Long-term readers of my reviews will know I’m a massive fan of the Rabbit Factor books by Antti Tuomainen. The books were a great blend of mirth, mystery, and math. The lead character was an actuary who combined crime solving with pedantic statistical accuracy. Two unlikely bedfellows that produced an impeccable read. Now, Tuomainen is back with The Burning Stones. There’s no actuary, but there is more murder; this time, the CEO of a successful sauna company.
What Is The Burning Stones?
Once again, Antti Tuomainen brings us an amateur sleuth. Anni Korpinen is the chief suspect in a murder investigation. Her boss and CEO of Steam Devil Saunas was found dead in his own sauna. Locked in with the heat turned up until he died.
Anni is his nominated successor, and the police have her in the frame, especially when evidence from her house is found at the crime scene. Yet, Anni knows she’s been framed. Living in a town where everybody knows everybody’s business, Anni tries to untangle a complex web of secrets and unmask who has put her in the frame.
Why Read The Burning Stones?
I’ll be honest, if you’re a geeky math lover (as many of GeekDad’s readers are) and you’ve never read any of Antti Tuomainen’s books, I wouldn’t start here. Check out the Rabbit Factor trilogy first. I promise you, you won’t regret it.
When you’ve done that, you might feel a void. You’ll find yourself missing the author’s brand of quirky humour, astute skewering of the human condition, and intriguing whodunnits. The Burning Stones will fill that void.
The setting is a small rural town in Finland; one surrounded by an expanse of forest. The idea of openness of the landscape surrounding the town is in direct contrast to the claustrophobia generated by a tight-knit community. It gives the novel a pressure cooker feel. We feel as though help from outside can never arrive and that the players in the book are trapped by their remoteness.
Tuomainen’s strength is his characters. He gives us a quirky but believable cast, one of whom is a devious murderer. Each interacts with Anni differently. Whether it be the husband in her foundering marriage, the old flame she jilted decades earlier, or the aging policeman who bears a grudge against her father. Small-town feuds are simmering, ready to boil over.
Whilst undoubtedly “scandi-crime,” Tuomainen’s novels have a touch of humor that lightens them up. Yet he never scimps on the mystery, delivering compelling whodunnits time after time. The Burning Stones is no exception.
If you would like to pick up a copy of The Burning Stones, you can do so here in the US and here, in the UK. (Affiliate Links)
If you enjoyed this review, check out my other book reviews, here.
I received a copy of this book in order to write this review.
