Headhunters
Following the premature death of Steig Larsson, British publishing houses scrambled around for the "next big" Scandinavian author and alighted upon prolific Norwegian Jo Nesbø who has written many books in a series about detective Harry Hole, as well as some children's books and a number of stand-alone novels of which Headhunters is one.
His books are everywhere in every bookshop you go in. But, are they any good?
I chose Headhunters because there's a film adaptation of this coming out shortly starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau from Game Of Thrones so I thought I'd give it a go.
Central character Roger Brown is a recruiment Headhunter, but he isn't just any headhunter - he's the best headhunter in town with a stellar reputation. If Roger Brown recommends a candidate for a job, they get the job, and he's always on the lookout for perfect specimens.
Roger Brown is arrogant and showy and though he has the trappings of wealth, the house, the suits, the right kind of watch; having not come from money, there is an indication he lives beyond his means.
Roger Brown has secrets. But what are they?
When Roger meets Clas Greve, he believes he is in luck, little does he know he has met his match.
The thing about this book, a thriller set in the corporate world is that as you are reading it, it is thrilling and rattles along at a great pace; Roger and Clas and other characters are well drawn, and it is well written, but when you finish the book and actually stop to think about what just happened, you realise the entire story is utterly preposterous and laughably so. Really incredibly silly particularly in the third act.
Despite this it is an enjoyable example of the genre, and I recommend it as a great airport or holiday purchase.
7/10
No comments:
Post a Comment