The Man Who Smiled cover art

The Man Who Smiled

An Inspector Wallander Mystery

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Man Who Smiled

By: Henning Mankell
Narrated by: Sean Barrett
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Crestfallen, dejected, and spiralling into an alcohol-fuelled depression after killing a man in the line of duty, Inspector Kurt Wallander has made up his mind to quit the police force for good.

When an old acquaintance, a solicitor, seeks Wallander's help to investigate the suspicious circumstances in which his father has died, Kurt doesn't want to know. But when the solicitor also turns up dead, shot three times, Wallander realises that he was wrong not to listen. Against his better judgment, he returns to work to head what may now have become a double murder case.

A rookie female detective has joined the force is his absence, and he adopts the role of mentor to her as they fight to unravel the mystery. An enigmatic big-business tycoon, who hides behind an entourage of brusque secretaries and tight security, seems to be the common denominator in the two deaths. But while Wallander is on the trail of the killer, somebody is on the trail of Wallander, and closing in fast.

©2005 Henning Mankell (P)2009 Random House Audio Crime Fiction International Mystery & Crime Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fiction Exciting Scary

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Last Bus to Woodstock cover art
Ratking cover art
Deadly Lies cover art
The Photographer cover art
Pietr the Latvian cover art
Fatal Isles cover art
The Black Echo: Harry Bosch Series, Book 1 cover art
Blue Heaven cover art
Cold City cover art
Iron Lake cover art
Light Shining in the Forest cover art
Caught in the Light cover art
The Tracker cover art
All stars
Most relevant  
Wallander returns to duty after a difficult time (no spoilers here) and falls into an intriguing case. It's a little far-fetched, not his best case, but still I enjoyed it. Sean Barrett is as super as ever, as narrator, Wallander and all. As ever, it's Wallander's internal dialogue that is so engaging.

Wallander Returns

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Mankell was a true artist of crime fiction. In this story Kurt deals with a shadowy world. Barrett narrates quite beautifully and both narration and story build tension from virtually the first few words. Bravo!

A Master at work

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
amazing descriptive powers. empowering to women. understanding of our lives in the workplace. a plot that isn't kitsch or even what we tv viewers are expecting. A well written ending. a long and submersive recording ( excellent value for money)

extremely enjoyable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I enjoyed this listen.
It’s not my first Wallander book and it will not be my last …. Something to dip in to now and then.
I think the narrator does a good job of expressing the state of mind of the main player.

Excellent listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The joy of an unabridged reading is that the story takes its time to unfold and the listener becomes engrossed in the fine detail as well as following the plot. This reading by the incomparable Sean Barrett does exactly that. We find Wallender in a deep depression after shooting a man 18 months earlier and Mankell does not spare us from the depths of his despair. Then a chance encounter takes Wallender back to the police station and involved in a double murder. This is an excellent reading and up to Mankell's usual high standard. Much recommended.

Classic Wallender

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Throughly enjoyed the book, it moved at good pace. It kept my attention right to the end.

Some gruesome crimes and subject matter.

I enjoyed the reading greatly.

Enjoyable Story, had me gripped..

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
As always... a great story and characters. Just found the ending a little bit of a let down after such a good story hence the 4 stars.

Twists and Turns

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A good listen, Sean Barrett excellent narration as usual. Lots of scope to develop characters further and good ideas explored. I was expecting more from the sinister doctor, he was well hidden for most of the story and only took centre stage at the end. The conclusion came very quickly. All that said I am looking forwards to the next one and will probably read all of Henning Mankells Wallander books.

The Man who smiled

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Sean Barrett could inject life into the telephone book. The story, and all characters came alive under his telling. The story was interesting, but somewhat far fetched . I cannot reveal how without spoiling the plot.

Wallander is not superman , is as far as I can say.
The man who solved the problem must surely have been, to outwit such a ‘ villain.’

A story brought to life by a wonderful narrator.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
you can see the development of Mankells writing from book 1 to now. this is his best so far. looking forward to next in the series

Riveting story 👍

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews