BOX 21

by Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom - available in paperback

BOX 21 is another gritty Swedish thriller from the authors of THREE SECONDS (which I reviewed in December).  

Written before THREE SECONDS, this novel is the story of Lydia and Alena, two beautiful young girls from Lithuania, who were enticed to Sweden with the promise of good jobs and a better life.  Instead, they were two more victims of human trafficking and were quickly locked away, beaten and sexually abused repeatedly and used as prostitutes. 

When Lydia is beaten injured, the police intervene and we're reintroduced to Det. Inspector Ewert Grens, the sad and lonely protagonist from THREE SECONDS.  Hospitalized for her injuries, Lydia is aided by Alena in obtaining a weapon and explosives and, after taking hostages in the hospital, she demands to talk to Bengt Nordwall, Grens' longtime friend and colleague. The hostage situation is quickly out of control, and coincides with Grens' hope of finally arresting the man who destroyed his life when he permanently injured Anni, Grens' love and fellow officer many years before.

All of the evidence Lydia has amassed about the horrors she and Alena endured are on a videotape in Box 21 at the Central Rail Station.  But Grens has to make a tortured decision about who is best served by revealing the evidence, risking his career in the process.

Once again Roslund and Hellstrom have lifted the veil on a small part of the bleak underbelly in Sweden as well as the hopelessness of actually stopping the flow of human trafficking.  Missing was a more in-depth view of Grens' character, but BOX 21, though not as intricate as THREE SECONDS, was still a compelling mystery.

THREE SECONDS

by Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom - to be released in the U.S. January 2011

Translated from the Swedish by Kari Dickson

Ex-con Piet Hoffman is a covert informant for the Swedish police.  He's infiltrated the Polish mafia and is working his way to the top bosses when someone is murdered during a drug deal gone bad.  Eric Wilson, Piet's handler, now wants him to go deeper into the mafia to uncover their plan to take control of illegal drug distribution within the Swedish prison system. 

Years earlier when they recruited him, Piet had nothing to lose and was willing to take on any assignment despite the danger.  Now that he's married with a family, he's more reluctant but agrees to take on his deadliest mission, despite the fact that using criminals for police investigations is not actually approved of in Sweden.   Meeting with his handler and a very secret group of government officials, he extracts the promise that if he is successful, he'll be free of his commitment to the police and he and his family will be relocated outside the country, similar to our Witness Protection Program.

Problems arise when Detective Inspector Ewert Grens, a sad and lonely colleague of Eric Wilson, is assigned to investigate the murder.  Grens works doggedly despite the roadblocks thrown in his way to keep him from finding out Hoffman's identity and destroying Hoffman's chance of success.   Hoffman's life hangs in the balance between the Polish mafia and the government group that's supposed to be protecting him that now wants him dead.    

If you're a fan of the late Stieg Larsson and THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO series, this book won't disappoint.  The interesting duo of journalist Roslund and ex-criminal Hellstrom has created an intense and intelligent Swedish police procedural that gives the reader a glimpse into the Swedish criminal world and prison system.  

If you're only going to read one book in January, THREE SECONDS should be the one!