barbara fister reviewed The laughing policeman by Maj Sjöwall (The Martin Beck mystery series)
Review of 'The laughing policeman' on 'LibraryThing'
Fourth in the Martin Beck series. Police are stunned when someone boards a bus and commits mass murder. This sort of thing might happen in Austin, Texas, but Stockholm? And what was a young detective doing on the bus? The brass wants it solved quickly, but nothing moves fast in these thoughtful, well-plotted, slyly funny but not at all comic mysteries. It doesn't help that police are too busy battling war protesters to do their jobs. Though the authors are critics of society, their stories are far from lugubrious or glum.
Fourth in the Martin Beck series. Police are stunned when someone boards a bus and commits mass murder. This sort of thing might happen in Austin, Texas, but Stockholm? And what was a young detective doing on the bus? The brass wants it solved quickly, but nothing moves fast in these thoughtful, well-plotted, slyly funny but not at all comic mysteries. It doesn't help that police are too busy battling war protesters to do their jobs. Though the authors are critics of society, their stories are far from lugubrious or glum.
