Midwinter Sacrifice cover art

Midwinter Sacrifice

Malin Fors, Book 1

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Midwinter Sacrifice

By: Mons Kallentoft
Narrated by: Lisa Coleman
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About this listen

An investigation consists of a mass of voices, the sort you can hear, and the sort you can't. You have to listen to the soundless voices, Malin. That's where the truth is hidden. The snow covered all the tracks, as the killer knew it would. But it couldn't hide the victim, the man who now hung naked from a lonely tree on a frozen plain. Malin Fors is first on the scene. A 31-year-old single mother, Malin is the most talented and ambitious detective on the Linkoping police force, but also the most unpredictable. She must lead the investigation while keeping her fractured life on the rails. No one knows the identity of the dead man. Or perhaps no one ever wanted to know. When all the voices of the investigation have fallen silent, Malin can rely only on herself and her own instincts. And as she follows in the frigid wake of the killer, Malin begins to discover just how far the people in this small town are willing to go to keep their secrets buried.

©2011 Mons Kallentoft (P)2011 Hodder & Stoughton Crime Fiction Crime Fiction Scary Suspense Mystery

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I loved this book, I am a big fan of Scandanavian crime and this lived up to my expectations. It is a very dark, atmospheric book with excellent characters. Malin is a female detective battling with a complicated personal life whilst trying to solve a gruesome murder in the middle of a very very cold winter. The book was beautifully narrated by Lisa Coleman, her calm almost whispery voice was a total contrast to the subject matter, but for me it worked. I also loved the male narrator....that part of the book was a total surprise! I would definitely recommend this book!

Dark and Eerie

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After reading many Scandanavian crime novels, I found this book disappointing and even a bit pretentious. For me, the storyline was thin and rather laboured. There was not much depth to the main characters and I found the ghostly victim a bit irritating and rather silly. The narrator performed clearly and adequately, although I have heard better. I was not encouraged by the experience to listen to any more of this author's work.

Disappointing

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A tale that gets off to a good start with sympathetic characters. A shame the author (or translator) thinks the frequent repetition of the same four-letter word adds verisimilitude. It doesn't - it just gets annoying. Without giving away the end ultimately I found the tale unsatisfying. I stuck with it to the end, but wished I hadn't bothered.

Passes the time

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I loved this book - lots of surprises, great characterisations and a humanity sometimes missing from Henning Mankell and co. The reading was also excellent.
My only quibble is that one (subsidiary) plot line is not resolved at the end of the book. The author asks, "Do all mysteries have to be answered?" ..Um, yes. We read these books is great part because they give us a sense of resolution missing in the real world. Just bugged me, but not major enough to detract from overall book. I will certainly be buying more from this author.

Great new Scandanavian writer!

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This book is an okay one. I just wish the typical cliches of crime books were not as obvious.

Nice but cliche

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The story makes good use of the Nordic setting, providing a range of settings for it's events. The 'troubled' family around which much of the plot takes place is a little hackneyed, but suits it's purpose. The Police have their limits as to what they can do, but the resourceful or lucky detective is able to move forward. The voice of the dead man is a device being used more often, but as ever for me, I'm not sure why. A slight change of pace for a moment, yes, but no added enlightenment or plot strand.
Lisa Coleman does well in providing different voices. The (I'm assuming) editing of the narration allows little time to draw breath, which is an increasing fashion. Why can't we have time to take in what is happening or has happened? That's the joy of a book, why can't the pace of the telling allow us the same?
Whilst the story and performance offer positives, the overall experience is not quite at the top.

A decent story, needs some room to breathe.

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What would have made Midwinter Sacrifice better?

I really don't know. Did not like this book one bit and could not bring myself to finish it. Was expecting it to be more like The Bridge/The Tunnel and very disappointed

Would you ever listen to anything by Mons Kallentoft again?

Certainly not for a while

How could the performance have been better?

Performance was just a bit flat

Not for me

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I chose this Scandinavian thriller because I have enjoyed other similar titles. It only goes to show how important it is to have a narrator who differentiates the various characters and has light and shade in her voice. This narrator has a monotone delivery which detracts from the story. What a shame!

Disappointing Narrator

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Against a backdrop of a very cold Swedish winter, a bizare murder is investigated by detective Malin Fors, a single mother trying to balance a hectic professional life with home life. She is a convincing character, fallible and full of worries about work, lovelife, her daughter and the choices she has made. More of a police procedural than thriller, Kallentoft delves into the human bonds that define our existense with a dark, bleak, meandering style that may not be everyone's cup of tea. This story really is just as a much about the telling as the tale being told and if you are looking for a fast-paced thriller then this will be frustrating. The narration suits this darkness very well. And although I normally dislike the trick of the dead victim taking over parts of the narration, the narration of the victims words by another narrator is spot on.



I was taken quite by surprise at the beautiful writing style and having just said how I enjoyed the narration, I do think I might read the next novel just so that I can savour the beautifully written prose. Am looking forward to finding out how things progress with Malin Fors and maybe after reading the second novel, I'll be back for a listen to the the third!

Surprising!

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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, it's so refreshing to hear Lisa, clear and you quickly absorb all the characters, well portrayed

What other book might you compare Midwinter Sacrifice to, and why?

Jo Nesbo The Bat

Have you listened to any of Lisa Coleman’s other performances? How does this one compare?

No but she's great

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Corpse with attitude

Any additional comments?

Love the phone calls they really make the listening three dimensional

Attention to detail a pleasure to listen to

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