Short, sharp sentences and a compelling sense of foreboding made this a great read. But for a somewhat limp ending I'd have given it five stars. Will definitely read the rest in the Inspector Sejer series.

Don't Look Back by Karin Fossum is a standalone installment in the Inspector Sejer series that delves into the complexities of human nature and the repercussions of our choices. Inspector Sejer is tasked with investigating the disappearance of a young girl, which unravels another mystery involving the death of a 15-year-old named Annie.

Fossum expertly weaves a web of interconnected characters with their own secrets and motives, leaving readers guessing until the very end. While the pacing is fast despite the slow-burn nature, some may yearn for more suspense. Nonetheless, Fossum's exploration of psychological depth adds depth to the narrative, making it a worthwhile read for fans of character-driven mysteries.

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Quick read. Well written

Very very good mystery!

A little girl goes missing. She arrives back home later the same day. She’s fine but on her walk home she and Raymond, a man who has Downs Syndrome, see a dead naked girl/woman on the ground along a tourist hiking path near the water. Annie. She is a local 15 year old girl who everyone seems to like. Who would have killed her? There are a few possible suspects, starting with Raymond, then her sort of boyfriend Halvor, her half-sister’s father Axel, and a few others. We learn about many people in this little tight knit Norwegian town. Inspector Sejer and his sidekick Skarre investigate.

Annie seemed to have a personality change recently and Sejer thinks that may be the key to the investigation. She became more quiet, quit her sports team, quit babysitting, spent less time with Halvor. The more they look into Annie’s past as well as the lives of others in the community a situation pops out as maybe being the key. Is it? What happened to the young boy Eskil? Will this lead Sejer to the killer.

I was unable to find the first book in the Inspector Sejer series, but had no problem jumping in with this second novel. We don't see much of Sejer's personal life, a few bits and pieces; this novel is a classic detective novel. Set in Norway, it begins with a small six-year-old girl getting into the van of a stranger. This event does lead to the crime that is the heart of the book, but not the way you think it will end (thank goodness). A teenage girl is discovered dead by the lake, and Sejer must begin his hunt for the killer with very little to go on but his skills and intuition. I really enjoyed the writing style and the way the pieces of the puzzle were presented. I look forward to reading the next novel in the series.

Great book - not often did I stop and think that it was set in a non-US setting but the Norwegian flair still set in. A good mystery - I really didn't guess the ending which is rare for me.

I tried another Scandinavian mystery, this time choosing Karin Fossum, a Norwegian writer. She's my fourth writer from this area, and my second Norwegian. My first was Gunnar Staalesen. The Swede was Henning Mankell and the Icelander, Arnaldur Indriðason. I was hoping for something better this time but I came away disappointed again. The story was violent and depressing, like the other three. This is one of the draws for this genre, but I guess I was trying to find something beyond just that.

The pacing of the story, especially the bulk middle of it, was very good. I flew through the prose, waiting for the next outcome. But, the ending seemed a bit too tied up, a little rushed. I felt like I was reading a Hollywood script and not a novel. And like the other books I've read from this geographic area and genre, I was surprised and shocked at the stereotyping and strong bias against the non-white characters. Barely mentioned, barely treated as fellow humans, they are one-dimensional cut-outs used to reconfirm a biased point of view.

I guess I'm more of an English mystery fan. It's not that I'm turned off by violence or dark psychological situations. I am a devoted fan of Minette Walters, and I don't think anyone would call her work happy or feel-good.

Karin Fossum is a Norwegian author and her Inspector Sejer series fits right into the collection of popular Scandinavian suspense/thrillers/mysteries crime fiction. I like this series because I like the main character, portrayed as a good team leader, honorable and wise. He is also carrying a layer of grief for a wife readers never meet as she died in his recent past.

This novel occurs in a small town where everyone knows everyone else, and yet something awful has occurred. Inspector Sejer methodically peels back the layers of the villagers ultimately revealing the truth. The killer was pretty obvious well before the conclusion though there was a nice twist at the end.

Overall, good diversionary read.