I didn’t think much of this as a crime novel but, published in 2008, it must be one of the first to have climate change as such a major aspect of the narrative – and it was this part that I did feel was convincing. Laura talks of ‘big business’ . . ‘a few thousand people who were already super-rich curtailing the common drive towards counteracting climate change masking their interests ‘under the mantle of economic growth for the common good. The return to the old ways was echoed by the desire of the populace tired of momentary scarcity, of consuming less, to live like they had before: self-absorbed, greedy and irresponsible – the way they had always been taught to live. So the vision of the long-term common good was once again defeated by ever larger houses, newer cars, wider television screens, homes renovated once a year . . .’ (and so the list continued.

And Tarkiainen who murders those big business people justifies this with asking ‘who do you think those murdered people were? Benefactors? Humanists? They were selfish, indifferent narcissists. They were the real murderers’.

And I agree. That the narrator decided to kill himself and Joanna, the wife he’s been searching for the whole book, tells us how he’s decided to avoid a prolonged and inevitable death and to finish then and there – a shocking ending.

Written fifteen years ago, this book won awards but hasn’t had any impact on the dire situation we’re now facing. Depressing! I wonder what his latest book is like. Plot-wise, though, this lumbered along and was largely unconvincing. ( )

Helsinki has been rendered almost uninhabitable due to climate change, and swamped by climate refugees. Buildings are falling into disrepair, law enforcement is breaking down, and the locals are heading north to seek sanctuary.

In the lead-up to Christmas, Tapani's journalist wife goes missing. After talking to friends, he realises that her disappearance may be linked to a story that she was working on, that of a serial killer called The Healer. Tapani goes to the police working on the Healer case, but they have no resources, and cannot help him. In order to find his wife, Tapani needs to strike out on his own, and delve into the life that she led before they met.

This book's prose has a hard-boiled feel to it, and Tuomainen evokes an atmosphere of a city on the brink of collapse. While I enjoyed it overall, there a few too many loose threads left at the end for my liking. ( )

Quedan dos días para Navidades y Helsinki se enfrenta a un inexorable cambio climático. Con los túneles del metro inundados, centenares de vehículos abandonados y en llamas y llamamientos por parte de las autoridades alertando sobre el peligro de brotes de malaria, tuberculosis y ébola, la población abandona la ciudad en dirección norte, ya están en Finlandia y Noruega, dnode las condiciones climáticas se mantienen dentro de lo tolerable.
El orden social está a punto de irse a pique y las empresas de seguridad han desplazado a las fuerzas de la policía. En medio de este caos, el poeta Tapani Lehtinen, se encuentra entre los pocos que todavía están dispuestos a vivir en la ciudad. Cuando su esposa Johanna, periodista de investigación, desaparece, Tapani emprende la búsqueda desesperada de su paradero.
La desaparición de Johanna parece guardar relación con los hechos que estaba investigando, la historia del "sanador", un asesino en serie con oscuras motivaciones políticas. A medida que la investigación avanza, Tapani descubrirá secretos en el pasado de Johanna relacionados directamente con los mismos asesinatos que estaba investigando

Pidin tässä eniten realistisen tuntuisesta dystopian kuvauksesta, siitä kuinka tuttu Helsinki oli muuttunut ilmastonmuutoksen vuoksi lohduttomaksi taistelutantereeksi. Myös juoni oli looginen ja piti otteessaan. Sitten ne monissa arvosteluissa kehutut henkilöhahmot... Noh, eivät ne huonoja olleet, mutta omasta mielestäni yksiulotteisia ja siten epärealistisia. Toki tällaisissa tarinoissa pitää keskittyä siihen yhteen päähenkilöä ajavaan voimaan ja tässä se oli rakkaus. Pidän rakkaustarinoista, mutta tässä se oli kuvattu niin siirappisesti, etten kyennyt samaistumaan. Siirappikin olisi mennyt, päähenkilön muistelemat hellät kosketukset olivat sinänsä kauniisti kuvailtu, mutta uhh, ne naisen maagiset silmät olivat itselleni liikaa. Ja niitä toisteltiin sen verran usein, että oikeastaan koko naisesta mieleen jäivät vain silmät. Jotka eivät edes tuntuneet realistisilta. Rakastuuko joku todella ja oikeasti ensi silmäyksellä toisen ihmisen silmiin, jotka vetävät puoleensa kaiken valon ympäristöstään? Ehkä, mutta haluaisin silti, että rakkaus olisi jotain enemmän. Vaikka se matka, joka alkaa niistä silmistä. ( )

takova bezna detektivka, neurazi, nenadchne. I pres zajimavy pozadi: svet v blizke, apokalypticke, budoucnosti. ( )