in a similar fashion. Then a social worker discovers she has breast cancer which she believes is terminal. And Rose has another breakdown. We discover one of the main reasons for Rose's instability, and it's a valid one, but there's an unexplained event back there too. The title works in many ways! Of all times for upstairs at police headquarters to add an annoying TV crew to Carl's mounting pressures! Throw in a few important coincidences and distractions, and you have a compelling entry in the story of Detective Carl Mørck. (March 2019)

Enjoyable but not my favorite in the series. Once again there is too much time in the villains' heads and not enough in Carl Morck's. He's why I read the series. I wish more chapters were from his perspective. Plus in this one all the villains are women, and their motives require a definite suspension of disbelief. In fact, all the women in the novel are disturbed or mentally ill. Would be nice to see a well-adjusted female detective give Carl a run for his money. Still, Adler-Olsen's storytelling is always topnotch, and his knack for infusing humor into an otherwise dark story remains among the finest.

Прочетох "Белязаната жена" - каквато и оценка да й дам, ще е слаба. Затова 6*/5*
На фона на необнадеждаващите мнения, които прочетох за последната книга на ЮиР, за Юси мога да кажа само,че този човек непрекъснато градира и надгражда с всеки свой следващ роман. Как не се изчерпа откъм идеи.. как не зацикли...просто се чудя...! И този роман не разочарова. Дори не е толкова и просто кримка, ами истински психологически трилър в пълния смисъл на думата. Толкова много съдби са засегнати тук и от толкова много различни аспекти!
Дано продължи да ни радва и занапред този автор! За мен той е ненадминат!

This is Jussi Adler-Olsen's best book by far. It tells many stories but puts Rose's story into the mix and if you didn't like other books of Jussi's you will like this one. The woman is Scarred.

Yep, still my favorite series. This one even made me cry in the end :)

Carl Morck and Department Q are working cold cases when a current case being worked in homicide has some strong similarities to their case. Meanwhile, a social worker goes on a homicidal spree, targeting her "good for nothing" charges. And Department Q's Rose suffers a breakdown, which goes unnoticed, relating to her years of mental abuse from her father while growing up. These stories converge nicely, but the book suffers from 50-75 unnecessary pages about the social worker and the mean girls themselves. Assad continues to delight, with his botched idioms, and Carl does get some revenge on the bosses upstairs.