The Water’s Edge by Karin Fossum
Reinhardt and Kristine Ris, a married couple, are taking a Sunday stroll when they come upon a boy’s body and observe a man limping away. To Kristine’s horror, Reinhardt kneels down and uses his cell phone to capture pictures of the deceased youngster before they call the police. Inquiries are started by inspectors Konrad Sejer and Jakob Skarre in the little village of Solberglia. But suddenly a second boy vanishes, making a solution even more improbable. Reinhardt becomes fixated on the tragic events and his personal role in them, which causes the Ris’ marriage to break under. From Norway’s “Queen of Crime,” Karin Fossum, comes a gripping portrait of a community—its insiders, outsiders, divisions, and secrets.
The Water's Edge by Karin Fossum
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This time, a very frightening child murder is at the core of the police investigation. Young Jonas August Lowe, the victim, was discovered in a lonely park by a couple out for a stroll after Sunday lunch. They observe a suspicious-looking individual leaving the area as he walks. Kristine and Reinhardt Ris are reacting strongly to the crime. While Kristine is utterly devastated by the tragedy and longs for a child to fill her, Reinhardt becomes morbidly fascinated with the situation. When a second child goes missing, Sejer and his dependable partner, Jacob Skarre, labour quickly to identify the causes of paedophilia and rule out suspects as time runs short.
In all of Karin Fossum’s works, whether they are about criminals or police, the psychological motivations of those involved are explored. On one side, the predator battles his own remorse and emotions of injustice, while Sejer and Skarre engage in lengthy and in-depth discussions about what motivates someone to prey on a child in the most bestial way. In my perspective, this book explores the psychological side of things more thoroughly than any of the others. In light of how awful the crime is, I thought it was appropriate…
