Bitter Flowers. Gunnar Staalesen (Writer), Don Bartlett (Translator). Orenda Books (2022)

An engaging and enjoyable Norwegian crime story. Private investigator Varg Veum is offered a job house sitting by the physiotherapist he met in rehab. A body is discovered at the house and the physiotherapist vanishes. The local police do not welcome Varg investigating the case. The dead man worked at a local factory which is embroiled in a very public dispute with an environmental group over the disposal of toxic waste. One of the leaders of the environmental group is a member of the family that own the factory. Varg becomes involved in the investigation of a cold case, the disappearance of a young girl that has an unexpected connection to the murder investigation. The story moves at a leisurely pace and the threads are woven together into a suitably bitter and satisfying conclusion. The cast are engaging, Varg Veum is diligent, competent, and persistent. He makes no superhuman leaps of intuition to understand the crime, he patiently assembles the information and finds the truth. The rest of the cast are given the space and detail to establish themselves clearly as individuals. The tone of the story is subdued, and this does not let any of the cast leap off the page and seize the reader, the story never crackles with energy. The terrible consequences of the events at the heart of the story and how the poisoned the lives of so many is shown with subtle skill. The plot mechanics are superb, the structure of the story allows for each element to emerge clearly and for the terrible events at the heart of the story emerge in a very natural way. The poisonous legacy of toxic waste literally and otherwise is allowed to emerge without being forced. The investigation is thoughtful, and reveals are very well staged. The story is slightly overwritten, the descriptions do not sit entirely comfortably with the story. This is a classic noir story and structure; it suits a spare style that allows the cast to create and stand in shadows. The descriptions used are a little too fulsome to fit, they distract the reader rather than add to the depth or atmosphere of the story. Reading this story was a little bit of work, I was willing to do it to see where it would lead, and I did enjoy the company of the cast. I was engaged by the story, not to the extent that I like to be.