Little Siberia by Antti Tuomainen

Little Siberia
By Antti Tuomainen
Published by Orenda Books (17 October 2019)
I received an advance reader copy from the publisher

Publisher's description

A man with dark thoughts on his mind is racing along the remote snowy roads of Hurmevaara in Finland, when there is flash in the sky and something crashes into the car. That something turns about to be a highly valuable meteorite. With euro signs lighting up the eyes of the locals, the unexpected treasure is temporarily placed in a neighbourhood museum, under the watchful eye of a priest named Joel.

But Joel has a lot more on his mind than simply protecting the riches that have apparently rained down from heaven. His wife has just revealed that she is pregnant. Unfortunately Joel has strong reason to think the baby isn’t his. As Joel tries to fend off repeated and bungled attempts to steal the meteorite, he must also come to terms with his own situation, and discover who the father of the baby really is.

My verdict

Little Siberia is great fun to read – and now my favourite Antti Tuomainen book. 

Who knew that a piece of rock could cause so much trouble? A valuable meteorite crashing through the roof of a car driven by a drunken driver. Dodgy Russian gangsters and other dubious characters trying to steal it. Chase scenes through snowdrifts and deserted museums, along frozen lakes and rocky terrain. The setting is as chilling as the plot, with its icy landscape and close-knit claustrophobic community.

All of this has been packaged into a quirky crime novel. Yet this is far more than just your ‘ordinary’ museum heist, as all manner of local secrets drift out into the open during the book's rollercoaster journey. While crime is at the heart of Little Siberia, this is also very much a book about people and humanity with its scenes of contemplation, questioning faith and belief, right versus wrong and the meaning of life. There’s a veteran-turned-priest deep in a personal crisis, with a 'miraculous' pregnancy surrounded by the mystery of fatherhood.

The book has been translated well by David Hackston, retaining the author's dark Finnish humour, cheeky charm and sharp dialogue and narrative.

With Antti Tuomainen, you never know what’s coming next. And I can’t wait to see what that will be!

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The Man Who Died by Antti Tuomainen

The Man Who Died
By Antti Tuomainen
Published by Orenda Books (10 October 2017)
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher.

Publisher's description

A successful entrepreneur in the mushroom industry, Jaakko Kaunismaa is a man in his prime. At just 37 years of age, he is shocked when his doctor tells him that he's dying. What is more, the cause is discovered to be prolonged exposure to toxins; in other words, someone has slowly but surely been poisoning him. Determined to find out who wants him dead, Jaakko embarks on a suspenseful rollercoaster journey full of unusual characters, bizarre situations and unexpected twists. 

My verdict
The Man Who Died's first line certainly welcomed me straight into protagonist Jaakko's nightmare diagnosis. He's just been told by his doctor that he's dying, being slowly poisoned by an unknown toxin, after experiencing a whole host of distressing symptoms.

This leads into a black comedy as Jaakko tries to discover the culprit and why they have it in for him. There are plenty of potential poisoners in his life, considering his job is the successful entrepreneur in the mushroom industry. With some slapstick scenes, chases that don't go quite as planned, a whole host of bizarre characters and plenty of dark humour, Antti Tuomainen takes us on a journey into Jaako's working life and personal relationships. There's much philosophical discussion about life and death and hopes and dreams, with a running theme of betrayal (and also love).

I was glued to this book. It made me laugh and grimace at times, and also made me sad. It's very different from anything else I've read in a while, with some brilliant twists that I really didn't see coming at all. The writing is stunning with vivid and intense descriptions of people and places - I could visualise it all so clearly. I learnt a lot about growing mushrooms too!

Definitely a book for those who like something deliciously dark and delightfully different.

The Mine by Antti Tuomainen - The Finnish Invasion Blog Tour

I am DELIGHTED to be today's stop on the Blog Tour for The Mine by Antti Tuomainen, which is being published by Orenda Books on 15 November 2016. Read my review below and follow the Blog Tour for some more reviews and author guest posts.

The Mine is one of two Finnish books being published by Orenda Books this month under the banner The Finnish Invasion. The other book is The Exiled by Kati Hiekkapelto. I featured my review of The Exiled on 6th November, so don't forget to take a peek.

My review of The Mine

The Mine
By Antti Tuomainen
Published by Orenda Books (15 November 2016)
ISBN: 978-1910633533

Publisher's description

A hitman. A journalist. A family torn apart. Can he uncover the truth before it's too late?

In the dead of winter, investigative reporter Janne Vuori sets out to uncover the truth about a mining company, whose illegal activities have created an environmental disaster in a small town in Northern Finland. When the company's executives begin to die in a string of mysterious accidents, and Janne's personal life starts to unravel, past meets present in a catastrophic series of events that could cost him his life.

My verdict
The Mine is an emotionally-charged thought-provoking Finnish environmental thriller. It's stunningly written and translated seamlessly - no word is out of the place and the descriptions provide an amazing sense of the chilling frozen setting. I was totally gripped throughout and struggled to put the book down (other than to sleep).

Investigative reporter Janne Vuori discovers corruption, secrets and lies as he investigates a mining company in a small town in Northern Finland. His life is in danger, there's a killer on the loose and he fears that he and his family are being watched. While The Mine is essentially a thriller, it has an underlying sensitivity about it - with themes of morality and family running through the plot. When Janne's investigations put his own family life in jeopardy, he is forced to make some difficult decisions.

The Mine is also a book about how our past and family can shape us and our future - and how family secrets often come back to haunt us. There's some violence, but nothing too graphic, and some unexpected revelations, twists and turns. I really felt like I cared about Janne and his family by the end - and believed in the characters as if they were real people (not all crime thrillers have that effect on me).

I will admit the ending of the book 'broke' me. I finished it late one evening and it left me with a sense of discomfort and longing for more. I struggled to sleep that night - thoughts churning over in my mind about the plot, the characters and the final chapter. If you like resolution, be warned you may not be satisfied - although I do feel the author had this planned all along.

This is a stunning book - yet another winner from Orenda. The Mine is a book that will stay with me for a long while (especially as I'm desperate to know what happens next...)

I received an Advance Reader Copy.

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The Exiled by Kati Hiekkapelto - The Finnish Invasion Blog Tour

I am DELIGHTED to be kicking off the Blog Tour for The Exiled by Kati Hiekkapelto, which is being published by Orenda Books on 15 November 2016. Read my review below and follow the Blog Tour for some more reviews and author guest posts.

The Exiled is one of two Finnish books being published by Orenda Books this month under the banner The Finnish Invasion. The other book is The Mine by Antti Tuomainen. I'm featuring my review of The Mine on 13th November, so don't forget to join me on that day too.

My review of The Exiled

The Exiled
By Kati Hiekkapelto
Published by Orenda Books (15 November 2016)
ISBN: 978-1910633519

Publisher's description
Anna Fekete returns to the Balkan village of her birth for a relaxing summer holiday. But when her purse is stolen and the thief is found dead on the banks of the river, Anna is pulled into a murder case. Her investigation leads straight to her own family, to closely guarded secrets concealing a horrendous travesty of justice that threatens them all. As layer after layer of corruption, deceit and guilt are revealed, Anna is caught up in the refugee crisis spreading like wildfire across Europe. How long will it take before everything explodes?

My verdict
The Exiled is a slow-burning chilling crime novel filled with social conscience. Translated exceptionally well by David Hackston, this book is beautifully written, with vivid descriptions and a highly topical backdrop - looking at the refugee crisis in Europe.

In Kati Hiekkapelto's previous book (The Defenceless), Anna Fekete was investigating crime in the chilling setting of frozen Finland. In The Exiled, Anna has returned to her roots in steaming Serbia (near the Hungarian border), where Hungarians, Serbians and Romanies are living side by side but with tension between the different communities.

Anna's relaxing family holiday takes a sinister turn when her handbag is stolen. The thief - a member of the local Romany community - is found dead by the river and, although her bag is recovered, key contents are missing, including her passport. The local police department doesn't seem very interested in the crime, so Anna decides to take matters into her own hands using her expertise as a police investigator.

Anna's research leads her to unravel corruption in the local community, linked to the refugee crisis and illegal immigration. As she reveals more about the thief's identity, she discovers some unexpected revelations about her family's past and begins to question her own 'sense of belonging'. She's of Hungarian origin but has lived as a legal 'outsider' in Finland since she was a child. She has never really lived within the Serbian community, even though her parents had settled there. This is a thread that continues from the previous book, but The Exiled can easily be read as a standalone.

The Exiled certainly kept me guessing until the end. Just when I thought I had it sussed, there was another twist thrown into the plot. But this book is about much more than the crime and Anna's investigations. Kati Hiekkapelto isn't afraid to tackle controversial social issues, going beyond the reach of most crime fiction, with a taut compelling writing style, an amazing sense of location and a multi-layered thought-provoking plot.

I received an Advance Reader Copy.

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