Black Seconds

Nine-year-old Ida Joner heads off to buy sweets on her shiny yellow bike. She never returns home. Thus begins the latest Inspector Sejer mystery by Norwegian writer Karin Fossum. British actor David Rintoul differentiates each character using distinct emotional tones. Rintoul uses his natural speaking voice throughout yet expertly imbues each character with an emotional timbre all his or her own. This style makes the narrative flow effortlessly and fits a mystery whose fabric lies more in the interpersonal struggles of the characters than in plot twists and the discovery of clues. Although some listeners may find the mystery a bit slow, Rintoul's stellar narration keeps the emotional tension running high from start to finish. J.T. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

April 14, 2008
Gumshoe Award–winner Fossum (When the Devil Holds the Candle
) once again wraps a blanket of methodical police work and infectious psychological tension around a relatively quiet crime in her fifth Inspector Sejer mystery to be made available in the U.S. When nine-year-old Ida Joner takes off for town (never named) on her new bike one afternoon and is never seen again, suspicion falls on Emil Johannes Mork, a silent, simple man. Emil, however, doesn’t appear to have the heart of a killer. The narrative shifts smoothly among those affected by the tragedy: Emil’s beleaguered mother, a good woman with little life of her own; a male cousin of the missing girl who may suffer some secret guilt; and, of course, Insp. Konrad Sejer and his younger colleague, Jacob Skarre. Sejer is a beautifully created character, a thoughtful, lonely man with great empathy. As he investigates Ida’s disappearance, it’s not so much the facts of the case as the impact of it on the people who surrounded the girl that fuel the story.