THE FIFTH ELEMENT is a wonderful topsy-turvy carousel of a mystery that begins at the end, continues after the ending, and leaves anything approaching linear storytelling in shambles. It would be a hot mess in lesser hands, but author Jørgen Brekke has his hands steadily on the wheel (if not necessarily at the 10 and 2 positions) at all times, guiding the vehicle of this story so steadily through the narrative that the journey is every bit the equal of the arrival.

Trondheim, Norway Police Inspector Odd Singsaker --- introduced to American audiences in WHERE MONSTERS DWELL and DREAMLESS --- returns in THE FIFTH ELEMENT, and as the story begins (at its end), it appears that he is not long for this or any other world. Brekke’s ability as a master plotter --- ably translated by Steven T. Murray --- is on full display here. Each chapter tells the reader the point in time at which the story is taking place, and it bounces around more than Billy Pilgrim. What Brekke does is simply amazing, in that he gives away (most of) the ending and the Epilogue near the beginning of the book, but somehow manages to create an atmosphere of almost excruciating suspense that is maintained from first page to last.

"THE FIFTH ELEMENT is a wonderful topsy-turvy carousel of a mystery that begins at the end, continues after the ending, and leaves anything approaching linear storytelling in shambles."

I wish I could leave it at that, but you deserve to know at least something of what occurs in THE FIFTH ELEMENT. A corrupt cop from Oslo is on the loose, seeking revenge on his wife and leaving a trail of death and destruction behind him. Odd’s wife, Felicia, has gone missing on an alcoholic bender. A law student who is either going to become a criminal lawyer or quickly need one (bet on the latter) gets himself in huge trouble with a local drug kingpin and makes a desperate move to extricate himself from his situation. A trio of enforcers terrorize a city, looking for a stolen cache of heroin. Everything --- and I do mean everything --- is closely connected, though it is not immediately obvious as to how this will come to be. Hence the title.

While the four classical elements --- earth, water, air and fire --- are well known to students, the fifth element or quintessence, called aether, was considered by the classical Greeks to be the invisible substance that united the universe. That’s an oversimplification, and not strictly correct, but you want a book review and not a course on physics, right? THE FIFTH ELEMENT derives its name and plot from this concept. Brekke begins knitting the disparate elements and characters of his novel together from the first page but doesn’t make it obvious until the final third of the book. You won’t be able to put it down along the way.

You don’t need to have read or even know what has gone before in order to enjoy THE FIFTH ELEMENT, but you’ll want to read both WHERE MONSTERS DWELL and DREAMLESS once you do. Brekke likes to tinker with the novel structure in different ways, but he really pulls out all the stops here. Plus, he sets up the next (or a future) installment in the series at the very end of this one. The suspense echoes far beyond the last page.