Another Horst/Enger collaboration in the Blix/Ramm series. I can't decide if it comes before or after Unhinged (see below) and that's a good sign, showing you can start anywhere in the run. It's another cracking idea: a bomb goes off in the centre of Oslo on New Year's Eve; Blix is on duty, Emma Ramm is there because she has a funny feeling. Blix rescues one victim from the river. She's carrying ID belonging to Ruth-Kristine Smeplass, whose daughter Patricia was snatched ten years ago and never found. Patricia's father Christer Storm Isaksen killed a man who said he was involved; Blix was there when he did it. Now Christer, in gaol but coming to the end of his sentence, has received a photograph which he believes shows Patricia now aged eleven.
Things get even more complicated. Emma has suffered a personal loss in the bombing. Only work can keep her occupied. Blix believes Ruth-Kristine was the target of the bomber. He digs deeper into the kidnapping. It's a great yarn, effectively told. The collaboration works really well. It all builds nicely towards---
And then, I'm afraid to say, the climax is something of a disappointment. Plot-wise, it is the only possible ending, but it is poorly done and a pointless epilogue doesn't help. Even so, Smoke Screen was an enthralling read and not only will I read the next Horst/Enger when I come across it, I saw on social media yesterday that Enger has collaborated with someone else, a lead I shall definitely be pursuing.
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