A review by nonna7
The Beige Man by Helene Tursten

4.0

Having realized that I missed several of these after reading the first one, I am trying to make them up as quickly as I can. In the most recent book, Irene's children have moved out, her mother has died, they have had to put their dog down, and things are changing at work - and not in a good way. This is the book before that. This book explores the ugly world of human trafficking. It's a bit preachy, but very enlightening. When the police find a dead body near an abandoned car, they are not sure at first if the two are related. The book takes Irene to Tenerife to check out what seems to be a relationship between murders there and the human trafficking in Sweden. The body they discover is of a young girl who is small and undernourished and only 13 or 14 years old. It's a horrific story. The ending wasn't a complete surprise. There is a clue in the book after all. I enjoy the straightforward stories that the author tells. Some Scandinavian crime novels - Jo Nesbo comes to mind - can be exceptionally dark. This series features a female detective who is a normal person leading a normal life which is a nice change from a lot of books.