“Dept. Q” Is Open For Duty!
I you don’t know what “Dept. Q” is, you have missed out on some great books from Denmark!
I have devoured this series of “nordic noir” novels, and now am about to devour the TV series premiering on Netflix – with phenomenal reviews!
The new show is called “Dept. Q” – Matthew Goode stars as Detective Carl Morck, a Copenhagen Detective wracked with guilt following an attack that left his partner paralyzed and another policeman dead.
On his return to work, his bosses want to hide him from public view, so they create a “Dept. Q” – basically forcing Carl to sit in the basement and read “cold case” files to pass the time – but that’s not who he is – and he finds a case he intends to solve!
Check out the trailer:
Alexej Manvelov co-stars as Akram Salim, a Syrian cop forced to flee to Europe – he is assigned to be part of the new department as well…and he has a mysterious past that comes into play throughout the series of novels.
Kelly Macdonald stars as Dr. Rachel Irving, a police therapist who is handling Morck’s mandatory post-shooting sessions…their interaction also takes on importance as the series goes on…I can’t wait to watch the rest of this – terrific storytelling!
There are ten books in the “Department Q” series: I have read nine of them and am about to start on the latest one, titled “Victim 2117″…here are the first four in the series:
Time For Some “Ice Cold” Crime Fiction!
This is a style of mystery writing that I love right now:
“Nordic Noir!”
“Nordic Noir” is crime fiction that takes place in Scandinavia – Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland in particular – written in a realistic style with a dark, morally complex mood…as I said “icy cold!”
“The Dragon Tattoo” Trilogy!
Most people got their first taste of “Nordic Noir” when they read “The Dragon Tattoo” trilogy…and now another great Author is delivering superlative “nordic noir” that has become a new Netflix TV series – but you know what? There were also three films made from the books as well!
Meet Cinema’s Carl Morck!
The first three books were turned into films beginning in 2013: I saw two of them and they were terrific.
These “Department Q” crime thrillers are written by Danish novelist Jussi Adler-Olsen, who made his debut as a fiction writer in 1997.
My Mom and I have been devouring these books – she reads it first, then hands it to me…and let me tell you, this is working for me!
“The Keeper of Lost Causes”
The books begin here, when Deputy Detective Carl Merck gets “promoted” to Department Q, of which he is the head and sole employee. His job is to handle “cases deserving special scrutiny.” He is relegated to a windowless basement office where, his superiors hope, he will remain out of sight and out of mind.
Everything changes when Carl demands an assistant. He gets a lot more than he bargained for–a Muslim named Assad who is a jack-of-all trades: Assad dons rubber gloves to clean thoroughly, makes bad coffee, drives like a madman, and acts like a Syrian Sherlock Holmes. Now add Assistant Rose to the mix: a strong-willed woman who won’t take any guff from Morck or Assad.
This trio soon become obsessed with a challenging cold case–the disappearance five years earlier of Merete Lynggaard, a beautiful, talented, and dedicated up-and-coming politician. Did Merete fall overboard while she was a passenger on a ferry? Did she commit suicide? Or did someone abduct her?
After the success of the first book, the series picked up steam and now has ten installments:
“The Absent One”
Next up was “The Absent One” – which begins with a case file that appears inexplicably on Carl’s desk. Strangely, it’s a closed case, with a conviction already in place. Two siblings were murdered, and a student at a prestigious boarding school confessed. So why should Carl bother with it? But he gets intrigued and discovers that the supposed killer was part of a rich kids’ gang.
One of the things I love about these thrillers is that they unfold in two ways: Carl, Assad and Rose trying to determine what happened in the case, and then Adler-Olsen takes you back to the scene of the crime – so you follow the action from both directions until the two strands come together for a thrilling ending.
A Conspiracy of Faith
Next up is a fascinating book about religion, immigration and family….a bottle is discovered in the water after 14 years, with a barely legible note, written in blood, from two kidnapped children begging for help. Detective Carl Mørck and his eccentric team are tasked with investigating the legitimacy of the note and, once it’s authenticity is confirmed, discovering the fate of the two victims.
The Purity of Vengeance
The fourth book is called “The Purity Of Vengeance”, and this one is a doozy! There are not only “cold cases” to crack, but Morck, Rose and Assad find themselves in the middle of a tale of revenge that is happening all around them!
The Marco Effect
This novel digs deep into Denmark’s immigration issues, as a young Gypsy unwittingly helps Morck solve a case involving a bureaucrat who disappears in Africa – a “cold case” that reaches into the highest levels of Danish government!
The Hanging Girl
The sixth book in the series involves the suicide of Christian Habersaat, a recently retired police sergeant. Mørck looks into an unsolved case from 17 years earlier that consumed Habersaat’s life — the hit-and-run death of high school student Alberte Goldschmidt.
With each book, we get to know more about our characters, and why each case reveals interesting and secretive aspects of their own pasts.
The Scarred Woman
In this chapter of the series, Morck’s past and present collide when a series of unsolved murders slams head-on into some troubling details from Assistant Rose’s past!
I love these books: they are intricate, meticulously plotted and full of great characters – and the category of “nordic noir” has many other great Authors as well, like Jo Nesbo!
This is the terrific thrillers in Nesbo’s series focusing on grizzled Detective Harry Hole – yes, their crime fiction seems to have a lot of grizzled men!
Check out this series by clicking here:
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johnrieber 
To date I know very little about ‘nordic noir’ altho’ I stem from that part of the world. Sadly, we have had very few examples of it on our SBS (free international) channel and some of the series presented have made ‘heavy’ viewing. Perchance just my forever ‘lack of time’! Have enjoyed the read and shall do homework . . . but cannot imagine why the site of this series would have been transported from Copenhagen. Cannot see that working at all!
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I didn’t even consider that when I wrote up the story but it now concerns me greatly! Thanks for the comment!
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I haven’t read the books but this series sounds right up my alley! thanks and I can’t wait to watch it
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A friend just told me she didn’t know about the books but binged the series and after a bit of a slow start was riveting…assume they had to set the stage for the characters and how they got placed there before getting too much into the mystery…which in the books are really good
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I’m currently six episodes in and have read several of the original novels. Good though it is, I think they have spoiled it a bit by transposing it from Copenhagen to Edinburgh. The Danish dramatisations were better, in my view. And I’m still having trouble equating the Downton Abbey guy with a tough detective!
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Oh no! “Nordic noir” MUST be in that area, and Copenhagen was a great city for the series! Well, we’ll see how I handle that!
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I’ll be interested to see how you get on. Don’t get me wrong, it is still a good watch, but I preferred it in its proper location.
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As I note in my story, I also read Jo Nesbo and all of the original “Dragon Tattoo” trilogy….the location is in many ways a character in the stories so yes, we will see! Thanks for pointing that out!
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Yes to all of those, plus others like Camilla Lackberg, Hakan Nesser, Ragnar Jonasson. One of my favourite genres. Hope you enjoy it when you watch 😊
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Such great casting, it makes me wish I had Netflix. However, I did see the original Danish series on BBC 4 , and it was fantastic.
Best wishes, Pete.
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