Sofie Sarenbrant, well known in Sweden for her series of mystery novels starring Emma Sköld, has now been translated into English for the first time. As Killer Deal begins, Detective Emma Sköld is pregnant, and trying to overcome horrible morning sickness in order to continue working.
Emma and her partner are called to investigate a murder in an upscale Stockholm suburb. The day after an open house, the owner of the home is found murdered. The real estate agent who held the open house swore that she checked the house thoroughly before leaving, so Emma's suspicions quickly fall upon the victim's wife, Cornelia--until another shocking murder occurs at a different open house, turning Emma's theory upside-down.
Interspersed with the investigation are the details of Emma's tumultuous personal life, which ends up entangled with Cornelia's, because Cornelia turns out to be a friend of Emma's sister Josefin. The complicated dynamics involved in investigating her sister's friend for murder make Killer Deal particularly compelling, while the situations the characters are dealing with will be all too familiar to anyone who's ever been pregnant or who has waited impatiently for their house to sell.
Killer Deal makes a great entry point for those unfamiliar with Swedish crime novels, and is sure to lead readers to authors like Henning Mankell and Kjell Eriksson. This entertaining blend of family drama, murder and real estate is reminiscent of Camilla Läckberg's mystery novels, and will hold any crime-loving reader's interest; they'll eagerly await the next Sofie Sarenbrant to be translated. --Jessica Howard, blogger at Quirky Bookworm