Reviews

1793 by Niklas Natt och Dag

spooky_queen's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A

2.75

duncbell's review against another edition

3.0

A grim and brutal world brilliantly painted. It zips along. The dialogue is a bit clunky and everything is turned up to 11 with plenty of implausible plot and unlikely outcomes. I really enjoyed this but it did require the disengagement of large parts of my critical brain.

abouteurydike's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

dottienic123's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

summerpy's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

This historical mystery crime procedural novel begins when city watchman Mikal Carnell finds a dead body in the river - arms, legs, eyes all missing.

Setting: We are thrown into the intense setting of Stockholm in 1793. Historically, King Gustav III had just been assassinated. The crown prince was too young and thus Sweden was controlled by an oppressive puppet regime. At the same time, Europe was feeling the after currents of revolutionary fever. In France, Marie Antoinette had just been executed. All of this created a bleak sense of chaotic paranoia and dread permeating the dark, dirty streets of Stockholm.

Characters: The characters really shine in this story. First we have watchman Mikal Carnell. He had fought in the Russo-Swedish War and lost his arm and best friend. As the story starts, he is barely getting by, burdened by shell shock and phantom limb pain, and drowning out life with drink. After fishing the body from the water, he is paired with brilliant, incorruptible lawyer/detective Cecil Winge, who is diagnosed and dying of consumption. We also have Kristofer Blix, a young man with a gambling problem, and Anna Stine Knapp, a poor teenage who after the death of her mother, finds herself at the mercy of depraved men.

The rising tensions of Carnell and Winge working against the clock to solve the mystery, Winge’s declining health, the precarious situations of Blix and Anna, and the unstable social environment really elevate this book to a different level. The different points of view serve a valuable purpose in the end, tying together details and filling in context.

In all honesty, I had to take several breaks while reading this novel. It’s very dark and bleak with a lot of graphic violence. However, it is exceptionally crafted and I am very glad to have read it. The plan is to read a comedy and then go back to the 1793 sequel. I loved the two main characters, Carnell and Winge. Wolf and the Watchman is a definite recommend for me. Just be very careful with the violence and triggers.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

romonko's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was a strangely compelling book. It is set in 18 Century Sweden and this book was a translation from the original Swedish. I was pleased to see that this is the first book in a trilogy featuring The Watchman who is named Mickel Cordell. He is a bigger-than -life main character who lost an arm in a war. He pairs up with Cecil Winge who is a genius and a totally incorruptible man who is dying of consumption. The are trying to catch a sadistic killer after a man’s torso turns up in the lake. The man had been horribly tortured before he died. This is a meticulously constructed thriller and the author does not make one misstep as the Wolf and the Watchman stalk their killer. I couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend if you like realistic thrillers with very strong characters. I was enthralled from start to finish.

stephen_baird's review against another edition

4.0

Gritty, full of shit and piss, dark and twisting.

This is my favourite book of 2019, at the moment.

As I've probably gone on at length somewhere else, I'm not a thriller/mystery reader by nature, but this is such a wonderfully engrossing and descriptive novel of 19th century Stockholm I was dragged into this at breakneck speed and read it over a two day period.

We follow the paths of various characters through the streets and courts of a shady city to find the killer and reasons behind the torso that was found by Mickel Cardell. He teams up with a thoroughly logical Cecil Winge who is dying from consumption.

Will they get to the conclusion of this case before either of them dies?

Intriguing and beguiling at the same time, Niklas Natt ohh Dag weaves a descriptive tale that kept me thoroughly hooked.

bonhoefferfan's review against another edition

4.0

Warning: extreme brutality is in this novel. It’s gruesome and some of it is sexual brutality as well.

A very promising noir novel that meanders a bit in the middle. A somewhat surprising conclusion. The author clearly has skill. I look forward to more from him, though this one tested my tolerance for the violent content.

amagee's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

caaaty's review against another edition

dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0