by Antti Tuomainen (Translated by: David Hackston)
SYNOPSIS
Just one spreadsheet away from chaos…
What makes life perfect? Insurance mathematician Henri Koskinen knows the answer because he calculates everything down to the very last decimal. Until he is faced with the incalculable, after a series of unforeseeable events.
After suddenly losing his job, Henri inherits an adventure park from his brother – its peculiar employees and troubling financial problems included. The worst of the financial issues appear to originate from big loans taken from some dangerous men who are very keen to get their money back.
All improbable and complicated problems. But what Henri really can’t compute is love. In the adventure park, Henri crosses paths with Laura, a happy-go-lucky artist with a chequered past, whose erratic lifestyle bewilders him. As the criminals go to increasingly extreme lengths to collect their debts and as Henri’s relationship with Laura deepens, he finds himself faced with situations and emotions that simply cannot be pinned down on his spreadsheets...
REVIEW
Henri Koskinen is a quirky character who uses maths and statistical data to analyse risk. Every decision he makes is carefully calculated and precise. One minute, he is going about his daily routine of mundane tasks, the next minute, things have spiralled out of control. His brother has died, leaving him in charge of his adventure park, there's a dead body in the freezer and Henri has somehow ended up as the head of a very risky money laundering operation.
Henri is quirky, unusual and deadpan. Sometimes with these types of characters I find it hard to warm to them, but Henri was so endearing and so unaware of all of his humour and good qualities that I couldn't not fall in love with him! Henri had to be a strong character, he is the main focal point and has to carry you through the entire story. This actually worked really well and you never tire of reading about his mishaps!
After previously reading The Man Who Died I knew that The Rabbit Factor wasn't going to be your typical Scandi Crime novel. What it is, is a tongue-in-cheek, black comedy crime caper with a heart! I certainly wasn't expecting to read a feel-good crime novel but that's exactly what it is. As a self-confessed crime thriller addict who loves dark books about serial killers, I was shocked that I enjoyed the love story aspect of the story. Antti Tuomainen has pulled off the impossible, I actually found myself rooting for the relationship between Henri and Laura. If you are looking for a crime novel with a twist, The Rabbit Factor should go straight to the top of your list!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Antti Tuomainen was an award-winning copywriter when he made his literary debut in 2007 as a suspense author in 2013, the Finnish press crowned Tuomainen the ‘King of Helsinki Noir’ when Dark as My Heart was published. With a piercing and evocative style, Tuomainen was one of the first to challenge the Scandinavian crime genre formula, and his poignant, dark and hilarious The Man Who Died became an international bestseller, shortlisting for the Petrona and Last Laugh Awards. A TV adaptation is in the works, and Jussi Vatanen (Man In Room 301) has just been announced as a leading role. Palm Beach Finland was an immense success, with Marcel Berlins (The Times) calling Tuomainen ‘the funniest writer in Europe’. His latest thriller, Little Siberia, was shortlisted for the CWA International Dagger, the Amazon Publishing/Capital Crime Awards and the CrimeFest Last Laugh Award, and won the Petrona Award for Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. In total, Antti Tuomainen has been short- and longlisted for 12 UK awards.
Thanks to Anne Cater - @RandomTTours, Antti Tuomainen - @antti_tuomainen and Orenda Books - @OrendaBooks for the opportunity to read and review.
Fiction: Crime / Hard-boiled Mystery / Black Comedy
Publisher: Orenda Books
ISBN: 978-1913193874
Pages: 300pp
Comments