A couple of years ago I went through a phase of watching every Scandinavian crime drama out there. I haven’t watched any for a while, but “The Last Snow” may have given me back the bug!
This is a story that I can totally picture on screen. Set in Ödesmark, a small town in the north of Sweden, this story follows Liv Björnlund, a young woman living with her 80 year old father and her 17 year old son, still living in a place that most people are desperate to get out of. These three generations are a little strange, the father in particular, and the town is full of gossip about them.
This is a dark tale that’s is very well written and it seems to me that the translator, Susan Beard, has done a great job at bringing the author’s work to an English speaking audience. Through descriptive paragraphs, I was able to clearly picture the events that were happening and became quite immersed in the story. There isn’t a great deal of dialogue and this isn’t the most action packed story, but it’s definitely atmospheric and easily keeps your attention.
I think the characters were mostly well developed, Liv in particular. I felt for Liv and the life that she is living. She’s from a dysfunctional family and she’s got a past, but she’s doing her best trapped into the life her father has made for them. I do have to admit that at the beginning I had to keep a little note of who was who in order to keep track of the characters’ names, but once in full flow this was no longer a problem.
As well as my inability to remember names, there were a few instances where I felt a little confused flicking backwards and forwards from present day to 1998, dipping into Liv’s upbringing. But apart from those two points, I really enjoyed this slow simmering mystery and would definitely recommend it for fans of a Nordic Noir. I think that if you’re looking for something dark and a little disturbing, this will probably be right up your street!
Now… let’s find another Scandi crime drama to binge!
Overall rating: “The Last Snow” is a dark, atmospheric crime drama that I really enjoyed. It’s well written and so descriptive. I think fans of the genre will love this one, it’s a big 4 stars from me!
This is a story that I can totally picture on screen. Set in Ödesmark, a small town in the north of Sweden, this story follows Liv Björnlund, a young woman living with her 80 year old father and her 17 year old son, still living in a place that most people are desperate to get out of. These three generations are a little strange, the father in particular, and the town is full of gossip about them.
This is a dark tale that’s is very well written and it seems to me that the translator, Susan Beard, has done a great job at bringing the author’s work to an English speaking audience. Through descriptive paragraphs, I was able to clearly picture the events that were happening and became quite immersed in the story. There isn’t a great deal of dialogue and this isn’t the most action packed story, but it’s definitely atmospheric and easily keeps your attention.
I think the characters were mostly well developed, Liv in particular. I felt for Liv and the life that she is living. She’s from a dysfunctional family and she’s got a past, but she’s doing her best trapped into the life her father has made for them. I do have to admit that at the beginning I had to keep a little note of who was who in order to keep track of the characters’ names, but once in full flow this was no longer a problem.
As well as my inability to remember names, there were a few instances where I felt a little confused flicking backwards and forwards from present day to 1998, dipping into Liv’s upbringing. But apart from those two points, I really enjoyed this slow simmering mystery and would definitely recommend it for fans of a Nordic Noir. I think that if you’re looking for something dark and a little disturbing, this will probably be right up your street!
Now… let’s find another Scandi crime drama to binge!
Overall rating: “The Last Snow” is a dark, atmospheric crime drama that I really enjoyed. It’s well written and so descriptive. I think fans of the genre will love this one, it’s a big 4 stars from me!