The Keeper of Lost Causes

Department Q, Book 1

By: Jussi Adler-Olsen

Narrated by: Erik Davies

Length: 15 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

Get to know the detective in charge of Copenhagen's coldest cases in the first electrifying Department Q mystery from New York Times best-selling author Jussi Adler-Olsen.

Carl Mørck used to be one of Denmark’s best homicide detectives. Then a hail of bullets destroyed the lives of two fellow cops, and Carl - who didn’t draw his weapon - blames himself. So a promotion is the last thing he expects. But Department Q is a department of one, and Carl’s got only a stack of cold cases for company. His colleagues snicker, but Carl may have the last laugh, because one file keeps nagging at him: A liberal politician vanished five years earlier and is presumed dead. But she isn’t dead...yet.

Darkly humorous, propulsive, and atmospheric, The Keeper of Lost Causes introduces American listeners to the mega-bestselling series fast becoming an international sensation.

©2011 Jussi Adler-Olsen (P)2011 Penguin

Decent story, painful fake Danish accents

A very good story, now the second in the Department Q books to which I've listened through Audible. BUT OMG!!! The bad Danish accents assumed by Erik Davies! Please please please forego the 'verisimilitude' of speaking in the version of English that might be spoken by someone whose mother tongue was the author's! Just read/perform the story with your regular accent. Had I not already listened to another book by a different narrator, one who did not assume bad fake accents, I would have returned this one. I will not sit through another of this ilk. But the story was good and the characters compelling.

The narrative arc and structure of this (Dept Q book 1) is a little too much like that of the other (book 3) to which I also listened, so I am hoping that Adler-Olsen has other plot lines up his sleeve for book 2, which I'll try next.

struggled to finish

The character names and narrator accents were not my favorites and seemed a bit forced. The narrator 's performance was somewhat of a monotone.

Solid story, but suffers a little from narration.

Not the best narration or translation, but the story itself is a solid introduction into Department Q. Reader Erik Davies gamely employs a passable Danish accent to the dialog, but I often found it distracting. Perhaps it's the translation of the original novel, but I also grew weary of the ham-fisted Americanized swearing throughout the story.

That said, the Department Q series — including "Keeper" — offers thrilling plots and deep insights into the work of crime detection while providing a host of vivid, likeable characters. Especially well crafted are the climactic moments that threaten to snap at any moment, yet hold your attention for page after glorious page.

If you're an Audible-listening dog walker as I am, prepare for a few extra trips around the block. In-car listeners should remember to turn the car off once in the driveway. Idling for long periods is bad for the engine and environment.

Great Story, Excellent Narrator

What did you love best about The Keeper of Lost Causes?

I'm a die-hard fan of detective stories, with a new love for Scandinavian ones, and this story is a winner. The mystery itself grabbed my attention from the first and then there were the characters - a story unto themselves.

What did you like best about this story?

I thought the narrator was just super and Carl, Assad and Rose and the interaction among them was believable and witty, as well. I cannot wait to follow these people in the next Carl Morck stories.

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

The narrator sounds exactly like my Danish friends and colleagues - he made the characters really come alive for me.

Great book. Disturbing in bits.

What made the experience of listening to The Keeper of Lost Causes the most enjoyable?

The plot line and twists

What did you like best about this story?

The developing relationship between Cal and Assad.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

I did not like the Danish accents at all! But that said I eventually got used to it and was able to kind of ignore it.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I wouldn't want to see a movie of this book. Parts of it were too disturbing to be watched.

Sets a deep hook

If you could sum up The Keeper of Lost Causes in three words, what would they be?

Starts slow but reels you in. Weird accents add to the charm

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Keeper of Lost Causes?

Learning the secret of the bad guys

Why the funny accent?

What made the experience of listening to The Keeper of Lost Causes the most enjoyable?

I find it strange that the characters have some sort of a strange accent when they talk. Presumably the are speaking Danish which we hear in English; they are speaking their native language, not really a foreign language (except Assad), wouldn't they speak that language without an accent, and so, wouldn't the English we hear not have a foreign accent? Very weird..

Would you listen to another book narrated by Erik Davies?

Not if I can help it -- well, yes, if the characters are not "foreigners"; the voice is very pleasant to listen to.

okay, but not anything special

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

only because it helped me pass the time at work

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

It pretty much says all that needs to be said that I can't even think of an aspect I found interesting.

Do you think The Keeper of Lost Causes needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No.

Any additional comments?

Not the worst story ever, but not nearly as engaging as it could have been. The characters are flat and the story has twists that are just long and not really very surprising. It made for a long tedious listen.

Enjoyable story eight very good narration

I enjoyed the story and narration but not quite in the same league as Nesbo in my opinion. But I very much look forward to next book on series

Perfection in Every Way

Any additional comments?

Rarely does an audio book come along that as a whole, exceeds the sum of the parts.Firstly, a great story by an accomplished, skilled author. Secondly a perfect, tonally correct translation of the culture the book was written in. And thirdly, an immensely talented narrator, who manages to lift the words off the page into a visceral sense of the reality the author is trying to create for the reader. Erik Davies is by far the perfect match for Jussi Adler-Olsen's work, as he is able to speak both perfect english and english with a true and realistic Danish accent. It imbues this novel with the context of the Danish culture that it is written in, which is a surprising and completely welcome bonus to the entire experience. Unfortunately, although talented, other narrators of Adler-Olsen's work are not in the same league as Erik Davies, which is a great loss for the audio-books of Adler-Olsen's work.