Arttu Tuominen "What we hide": Finnish crime novel

Created: 09/13/2022, 18:01

By: Sven Trautwein

Arttu Tuominen is presenting the first of six volumes in a new series with “What we are concealing”.

Does it have any chance of becoming a bestseller?

My book tip.

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This changes nothing for you.

It's been 27 years since Jari and Antti were best friends at school.

Friendship in which everyone is there for each other should they find themselves in a bind.

Together they are strong against the bully Rami, who is after Jari and does not shy away from excessive violence.

When Rami is stabbed 27 years later, the case seems crystal clear to the local police, of which Jari is now chief.

For real?

Arttu Tuominen "What we are hiding": About the book

Arttu Tuominen "What we are hiding" © Lübbe

“Friendship has nothing to do with right or guilt.

You would know that if, even just once in your life, you knew someone you could trust implicitly.”Pori, Finland.

On a stormy autumn day, a drunk man is murdered with multiple knife wounds in a wooden house.

A typical Finnish murder - so the laconic comment of the inspectors called.

The case initially seems to be solved quickly: a suspicious man is arrested in the nearby forest that same evening.

But for investigator Jari Paloviita, the murder turns out to be the most difficult case of his life.

The suspect was his very best friend when he was young.

And Jari Paloviita owes him his life...

Lubbe

"What We're Withholding" was awarded Best Finnish Crime Fiction in 2020.

The third volume of Arttu Tuominen is currently being published in Finland. The series consists of six volumes.

In a conversation after a reading in Berlin, organized by the bookstore “Pankebuch”, which specializes in Nordic literature, Tuominen says that each volume puts a figure in the spotlight on a character from the investigative team.

He wrote the first book in the series in two months.

The second volume will appear in German in October.

Arttu Tuominen at the reading of "What we're hiding" with his translator Anke Michler-Janhunen © S. Trautwein

"What we hide": bestseller from Finland

Tuominen is an environmental engineer full-time in Pori, where the crime series is set.

His goal was to get 500 words a day - or rather, a night.

As a father, with the second child on the way to the first book, there was little time to write.

“Working as an engineer suited me well”.

He recorded his writing progress in an Excel spreadsheet.

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Even as a child he was interested in the crime genre.

The first books he devoured were from Enid Blyton's Five Friends series.

At the age of 7 he already wanted to be a crime writer.

His aunt gave him a portable typewriter, which he used to write his first crime novel.

After AM Ollikainen's “Team Helsinki – The Dead in the Container” and Max Seeck's “Devil's Net” and “Enemy Sacrifice”, Lübbe now has a new Finnish bestseller candidate in Arttu Tuominen's program.

Arttu Tuominen "What we are hiding": My conclusion

True friendship is the highest good.

27 years pass before Jari Paloviita sees his friend Antti again.

A lot of time, but it's a friendship that has survived this period of time almost unscathed.

And for Jari the most personal case so far.

In terms of tension, the thriller develops slowly, but according to a skillful pattern and the highly exciting last third.

I'm really looking forward to the next volumes.

Arttu Tuominen "What we hide"

Translated from the Finnish by Anke Michler-Janhunen

Bastei Lübbe, ISBN-13 978-3-404-18850-5

Price: Paperback €16, e-book €12.99, 412 pages (different format) – Order now (promotional link)

Arttu Tuominen

Arttu Tuominen, born in 1981, has received numerous awards in Finland for his detective novel What we are hiding.

He lives with his family in the coastal town of Pori in central Finland, the setting of this crime novel.

In addition to writing excellent crime novels, the author also works as an environmental technology engineer.