Review of SON by Johana Gustawsson and Thomas Enger (New Release)

 4.5 Stars

I’ve not read any books by Thomas Enger, but I really loved two of Johana Gustawsson’s novels, The Bleeding and Yule Island, so I was anxious to read Son, the first Kari Voss Mystery.

Kari, a psychologist and expert on body language and memory, is also a consultant for the Oslo Police. She is asked by her friend, Chief Constable Ramona Norum, to assist in the investigation of the brutal murder of two teenage girls, Eva and Hedda, in the small Norwegian town of Son. Jesper, a friend of the girls, is arrested and charged after he confesses, but Kari is not convinced of his guilt and continues to investigate on her own. She uncovers several secrets and multiple suspects.

As expected with the first of a series, there is considerable character development. Kari emerges as an interesting character with a traumatic background. She lost her husband in an accident and then her nine-year-old son Vetle went missing. It’s been seven years since Vetle’s disappearance, but Kari has not accepted that he could be dead and when stressed, she experiences episodes of transient global amnesia. The killings of Eva and Hedda and the arrest of Jesper hit close to home because the three were Vetle’s best friends. Besides her intelligence and intuitiveness, what I especially appreciated about Kari is that, though she does not back down easily, she keeps an open mind and questions her assertions.

I’ve always been interested in body language, the process of communicating non-verbally through conscious or unconscious gestures. As a consequence, I enjoyed Kari’s explanations of character’s movements and what they reveal. Of course there’s always the element of nervousness in people talking to a woman known as a human lie detector.

I found the book a compelling read from beginning to end. It opens very strongly and continues at a relentless pace with several twists and turns. As secrets are uncovered, more suspects emerge. The reader feels like Kari does when she’s “left with a whirlwind of new information. The complexity of it all bears down on me, covering everything in a cloak of suspicion and uncertainty.”

I'd be remiss if I didn’t comment on the title. It’s perfect because it works on so many levels. There’s Vetle, a missing son; the town of Son where the murders occur; and various sons like Jesper, Samuel, Erik, and Petter whose relationships with their parents receive considerable attention.

The final sentence in the novel had me screaming, “When will the next book in the series be released?” I will definitely be looking for it. I also intend to read Gustawsson’s three books in her Roy & Castells series and Thomas Enger’s five books in his Henning Juul series. In the meantime, I will definitely be recommending this totally immersive collaboration.

Here are links to my reviews of the two Johana Gustawsson novels I have read:

The Bleeding - https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/2022/09/review-of-bleeding-by-johana-gustawsson.html

Yule Island - https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/2024/02/review-of-yule-island-by-johana.html