The suspenseful Swedish thriller, The Truth Behind the Lie, tells the story of shady former journalist Kouplan’s search for missing child Julia.
Kouplan, an Iranian illegal resident in Stockholm, places this ad on Swedish Craig’s List.
“Private detective. If the police can’t help, call me!”
The only response is from Permilla, who has lost her young daughter Julia at a local shopping mall four days ago. Kouplan takes the case as soon as Permilla pays his advance of 1 hour’s pay, an astonishingly high 400 Swedish crowns.
Kouplan looks at the estranged father, Patrick, but he seems blameless. The more he looks into the case, the more he is suspicious of Permilla’s story.
The Truth Behind the Lie is a great thriller. While I miss the usual dark noir feel of Nordic thrillers, the thoroughly surprising ending made up for the lack of atmosphere. I highly recommend this book to people who want a completely different type of thriller. It doesn’t feel Nordic. It doesn’t feel American. The pacing is completely different than most books that I read. Still an excellent read and worth 4 stars!
Thanks to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.