Editorial Content for The Living and the Dead

In 2002, the raid on a homeless encampment and the fleeing of one of its young residents brought memories flooding back to Swedish police officer Siri Bengtsson. Three years ago, Siri had worked on the case of a murdered teenager. The investigation took some strange turns, particularly with the death of the prime suspect. The trouble began in Skavböke shortly after a party with hormone-fueled and alcohol-saturated teenagers began to wind down. The year was 1999, and the holidays were fast approaching. Yet tidings of good cheer were soon to be replaced by mourning and recrimination.

Sander Eriksson believes that his future lies outside Skavböke as he plans to attend college in Stockholm. His best friend is Killian Persson, whose time ahead doesn’t appear to be outside the town limits of Skavböke. They attend their friend’s party, thinking of the coming days, but these deepest thoughts are replaced by concerns over fisticuffs between mates and the damage being done to their friend’s house. Their official story is that they set out for their respective homes and parted company along the way. Both young men denied knowing about the murder of their friend, Mikael Söderström, which happened nearby.

"Christoffer Carlsson’s exceptional novel is packed with intriguing characters and a taut plotline. Diving deep into elements of friendship, love, betrayal, revenge and redemption, it merits a wide audience."

Siri is new to the Oskarström Police Department when she is teamed with veteran officer Gerd Pettersson in investigating Mikael’s homicide. Mikael was found bludgeoned and placed in the trunk of another teenager’s car. As the team begins their inquiry into the murder, they find blood on the steering wheel, along with witness statements that don’t pass the smell test. Meanwhile, Mikael's family is mourning, and his grief-stricken father publicly casts accusations at a few of his son’s friends and classmates.

Sander believes that Mikael’s death provides the impetus for his decision to leave town. Furthermore, he suffers a personal betrayal from Killian that irrevocably breaks their friendship. Skavböke has become a figurative powder keg and is nearly incinerated on the night dynamite is ignited at a resident’s home, triggering a destructive landslide that alters the town landscape.

Twenty years later, a funeral has brought together most of the townsfolk. Sander has come to pay his respects and quiet some of his past demons. However, the murder of another Skavböke resident soon threatens to dredge up the past with a vengeance.

THE LIVING AND THE DEAD is a captivating whodunit that is long on surprises and keeps the reader guessing until the spectacular finale. The point of view shifts between investigator and witness, person of interest and suspect, yet each perspective manages to be engaging. Sander longed to escape his hometown, yet he only managed to be slightly detached. His development is arrested by the memories that he’s unable to shake, and his return for the funeral forces a confrontation with the past. Both Siri and her successor, Vidar Jörgensson, are wily pursuers of the truth who question the prevarications of those with something to hide.

Christoffer Carlsson’s exceptional novel is packed with intriguing characters and a taut plotline. Diving deep into elements of friendship, love, betrayal, revenge and redemption, it merits a wide audience.