An Event in Autumn (Kurt Wallander Series)

Nearing retirement, Chief Inspector Kurt Wallander is looking for a quiet place in the Swedish countryside. A colleague sends him off to look at a small farm house that seems ideal, but on close inspection turns out be a burial ground of sorts. And so begins an interesting police procedural looking into a 50-year old crime with few clues or living witnesses."An Event in Autumn", one of the last of the Wallander books (written on commission for a Dutch publisher some years ago), is instantly recognizable for its witty, slightly sardonic and grumpy style in the handling of the characters and for its perfect description of the physical context. The reader is in direct contact with the principals and the landscape from page one.This is also another book that pushes Kurt Wallander's daughter, Linda, to the forefront. Here, she has been on the Ystad police force for a while and is a full member of the task force looking into the farm house killing. She is also her father's confidant, roommate and frequent verbal opponent.Finally, "An Event..." comes with a bonus. There is a kind of pithy epilogue by the author that discusses the "birth" of the Wallander character and the much loved series as well as a brief history of Hankell's writing career. It's an interesting look at the thinking of one of the best writers still at work today and a good reason to read this particular story in and of itself.

THIS IS NOT A FULL LENGTH NOVEL! Rather, this is an abbreviated story of sorts that has no real depth to it, the plot is thin and the mystery easily solved without any real twists. I'm saying this first as a warning to the reader because the publisher does not advertise it as such. Mankell has a long note in the back of the book explaining all of this and clearly the author does not represent it as a full novel. It was written in The Netherlands some years ago as a promotional story to be given out as a free book to crime readers. All of this aside, it is of course, a well written and interesting work! I greatly enjoyed Mankell's note at back explaining the writing of and end of the Wallander series. I always enjoy insight from an author on his or her writing. The story itself is very interesting (though fairly thin) and I read it with enthusiasm. If you are a fan of Wallander, you must definitely read this story for it is more about Wallander himself. I also find Mankell's note at finish to be intriguing. Just don't think that you're getting a full bodied novel and you won't be disappointed. I wish that this was clearly advertised by the publisher - which is why I just won't give it 5 stars. Call it what it is. If you are new to Kurt Wallander, this is an excellent series written by an incredibly strong author. Check it out. Arguably the best in Scandinavian crime, Mankell's work incorporates crime and mystery with political reflection and insight.

Short novella republished. Last of series (not chronologically). Enjoyed it and sad there are no more. Enjoyed them all.

We have the last of the Wallander stories. I am sad to see it end. However, this story takes Kurt on a trip to see a house he may want to buy. While there, he discovers a skeleton in the backyard. Oh, oh, what looked to be a promising buy is no longer. He and his detectives start to seek out to whom the woman's body may belong. Discovering that it is from the early 1940's doesn't help. After several unpromising leads, Kurt goes back to the property only to discover another buried body. This time a man about the same age as the woman - early 50's or so. He discovers that there was a couple from Estonia at the farm. But, alas that lead leads no where as well. Or, does it?

Mr. Mankell has yet to fail at dropping Kurt Wallander, and us, into a bewildering mire that keeps us dogging Wallander's heels. Admit it. We're there because we still hope to solve this one before he does. We empathize with his daughter Linda. He's a plodding, irritating man who unfailingly pulls the best supporting performance from all of his colleagues, including his nagging daughter. The epilogue to AUTUMN hints at a Wallander adoration cult but, tactfully, there's no mention of fans inspired as much by irritation as fascination. I jest, as I really do value this fictional character as a companion in travels down Henning Mankell's dark paths. I must because Henning has given me the choice between that and avoidance of his trails. That is not an option.

If I have a complaint about Amazon reviewers it's that they lock into a certain rating for favorite authors and never vary it over a large number of books. Mankell is a gifted and talented author, at least in his Wallander series, but the quality varies, as with any writer, from books as brilliant as The Fifth Woman and Faceless Killers to the absurd and bumbling melodrama of the Dogs of Riga. Which brings me to the slight An Event in Autumn, which is consistently receiving four and five stars. The backstory tells everything about this brief "novel." A Dutch publisher developed a promotion to encourage the buying of detective novels: for every book purchased you would receive a free mystery. An Event in Autumn was one of the free books. Later in his career, Mankell decided to publish it as part of the Wallander series. It reads like a general overview of the themes and motifs that distinguish his better works, with little of the complexity or nuance. I would hardly recommend it.

I liked the story for the simplicity of both the writing and the plot. It is remarkably clean and uncluttered.

A new Wallender novel is like catching up with an old friend. An old admired friend... He is familiar and his integrity is obvious. And once in a while he is self-doubting or irascible. This story provides no heart-pounding confrontations. The crime is very old, and there are no drug lords or automatic weapon shoot-outs. But Wallender pushes on, determined to dig out the answers, committed to finding justice if only in honoring the memory of the victims, and being true to himself. I'm sorry to see Wallender retire, but he's provided me with many interesting hours. I wish it looked like he would be happier in his retirement! Safe travels, old friend!

This book was only recently translated into English as it had been written for the Dutch market to promote more reading of crime novels. Mankell responded to a request to write a thriller for this promotion and I think it was written in a bit of a hurry as it was not as good as his previous novels. It was a slimmer volume than usual and had a weak plot line of trying to identify two skeletons which had lain buried for about 70-80 years, The book only became a "thriller" in the last few pages. But fans of Mankell's Wallander will still want to buy it to complete the series (as I did) even though on a timeline it would have slotted in just before the final novel - The Troubled Man.

...along comes this bonus extra.Orginally published a decade earlier in the Netherlands as part of a campaign to encourage reading, An Event in Autumn was also published in the author's native Swedish in 2013. This is the last story revolving around Kurt Wallander explains Henning Mankell in a kind of decent sized epilogue following the short story set in 2002. Mankell goes on to reveal more about his creation, Kurt Wallander, and how there weren't any plans initially to feature the character in many more than a couple of books.An Event in Autumn returns the reader to Ystad Police Station and it's familair faces that we have been acquainted with during Mankell's earlier and lengthier novels. And of course we return to Wallander's Mariagatan flat where his daughter Linda is currently living with Kurt.The timeline of the book means that it's events fall before The Troubled Man, which chronologically is the final Wallander tale.Just when you thought you'd have no more Wallander, along comes thsi littel gem.Enjoy!Hopefully BBC4 will acquire the missing earlier Swedish SVT dramatisations starring Rolf Lassgard that have so far not been seen either, as they've screened the later ones twice (three times for one of them).

I have watched all of the Wallander series over the years and really enjoyed them. I found this book and decided to discover if Wallander would be very different. No. He is just as interesting. The plot was interesting, seeming to unfold realistically. I also enjoyed the author's explanation of how he started to write his books , the plots and the development of his character. It is no wonder they are so interesting. They are based on real life, history, written by someone who reveals his fascination with the way society is continually reacting and developing. Henning Mankell writes well, setting his stories in a different country to mine, creating the atmosphere of Sweden in a fascinating way. Once started, you have to finish, and it is a pleasure to do so. I am looking forward to the next book.

This is a good story, but a very short story. This small paperback book is printed in largish typeface with extra spacing between lines, and is divided into 26 ridiculously short chapters, most of which are about the length of a long paragraph.As with many Wallander stories, the tale is as much about Wallander's psyche and emotions as it is about the crime, which is not a criticism as it's intelligently done with much insight, but the reader deserves more.I read it at very leisurely pace in 3 hours, so don't bother packing it as a holiday read, as it won't last the flight!

I was pleased to receive this ebook a few days ago... Again, like many others in the series, the story develops very quickly... I found it to be another that 'I couldn't put it it down...'Although quite short, compared to Henning's other books, it was a very good read... 'ducking and diving' with the plot going in one direction, then another and then seeming to stagnate with no leads.Having been watching the first series of the Swedish TV series, Wallander played by Krister Henriksson, easily fitted into the part here.I have it 4stars because it was short, for no other reason... I recommend this ebook, an easy read 😃