OPENING LINES:

The silence is shattered by the barking of a dog. The mother looks up from the sink and stares out of the window.

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This book, translated from the orginial Norwegian by Charlotte Barslund, fits into the category of “Scandinavian Mysteries.” It takes place in the small town of Elvestad in a rural area of Norway similar to the one where the author lives. Gunder Jomann is a bachelor and successful farm equipment salesman who becomes fascinated with the people and the country of India. When he takes a vacation to India he meets the woman of his dreams and marries her. On his return to Norway he gives her money and a ticket and she is to follow him. But on the day she is supposed to arrive Gunder is unable to get to the airport. When there is a report of a murdered foreign woman he wonders if this could be his new wife? Inspector Sejer steps in to investigate and does so in an understanding tolerant way. He is persistent and forthright asking questions from the villagers point of view and contemplating their answers to try and understand their thinking and motives. The ending is hard to predict but this book is as much about how Sejer solves the crime as it is about the solution. I am not usually a mystery lover but am embracing the idea of reading other books in this series.

Check the BPL catalog for this title: The Indian Bride