The Absent One

By: Jussi Adler-Olsen

Narrated by: Steven Pacey

Length: 14 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

In The Keeper of Lost Causes, Jussi Adler-Olsen introduced Detective Carl Mørck, a deeply flawed, brilliant detective newly assigned to run Department Q, the home of Copenhagen’s coldest cases. The result wasn’t what Mørck - or readers - expected, but by the opening of Adler-Olsen’s shocking, fast-paced follow-up, Mørck is satisfied with the notion of picking up long-cold leads. So he’s naturally intrigued when a closed case lands on his desk: A brother and sister were brutally murdered two decades earlier, and one of the suspects - part of a group of privileged boarding-school students - confessed and was convicted.

But once Mørck reopens the files, it becomes clear that all is not what it seems. Looking into the supposedly solved case leads him to Kimmie, a woman living on the streets, stealing to survive. Kimmie has mastered evading the police, but now they aren’t the only ones looking for her. Because Kimmie has secrets that certain influential individuals would kill to keep buried... as well as one of her own that could turn everything on its head.

Every bit as pulse-pounding as the book that launched the series, The Absent One delivers further proof that Jussi Adler-Olsen is one of the world's premier thriller writers.

©2012 Jussi Adler-Olsen (P)2012 Penguin Audio

terriffic book, the second I have listened to

I thought it was a great book. I liked the story, the characters and narration.

Disturbing but excellent

What is it with Scandinavian fiction and sadomasochism? Anyhew, great read. Love the narrator, Steven Pacey, though I did keep expecting Logen Ninefingers to make an appearance ;-).

Now I am hooked on this series.

Set in Copenhagen, this is another in the great series by Adler Olsen. I read the series slightly out of order and although it was not that bothersome, I would recommend that you do read in order they were written. This was the second of 4 books, with the latest just released a few weeks prior to this review. I purchased the new one but have yet to listen to it. Detective Carl Mork is once again working the cold cases and has new cast of evil characters to contend with. Unlike most detective novels you know who committed the crimes from the beginning, the story is more about finding the evidence to arrest the bad guys.

I read some negative reviews based on narrator, but had no problems with him. The first three books each have a new narrator, but unless you listen to them back-to-back you probably won't notice. Although like many others I prefer a single narrator for a series. The third and fourth book do share a common one, however.

If you like this you will like the Jon Nesbo series and of course girl with dragon tattoo series.

Good book but wrong narrator, I prefer Erik Davies

Would you listen to The Absent One again? Why?

No, I did not like the narrator.

What did you like best about this story?

Characters and plot.

What three words best describe Steven Pacey’s voice?

Irritating

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Author does a great job of setting the scene in his novels.

Any additional comments?

None.

Loving Q!

My second Q, and promptly downloaded 3rd in series.
Would have been a 5 star but narration was difficult at first. First class detective story!

Fast paced

I liked the character development in this book as well as the animation in the narrator's reading. My only disappointment was knowing who the guilty parties were in the very beginning. It didnt leave the reader with anything to figure out.

Don't miss this one !

I almost didn't listen to this book after reading the reviews regarding the narration. Although Steven Pacey reads totally different than Erik Davies, he brings such life to the characters in this book that you can't help but to be totally engrossed in the story by the end of the first chapter.
This story is intense and not to be missed.

Too much sadism for me.

Author devotes much of the book to the workings of a group of sickies "inspired" by A Clockwork Orange. There is no mystery for the reader, just crosscutting between the gradual unfolding of the sordid violent backstory converging in parallel with the detectives' eventual arrival at its gory climax. So too much graphic content for my sensibility (I skipped a whole lot of it in the end). But I did enjoy following the development of Department Q.

Great story great narrator

What made the experience of listening to The Absent One the most enjoyable?

The story was griping and well paced

What other book might you compare The Absent One to and why?

Tara French, latest, sorry forget the title I think it is Lonsome Place. Has the same sort of compelling characters.

What does Steven Pacey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He is a wonderful narrator who captures the personalities of the various characters very well.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, and almost did

I like these mysteries

The protagonist, Karl, is a grizzled old detective. This is the second I've read (Dec 2017) and I'd read it again. Good action. Psychopaths amongst the bad guys are a little far fetched but it hands together