The Fifth Woman

A Kurt Wallander Mystery

By: Henning Mankell, Steven T. Murray - translator

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Length: 17 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

In an African convent, four nuns and an unidentified fifth woman are brutally murdered, and the death of the unknown woman is covered up by the local police. A year later in Sweden, Inspector Kurt Wallander is baffled and appalled by two strange murders. Holger Eriksson, a retired car dealer and bird watcher, is impaled on sharpened bamboo poles in a ditch behind his secluded home, while the body of a missing florist is discovered strangled and tied to a tree. The only clues Wallander has to go on are a skull, a diary, and a photo of three men.

What ensues is a case that will test Wallander's strength and patience, for in order to solve these murders he will need to uncover their elusive connection to the earlier unsolved murder in Africa of the fifth woman.

©1996 Henning Mankell (P)2007 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"The darkest of Swedish noir." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Intricate plotting, chilling psychological divination, and thrilling police procedural." ( Library Journal)

a bit too long and

I've liked Mankell's other books much more than this one. The story is good, but I found it went on for too long. The narrator got on my nerves a bit. He made several noises, chuckling, exasperated blowing, and for one fellow he devised a slow, almost stutter-like voice. Maybe the script said that the guy was that way early in the book. But, he was a minor character. Tolerable enough to get to the end to find out whodunit.

Great book. First pages of prologue missing

The audio version starts in the middle of the prologue for some reason. Before listening I recommend reading the first couple pages in the amazon preview of the printed version online. Those pages will make a difference in your understanding as the book progresses.

Slow moving

The story moved along at a plodding pace. The reader paused his reading at the weirdest places. The Swedish accent???? There was none. The story was a good one - but the above issues made it difficult to get through....

Clever story, but maybe a bit too clever

Would you consider the audio edition of The Fifth Woman to be better than the print version?

Yes, I think the reader brings the characters to life more than I would be able to in my head. I often feel that a good audio book with a gifted reader is more like a radio play than a novel. This book is no exception. The reading makes it feel very alive and immediate.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The killer was revealed in a very interesting manner, felt three-dimensional and believable. I thought that character was the best in the book, next to the ongoing unraveling of Kurt Wallander, who is a bit of a crumpled mess by this point in the series.

Which scene was your favorite?

A man out jogging at night in preparation for some sort of orienteering event stumbles on the corpse of a victim. It was told well, quite exciting.

Any additional comments?

Mankell's work is not translated into English very fluidly. It messes up the story a bit, I think. For example, "It was 6 a.m. in the morning" and similar clunky phrases recur and distract.

Excellent!

Like very much! More character development and excellent description of weather - I could feel the cold in middle of summer!

A new Henning Mankell fan is born

I often expect to be entertained with a good mystery, but my expectations save for a handful of writers usually end right there. This is my first Mankell novel, and I'm savoring the prospect of now reading more.

The book is atmospheric and touching, the plotting deft and this is no mean task since lesser writers would have held the reader captive with the gruesome and grisly torture and carnage that send the book's protagonist on his detecting mission.

The character development is superb, this book transcends the genre classification of "mystery" and is, rather, a novel and a fine one in the best sense of the word.

The narration was also strong, and in the end the book made me reflect, gave me pleasure in describing landscape, a father-son relationship, and police team relationships, and finally entertained, I could not stop listening. An excellent read, I look forward to making up for last Mankell time now!

Great listen, despite the narration

This was my first Mankell mystery and I completely enjoyed it. I love the characters, particularly the hero detective. The narration is deadpan but you quickly stop paying attention to it as you are eager to hear what happens next. Nice integration of a bit of social commentary and a perspective about contemporary politics.

Convoluted and complicated but compelling..

Loved every minute but I was happy to wrap it up.
Another great Mankell.
Thanks to the wrier, narrator was excellent and the translator.

Brutal but Interesting

I have read several other Henning Mankell books so decided to try this one. It is very brutal and graphic, but it kept me interested and I wanted to make sure the killer was caught.

narrator

my only change would be the voice of females. The reader makes the females sound helpless, not very bright.