Expediente 64

Book 4 in the Department Q series finds Carl, Assad and Rose looking into a missing persons case which becomes 5 missing persons cases. These lead to a connection between two of the missing, a home for wayward women and the Purity party.
Told across 3 timelines, this is a dark but engaging read.

I love a good crime thriller, and this one fits the bill quite well. The characters are complex and interesting, the crimes being investigated are engaging, and the ending is satisfying. This is a good addition to the Department W series.

The plot of this book is hard to summarize because there are so many things going on. In the chapters set in the past, the story focuses on Nete Hermansen and the abuse she received as a teenager at the hands of several individuals. The chapters set in the present timeline focus on Carl Morck's investigation of a series of disappearance in 1987. The two storylines become linked when it is discovered that all of the missing people have a connection to Nete.

I found the pacing of the book to be good at most times. There are some areas that it drags a bit, but those parts do not take up too much of the book. The pacing definitely picks up in the last 200 pages or so of the book when there is more action happening in both timelines.

One thing I wish were different about the book is the plotline revolving about Carl's old case in which he and his partner were injured. I know that this case comes up in every Department Q book, but it feels really disconnected from the rest of the storyline in this case. I found it distracting and unnecessary.

Overall, this is a good crime fiction. The investigation is detailed and engaging. The investigators have complex emotions and reactions that keep it interesting. There is even a good bit of humor sprinkled throughout, even though much of the content is dark.

I listened to this one in the car. If you do this - be warned - three women in the book are named Nete (Pronounced Nita), Rita, and Gitta (rhymes with the other two)...so but for the first letter - the names sound identical - which took me a bit to get comfortable with and caused some confusion in the beginning.
Enjoyed it - Assad is fleshed out a teensy bit more, and Rose's character gets more back story. Half of these is - for me, anyway - is the enjoyment of the characters. The other half is the mystery. Enjoyed this one so much that I immediately jumped into the next book in the series when I finished this one.