The Chestnut Man

A Novel

By: Soren Sveistrup

Narrated by: Peter Noble

International Bestseller • A New York Times Book Review Best Book of the Year • Winner of the Barry Award for Best First Mystery/Crime Novel • Audie Awards® Winner

“A full-throttle thriller in the tradition of classic Stieg Larsson” —A.J. Finn, author of The Woman in the Window

From Søren Sveistrup, creator of the hit television show, The Killing—a stylish and atmospheric thriller that follows the race to find a serial killer terrorizing Copenhagen.

A psychopath is terrorizing Copenhagen.

His calling card is a “chestnut man”—a handmade doll made of matchsticks and two chestnuts—which he leaves at each bloody crime scene.

Examining the dolls, forensics makes a shocking discovery—a fingerprint belonging to a young girl, a government minister’s daughter who had been kidnapped and murdered a year ago.

A tragic coincidence—or something more twisted?

To save innocent lives, a pair of detectives must put aside their differences to piece together the Chestnut Man’s gruesome clues.

Because it’s clear that the madman is on a mission that is far from over.

And no one is safe.

Gripping Page-turner

Absorbing, gory, psychologically oriented. Many twists. Excellent reader/interpreter. . Looking forward to Soren Sveistrup’s next book.

“He what? NO! When?”. Huh.

True confession: this story scared the crap out of me! However... We, the English readers, might need a second read (worth it) to keep track of some characters. The main characters are well developed and interesting. But the less central players (who are very necessary) can be hard to track. I think it is the foreign names that I had difficulty pinning on their respective parts. Towards the end, with extreme tension, and ultimate climax, I wished I had a paper book to thumb back through. I wanted to be sure:
“Who?” then “He what? NO! When?”. Huh.
This is not an easy read (most likely due to tracking the foreign names...) But it’s one of the best mystery books I’ve read in a long time!
!!!Squeamish Readers *Beware!*: It gets brutal and bloody!
Enjoy! I hope this review is helpful :)

Not a fan

This book was EXTREMELY long and drawn out and the narration was like listening to someone reading bullet points in a list. The storyline was good but it got a bit difficult to keep the characters names straight. It wasn’t predictable which I liked but at the same time I think certain scenes the author created to throw you off track were unnecessary and disturbing. It is definitely gory at times so be warned.

Hard to read

Gruesome story and the details of murder and child abuse were a little too much for me.

Great Serial Killer Mystery

This book definitely keeps the suspense up and keeps your interest in the story line. The number of characters, story lines, and foreign names can get a bit confusing at times but I was able to keep them straight eventually; it didn’t distract from the mystery or the suspense.

Pleasantly frustrating.

I thoroughly enjoyed most of this novel. But I can’t say it was too long because I can understand the purpose for the parts I didn’t enjoy as much or felt took too long. It does an excellent job showing the true nature of those in positions of power in law enforcement. Closing the case as quickly as possible and preening for the press is the most important thing. And dodging blame when it arises is another top priority. So that can be annoying but also gives it a level of accuracy. That said the rest of the novel is top notch and enjoyable. Would def recommend. Only would discourage you if some graphic violence is a turn off. In this story, it’s not thrown in as an afterthought or to “spice” up those parts of the book. It was called for and completely understood in context. Only complaint is that I wish we could’ve had a deeper dive into certain characters and parts of the book. That left me with questions and wanting more. But overall, this is def an exciting book and worth the credit. More importantly it’s worth the nearly 20 hours of runtime.

Unexpected

This story is long, but good with unexpected twists. If you like intrigue, I think you will like this book!

Quite a thriller, but very dark

The performance was excellent. The writing keeps you on your toes and wanting to figure out all the mysteries presented. However, the story is quite dark - just a warning for anyone who prefers something lighter.

Good plot hooks - Got me! 🙂

The formula for Scandinavian noir detective murder mysteries is fairly well established so it is great when the plot surprises cannot be figured out in the beginning of the story. Mr. Sviestrup gives us a classic “page turner”! Great pacing and just enough character development to keep you engaged. Peter Noble’s reading is energetic (albeit with some strange character voice interpretations!) and keeps the ear buds planted. I recommend this book.

FIrst rate chiller!

Grim, yes. Gory, sure. But well written with plenty of atmosphere and lots to sink your teeth into. The story is completely gripping moment to moment without an ounce of superfluous filling. The investigators are just as wayward and damaged as one would expect, along with just enough frisson to keep it interesting. There are plenty of red herrings, and the story is perfectly constructed. Rich entertainment. Looking forward to more.