The Hypnotist Book

The Hypnotist gleaned much praise in its native Sweden, and newspapers and TV made a considerable effort to discover the identity of the pseudonymous author of this striking crime novel. The result of the search was dramatic: after a nocturnal ‘raid’ it was revealed that ‘Lars Kepler’ was, in fact, a husband and wife team – a duo of literary writers, hitherto uncelebrated. But Alexandra and Alexander Ahndoril have enjoyed life since being ‘outed’, though it meant that the success of the new book forced the pair’s individual literary efforts to go on hold (the male half of the duo's novel about the great Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman was in line for a major literary prize). Of course, as with almost every new Scandinavian crime novel, hopeful comparisons have already been drawn with Stieg Larsson, but an acquaintance with The Hypnotist demonstrates that this book is a very different kettle of fish. The members of a whole family have been brutally killed. There is one witness, the teenage son of the slaughtered family. But he appears to have been shocked into mute non-communication by the killings and can offer no leads. Kepler’s protagonist Inspector Joona Linna decides to ask ex-hypnotist Erik Bark to attempt to uncover the secrets of the boy's closed-off world. Linna and Bark discover that the traumatised youth holds the key to a shocking truth about the murders.The Hypnotist is a challenging, lengthy, but always rewarding novel, addressing some incendiary issues. But it is most crucially concerned with the ties of family both which potentially carry both positive and destructive elements. These serious issues are addressed in the context of a crime novel which sports a steady, inexorable building of tension and dread -- and in this area the Kepler duo know exactly what they’re doing. The couple have said they are more influenced by film than they are by other novelists, and this is a very cinematic novel. Joona Linna, too, is a strong central character. Prepare to be hypnotised by The Hypnotist. --Barry ForshawRead More