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Three Seconds

(Ewert Grens #5)

Anders Roslund,

Börge Hellström,

Kari Dickson (Translator)

3.82 · Rating details · 6,081 ratings · 654 reviews

Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9781849161527

Piet Hoffmann is the best undercover operative in the Swedish police force, but only one other man is even aware of his existence. After a drug deal he is involved in goes badly wrong, he must face the hardest mission of his life - infiltrating Sweden's most infamous maximum-security prison. Detective Inspector Ewert Grens is ch ...more

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Paperback, 384 pages

Published February 1st 2011 by Quercus Books (first published May 20th 2009)

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Nov 12, 2010 Kathryn rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: giveaways

The latest book from Roslund & Hellström is about the crooked dealings between the Swedish police and their well-placed informants. Ex-con Piet Hoffman, now a “covert human intelligence source” for the Stockholm police, is deeply implanted into the Polish Mafia. He is attempting to stop the organization from controlling drug distribution in Sweden’s prisons, and all the while, Hoffman is also a family man with a wife and two young sons.

When Hoffman is involved in a fouled-up drug deal that leads ...more

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Nov 07, 2010 thewanderingjew rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is one of the best crime novels I have read in a long time. For me it exceeded the Larsson series everyone loved. It is so well written. There wasn't a single moment when I felt that even one word was extraneous, except maybe when I was confused with the foreign terms but that had nothing to do with the book itself.

The book is set in an unfamiliar place for most Americans, since it takes place mostly in Sweden. Every character has a unique purpose and is developed specifically in a way to This is one of the best crime novels I have read in a long time. For me it exceeded the Larsson series everyone loved. It is so well written. There wasn't a single moment when I felt that even one word was extraneous, except maybe when I was confused with the foreign terms but that had nothing to do with the book itself.

The book is set in an unfamiliar place for most Americans, since it takes place mostly in Sweden. Every character has a unique purpose and is developed specifically in a way to define him/her. From the ever-grieving, cantankerous, curmudgeon Ewert Grens who is as rude an anyone can be, to the infiltrator whose behavior and actions are as smooth and courageous as anyone can be, even as he is forced to break the law to complete his assignment, to the cold and calculating handler who treats the infiltrators as things, not human beings, for the most part, I was constantly forced to look at both sides of the coin in the law enforcement and criminal world. I began to seriously question my own ideas of right and wrong.

I was thrilled by this tale of criminal espionage, kept on the edge of my seat, as the underbelly of the corruption in our society is exposed and made naked. The line between criminal and honorable behavior is so blurred that I was constantly wondering and questioning the underpinnings of my own ethical beliefs. After awhile, I didn’t know whom to root for, law enforcement or the law breaker. As I read I questioned the very foundation of all legal systems and the justice system and realized that it was hard to tell in this book, and probably in real life, just what is real and what is fiction even in the real drama of my life. Who is guilty, who is innocent? Both elements of society cross the lines of honorable activity into the realm of the underworld, to serve their own selfish purposes. Even if the end result is meant to be for the good of mankind, I found the behavior outrageous and unacceptable. There has to be a better way.

This book enraged me, but in a good way. It made me think about how I view things as a witness, to some event or other, everyday of my life. I realized that the system keeps the system alive at any expense! We all see what we want to see, what serves our needs. For some, the end justifies the means at all costs and I began to wonder, is the cost ever too great?

The book succeeds in all ways without gratuitous sex. However, it is very violent, but that too, is not gratuitous but absolutely necessary to the development of the plot and the unraveling of the tale. I can't recommend it highly enough to readers who enjoy exciting, crime fiction that walks the tightrope or the balance beam between the real world and the world of nightmares. You will question your own world once you begin.

...more

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Sep 13, 2018 Cori rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: amazing-stand-alones, modern-crime, thrillers

*finishes book, snaps cover closed*
Queue Extreme Ways by Moby.

If you don't know this reference we can no longer be friends; I have no desire to speak with you further. If you actually know that reference, you need to let me know so I can congratulate you on Your Awesome. This book was like Bourne Identity meets Boondock Saints meets Shooter meets The Departed. But also with an extra shot of kick ass awesome. An informant working undercover is assigned to a prison. And while there...gets burnt. *finishes book, snaps cover closed*
Queue Extreme Ways by Moby.

If you don't know this reference we can no longer be friends; I have no desire to speak with you further. If you actually know that reference, you need to let me know so I can congratulate you on Your Awesome. This book was like Bourne Identity meets Boondock Saints meets Shooter meets The Departed. But also with an extra shot of kick ass awesome. An informant working undercover is assigned to a prison. And while there...gets burnt. Which is to say, his handler abandons and betrays him. What's an ex-con, drug dealing, undercover informant to do? Enter: plot.

Probably maybe 15 times or something, I slapped my husband's leg explosively whilst reading this and yelled, "I can't wait for this to be a movie!" (which it's going to be, by the way; you heard it from me.) I.Am.Stoked.

One huge strength of this book is the power behind the research. These dudes aren't messing around. They interviewed convicts, prison wardens, law enforcement officers, doctors, you name it. Oh! Also, there's a small matter of one of the authors being an ex-con himself. The writing is dynamic and authoritative. There's no tiptoeing around areas in which they are uncertain. Because they aren't. Uncertain, that is. They bowl straight ahead. With swagger. With convict swagger (it's a thing).

The mild negative: honestly, yes. I pretty much knew where the book was going to end up. It's like seeing your destination at the top of a mountain. But you can't see the path that's going to get you there, so you're excited to take this adventure and whip your head back and forth to gawk out the car windows. That said, there were a few twists I didn't anticipate. A few, "What's he doing now? Why is he doing that? Oh, man. You better run, bro!" 'Twas smashing.

I'd highly recommend. Fun, adrenaline popping book. And I learned a few things. Hopefully nothing I ever need for the future...

I'd rate this book a mild R for prison and drug culture, violence, and gore. ...more

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Jul 24, 2012 Rachelle Urist rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Though it took me a while (50 pages? 80? 100?) to get into the book, once it took hold it didn't let go. For the last 300+ pages, I couldn't put it down. It's a riveting look at detective work, criminal minds, and the enormous risks, both physical and psychological, that both sides take in doing what they do. I may have vaguely known that investigators use criminal elements to spur - if not enable - their efforts. But this book, written collaboratively by a former journalist and former criminal, ...more

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Dec 15, 2010 Tony rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: novels, setting-europe, translated-fiction

Scandinavian crime fiction has been hot for many years now, but in the wake of the unexpected success of the Steig Larsson books, it appears to be even more ubiquitous. This latest example (the third in a series, following The Beast and Box 21) takes a very straightforward and familiar plot about an undercover operative working for the Swedish police, and manages to milk it for more than 400 pages of not particularly engaging prose. The premise is that former drug addict and ex-con Piet Hoffman Scandinavian crime fiction has been hot for many years now, but in the wake of the unexpected success of the Steig Larsson books, it appears to be even more ubiquitous. This latest example (the third in a series, following The Beast and Box 21) takes a very straightforward and familiar plot about an undercover operative working for the Swedish police, and manages to milk it for more than 400 pages of not particularly engaging prose. The premise is that former drug addict and ex-con Piet Hoffman was recruited by the cops while still in jail to become an informant. He has since risen to a fairly prominent position with a Polish gang, and is on the brink of being able to provide information to his handler that will bring the gang entire drug-smuggling operation down. Of course, as is the case in many such stories, something goes wrong and Hoffman's role of informer is put at risk -- along with his life.

The ostensible hero of the story (and the series) is dour, misanthropic, middle-aged Detective Inspector Grens, who in the course of investigating a murder, comes into contact with Hoffman and smells something fishy. So, you have one set of police officials trying to cover for Hoffman and keep him off the radar, and D.I. Grens and his team chasing down Hoffman from the other side. Now don't get me wrong, I love police procedurals, but this one is very slow going for the first 2/3 or so of the book. There's a lot of fat in the writing, and it often feels very clumsy. For example, the authors have this really annoying technique that emerges in pivotal scenes, where a line of dialogue is followed with a line describing what the speaker is thinking and feeling as they say it. This is incredibly awkward, and sometimes it's not even clear who is thinking what. This is made even more complicated by the occasional use of italics to set off such interior thoughts.

But if you stick with it long enough, the story suddenly lights up in a flurry of well-conceived activity in the final third. I just finished re-reading the classic thriller The Day of the Jackal, and aspects of Hoffman's story are very reminiscent of the methodical planning undertaken by the assassin that book (and film). Unfortunately, like that book, the characters never really come alive off the page, and mainly exist to serve the plotting. (It's possible that some on the police side would feel more fleshed-out if I'd read the first two books in the series.) The overall story is really not that fresh or interesting, but the mechanics of how certain things are done may be enough for some readers to emerge satisfied. I read a lot of international crime fiction, and this one felt pretty marginal to me.

Note: One aspect that's somewhat interesting is the not-so-subtle implication that the Swedish police are importing techniques (like the heavy cultivation and use of informers) from America that end up taking them into some very morally dubious territory, such as turning a blind eye to crimes committed by valuable informants.
...more

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Nov 12, 2010 Alicia rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Fans of S. Larsson or Sjowall and Wahloo, those interested in the politics of policing and prison

Shelves: sweden, crime, drugs, prison, mafia, reviewed, thriller

I won this hot-off-the-torturous-translation-table Swedish thriller in a goodreads giveaway contest. My review is of an uncorrected advance reading copy, so it is possible that changes may be made to the text before it is released in January 2011. Three Seconds is the first novel I've read by Roslund & Hellstrom.

I don't know what it is about Sweden as a country that makes it inclined to produce crime novels that are so much more interesting, insightful and refreshing than the formulaic Koontz a I won this hot-off-the-torturous-translation-table Swedish thriller in a goodreads giveaway contest. My review is of an uncorrected advance reading copy, so it is possible that changes may be made to the text before it is released in January 2011. Three Seconds is the first novel I've read by Roslund & Hellstrom.

I don't know what it is about Sweden as a country that makes it inclined to produce crime novels that are so much more interesting, insightful and refreshing than the formulaic Koontz and Patterson car-chase-explosions-sex-with-a-hot-girl-gun-fight that is the standard fare of American thrillers, but I do know that Three Seconds does not break with Swedish tradition. In all fairness, there actually is an explosion in Three Seconds too, but it's an intelligent explosion, rather than just a testosterone-laden male-orgasm substitute. Even keeping in mind the fact that most Swedish books have been translated out of their original language for English-speaking audiences, thereby losing some of the natural ebb and flow of the prose that can never be 100% recaptured by words of a different language, they still manage to blow American crime writing out of the water.

I found Three Seconds to be an incredibly suspenseful and intelligent thriller with deep, emotionally-developed characters. I won't talk much about the plot, because there are so many twists even within the first 50 pages that it's hard to talk about the plot at all without revealing spoilers, but I will say that it was perfectly paced - fast enough to keep me reading non-stop for an entire night, and then slowing down just enough to tease me in the sections where I was dying to know a resolution. What I loved most about this book though was how thought-provoking and meaningful it managed to be while simultaneously being entertaining and gripping. Unlike the last thriller I won in a giveaway, the fun but somewhat shallow The Insider, Three Seconds is chock full of subtle social and political commentary that forces you to think about issues as varied as drug addiction, the morality and boundaries of police work, civilian rights, undemocratic loopholes in constitutional law and the effectiveness of prisons in decreasing crime and rehabilitating criminals - all this while thoroughly entertaining the reader!

I also enjoyed the fact that there was little romance or focus on random love interests in this book. I like my steamy casual sex-scenes as much as the next happily-single woman, but sometimes it's nice to have a break from every single character in a book always having to have a love interest or every detective having hot, young women just fall into bed with them. As for the writing, I liked the italicized internal dialogue that was written into the normal dialogue. Perhaps some readers might have found the frequent italics a bit jarring, but personally I really enjoyed it. I thought it genuinely read like a realistic depiction of the brain's thought processes and how we talk to ourselves inside our head, and reminded me of how easy it is to go off on your own train of thought or have unspoken conversations right in the middle of a real, verbal conversation with someone else. The psychology of a wide-variety of characters was very well-developed. I could understand the motivations of and sympathize with characters as different as a grieving, guilt-ridden, eccentric and old-fashioned detective, a drug mule who risks their own body for a bit of money, a stressed out civilian police informant who just wants a better life for his family and a prison warden who wanted to advance his career without losing every last ounce of integrity.

For the first 50 or 60 pages, it did seem like there were a few too many characters to keep track of. Initially, all the jumping back and forth between different characters, locations, and scenarios was a bit confusing, but once I had sorted out who was who and whether they worked for the bad guys, the good guys, or the kinda-bad, corrupt, democracy-bypassing bureaucrats, it was quite easy to follow.

My only other complaint was that it was perhaps a bit on the lengthy side. If half of the descriptions of getting and drinking a cup of coffee could have been cut out, along with the constant mapquesting, that alone could easily have cut it down by 30 pages. What do I mean by mapquesting? Well, the authors had a weird habit of constantly naming every single street that the characters walked or drove down, the turns they took, and sometimes even describing lane changes, which after a while started to read a bit like a set of mapquest directions on every few pages. Maybe if I lived in Stockholm and actually knew some of the steets then I wouldn't have noticed it as much, but for any readers who lives outside of Stockholm the street names are pretty meaningless and as such, become tiresome. Aside from that, it was a highly enjoyable, difficult-to-put-down crime novel and I hope to read more of Roslund and Hellstrom's work. ...more

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Dec 10, 2010 Maddy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010-reads, tops

PROTAGONIST: DI Ewert Grens; infiltrator Piet Hoffman
SETTING: Sweden
SERIES: #5 of 5; 3rd book translated into English
RATING: 4.75

One of the tools that police departments often use is to develop a network of informants, people on the street who have access to the kind of information that they would be hard pressed to uncover. In some cases, the informant goes even further, with the subject actually infiltrating an organization that is of interest to the authorities. Such is the role of Piet Hoffm PROTAGONIST: DI Ewert Grens; infiltrator Piet Hoffman
SETTING: Sweden
SERIES: #5 of 5; 3rd book translated into English
RATING: 4.75

One of the tools that police departments often use is to develop a network of informants, people on the street who have access to the kind of information that they would be hard pressed to uncover. In some cases, the informant goes even further, with the subject actually infiltrating an organization that is of interest to the authorities. Such is the role of Piet Hoffman who over the course of many years has infiltrated the Polish Mafia in Sweden. His police contact, Erik Wilson, goes to extreme lengths to protect Hoffman. Recently, Hoffman has established himself with the upper echelons of the Poles and is on the verge of providing the police with an unparalleled opportunity to bring down their drug distribution network.

But then the unthinkable happens. While working through a drug deal, Hoffman realizes that one of the buyers is also an infiltrator. He can’t blow the cover that he has worked so hard to develop; the other man is murdered by Piet’s criminal cohorts. Hoffman anonymously calls the police to report the death, and the case is assigned to Detective Inspector Ewert Grens. Wilson goes through his chain of command to protect Hoffman, while Grens becomes increasingly frustrated because his investigation is going nowhere. At the same time, Grens is finally working through a personal situation that has consumed him for years, shedding the guilt he feels for an accident involving a colleague.

The undercover operation continues. Hoffman commits a minor crime so that he can go to prison and work on establishing the Polish Mafia as the source for drugs for the inmates with the Mafia’s ultimate goal being to control the drug distribution in the country’s fifty-six prisons. Before being committed, he has met with the police authorities and been reassured that he will be released from the prison within two years and that he will be protected while he is there. Before he is incarcerated, he takes several actions to plan for what he will do in the event that he is exposed and the guarantee conveniently forgotten.

Although the start of THREE SECONDS is somewhat slow, it rapidly evolves into an unputdownable narrative. The character of Piet Hoffman is an intriguing one. He is devoted to his wife and two sons; yet, he is willing to sacrifice those relationships in his unwavering commitment to the task that he has been assigned. It was fascinating to watch him plan for his prison stay, without quite knowing why he was doing what he was doing. It all made sense in the end. In an interesting quandary, I found myself hoping that somehow the brilliant and dedicated Grens would falter in his investigation. The book builds to an explosive climax and a most satisfying conclusion. Although the story of Piet Hoffman was what kept my adrenalin pumping, the whole issue of the government lies that Grens uncovers was quite compelling as well.

I found THREE SECONDS to be an engrossing and exciting read. Certainly, the fact that it received the Best Swedish Crime Novel of the Year in 2009 was justified.
...more

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Feb 08, 2011 Brian Oldham rated it liked it · review of another edition

I love Scandinavian Crime Fiction. This book cover says it is the best book of the year. It is good but not the best Scandinavian crime fiction you can read. I don't know all the books that came out in the last year, but I know that this is not at the level or Henning Mankel, Arnarldur Idridisson, Helen Turston, Sjowall and Wahloo, Karen Fossum, Ake Edwardson, Hakkan Nesser and certainly is no Stig Larsson. This book also does not compare to the quality of England's Peter Lovsey, or the U.S. aut ...more

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Mar 20, 2019 Achour rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: rec, e-books

Amazing and exciting reading ! !

“Three Seconds” is written by Anders Roslund (journalist) and Borge Hellstrom (ex-criminal).

I had a good time reading this book despite that it was not easy at first. The authors were in no hurry to bring their story into focus and they took a lot of time to "set up" the context what gave a "false" pace until the half of the book. They gave many details about the characters which allow readers to anticipate their reactions and understand their decisions. Readers ...more

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Jan 13, 2011 J Edward Tremlett rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Call him Paula. That’s what his handlers in the Stockholm police do.
Codename Paula is their inside man within the dangerous Polish mob, which has infested Sweden’s underworld with drugs and other nefarious activities. At their behest, he walks a terrifying path — turning a blind eye to death and murder as he commits some crimes in order to stop others. And at every moment, with each new crime and deception, he knows that one wrong word or off action could cause his long-standing deception to col Call him Paula. That’s what his handlers in the Stockholm police do.
Codename Paula is their inside man within the dangerous Polish mob, which has infested Sweden’s underworld with drugs and other nefarious activities. At their behest, he walks a terrifying path — turning a blind eye to death and murder as he commits some crimes in order to stop others. And at every moment, with each new crime and deception, he knows that one wrong word or off action could cause his long-standing deception to collapse around him, leaving him exposed amongst killers.
Leaving him dead, or lost to the wife and children he dearly loves.
In the midst of the dangerous deception comes a chance at the best sting of his life. The mob wants him to enter a maximum security prison, and take over its methamphetamine supply and distribution on their behalf. His underworld bosses think it will be a major coup, and so do his police employers. All he has to do is have his record adjusted to make him sound even more dangerous than he is, and then arrange to have him arrested on a bogus but heinous charge, and off to prison he goes, there to betray one set of friends for the other, and maybe get out of this double life once and for all.
But it’s never that simple.
Just before the opportunity came a disaster — a killing Paula was only tangentally involved in, but involved enough to get a different side of the Stockholm police looking for him. That’s just enough heat to make the secretive portion of the police that handles him wonder if they should drop him rather than implicate themselves in his crimes on their behalf.
And if they drop him while he’s in prison — in an environment where found out snitches die rather quickly – there’s no way Paula could get out before angry inmates tore him apart
Except that Paula is no ordinary snitch, and no ordinary man. He can see the writing on the wall. He’s got plans within plans, and interesting areas of expertise that even his police employers are largely ignorant of…
If the police think they can play him and walk away clean, then they don’t know Paula. But readers of this fantastic follow-up to “Box 21″ will not only know him, but root for him as the danger slow-burns to a riveting conclusion.
Fans of exotic thrillers should snap this book up as soon as they can. It is not, as the advertising would have you believe, “the next Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” — it’s something altogether different and exciting, and hopefully a sign of more good things to come from the stellar writing team of Borge Hellstrom and Anders Roslund.
(From the review here.) ...more

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Jan 07, 2011 Amy rated it liked it · review of another edition

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher.

Many writers are currently being touted as the next Stieg Larsson. These writers are no exception. Many librarians are struggling with what to recommend to readers who want more in the style of Larsson's Millenium trilogy. I'm not sure that this book qualifies.

Piet Hoffman is a devoted husband and father but he hides a secret. He is also an ex-con who has been working undercover as a mole for the Stockholm police for the last nine years. I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher.

Many writers are currently being touted as the next Stieg Larsson. These writers are no exception. Many librarians are struggling with what to recommend to readers who want more in the style of Larsson's Millenium trilogy. I'm not sure that this book qualifies.

Piet Hoffman is a devoted husband and father but he hides a secret. He is also an ex-con who has been working undercover as a mole for the Stockholm police for the last nine years. Hoffman has risen through the ranks of the Polish mafia and is selected to head up the mafia's new attempt to take over the methamphetamine trade in the Swedish prisons. In order to accomplish his objective, Hoffman must get himself arrested and placed in a maxium security prison where he will set up the new drug trafficking trade. However, he will have no contact with his police handler and will be completely on his own. If he is found out as a mole, his life will be in jeopardy.

The first half of this book lays the groundwork for the story. It explains how Hoffman came to be a mole, how the undercover agent operation works and what Hoffman's work inside the prison will entail. There is A LOT of setup. I was confused for a good portion of the book because the writers waited to explain that the police use female code names for their informants. It wasn't clear to me that "Paula" was the same person as Piet. The book didn't really pick up for me until about halfway through when Hoffman begins his prison operation. The last half was very good. Once I found out what the title of the book was referencing, I really got hooked.

Many readers may get bored and/or frustrated by the first half of the book. It moves pretty slowly and the number of characters can be confusing. However, the second half really redeems the book. Since one of the writers is an ex-con himself, he really gives us an accurate view into how the whole police/prison system works.

BOTTOM LINE: Recommended. If you can get past the first half of the book, you will be rewarded by fast-paced and gripping story with a clever twist at the end.
...more

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Oct 14, 2016 Amanda rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Fantastic Swedish crime when one starts to sympathise with the villain, against all odds.
A calculated, intense, and dark story about an underworld that almost certainly exists and leaves me questioning why people do what they do.
Underneath it all, criminals are people too, who make choices, have feelings, and are just as vulnerable and fragile.

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Jul 09, 2018 Anne rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Perfect escapist summer reading for fans of Stieg Larssen’s “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” trilogy. I listened to the audiobook, and I have a feeling it made the book better. (I mind verbosity and repetitiveness less in conversation than on the printed page.)

The story is fairly easy to figure out and lacks the intricate subtlety and the intriguing lead characters of the Larssen books:

The lead detective is a cliché and not much fun, but the ex-con protagonist infiltrator makes up for this. The au ...more

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Sep 24, 2019 Geoff rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Really 3.5. I liked the viewpoint of the police informer - interesting psychology but I really don't like DCI Ewert Grens. The most annoying aspect was the constant repetition of information - more editing please! ...more

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Nov 22, 2019 Cathy rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 interesting storyline on how the Swedish use informers and the corruption inherent in it.

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Feb 06, 2015 Bill rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Closer to 2.5 STARS ... but I’m rounding down to 2.0 STARS. It was OK but if I knew when I started this book what I know now I probably would have passed on this one. Don’t get me wrong. The writing is very strong, almost addictive in its cadence and flow and smooth transition between characters but the subject matter simply isn't my gig.

So why did I read it? Some background color ... I bought this book, along with a half dozen others, for $0.50 at my library’s http://www.westath.org annual spri Closer to 2.5 STARS ... but I’m rounding down to 2.0 STARS. It was OK but if I knew when I started this book what I know now I probably would have passed on this one. Don’t get me wrong. The writing is very strong, almost addictive in its cadence and flow and smooth transition between characters but the subject matter simply isn't my gig.

So why did I read it? Some background color ... I bought this book, along with a half dozen others, for $0.50 at my library’s http://www.westath.org annual spring book sale last April(2014!). I squirreled them away in a very neat little pile in my home office so well that I forgot all about them! The pile recently discovered and none of my requested titles available at the library yet, I decided to give this one a try. Originally $13.69 at BJs at some point in time, the book sports a very interesting cover jacket, proclaims to be a best Swedish crime novel winner and international best seller AND is written by an ex-criminal who helps to rehabilitate young offenders and drug addicts.

This is a story about undercover infiltration of organized crime, specifically the Polish mafia entering the Swedish amphetamine market, and the moral hazards, dilemmas and unintended consequences experienced by law enforcement officials tolerating certain crimes in order to solve what is perceived as far more socially important, far reaching criminal activity with a much greater negative impact on society as a whole. But overlooking and sanctioning low level drug transgressions escalates into murder and suddenly the stakes are much higher for some very senior police and government officials who are directly involved in the covert actions. Careers are at stake, promises are broken and suddenly all support for the informant is withdrawn. Memories become clouded or non-existent, wagons are draw into the proverbial circle and the struggle for survival and retribution ensues.

This is a very familiar plotline with no great surprises or blindside twists. The presence of tension and suspense with a splash of international intrigue makes for a very fast moving story but in the end, I‘m simply uninterested in mafia/mob/organized crime stories. I’ve never watched the Godfather movies, or Scarface or the Sopranos – no interested whatsoever.

But I’m thinking for the folks interested in this genre, Three Seconds might be really good read, perhaps 3-4 STAR worthy. For me, a nice little stroll outside my comfort zone and a small investment of just $0.50. I’ll donate the book back to the library in time for the 2015 Spring Book Sale!
...more

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May 13, 2013 Kristina rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: police-procedural, got-rid-of, mystery-thriller, fiction

Three Seconds by the Swedish writing team of Anders & Hellstrom is pretty good. Once I had the chance to really get into the book, I enjoyed it more. However, I didn't feel that it was anything so special that I'd want to read anything else by them.

Piet Hoffman is a former criminal turned police informant. He has managed to delve deeply into a Polish mafia drug ring. His next move is to get himself arrested so that the mafia can expand into the prison--which is when Hoffman and the Swedish poli Three Seconds by the Swedish writing team of Anders & Hellstrom is pretty good. Once I had the chance to really get into the book, I enjoyed it more. However, I didn't feel that it was anything so special that I'd want to read anything else by them.

Piet Hoffman is a former criminal turned police informant. He has managed to delve deeply into a Polish mafia drug ring. His next move is to get himself arrested so that the mafia can expand into the prison--which is when Hoffman and the Swedish police plan to move in and arrest everyone involved. Unfortunately for Hoffman, he is being investigated for a murder he did not commit and trapped in prison where inmates and certain members of the police want him dead.

Ewert Grens is a detective with the Swedish police. He is leading the investigation of a murder and his evidence is leading right to Hoffman. Grens does not know that Hoffman is a police informant and his search for the truth could very well mean death for Hoffman.

I liked this book okay. It was suspenseful because I wanted to see how Hoffman was going to survive (or if he would) the very bad situation he found himself in. However this is one of those books that already has all the answers out there; you are reading just to see how it all works out. So there's no guessing of who did what or who's involved with what. There are no secrets for the reader--you know everything. The characters have secrets from each other and you as the reader basically sit back and watch character A learn character B's secrets. It's a very plot-heavy book, which I also don't usually enjoy. Grens is an odd character, very morose.

If you like reading clever plots with characters who can do all sorts of clever, sneaky things, then you will enjoy this book. I was interested enough to finish the book, but I kinda forgot about it as soon as I finished it. There is an interesting moral and ethical dilemma in the book, but the authors' feelings about the situation are so obvious there's not much for you, the reader, to think about.

Also, if you do read this book, take a look at the authors' photographs on the back flap of the book cover. Holy crap. They are scary-looking. I hope they don't read this review and get mad at me. ...more

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May 29, 2019 Deborah Schultz rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: pop-sugar-challenge-2019

I enjoyed the narrator. The book was good, but I think it will work better as a movie. I liked all the planning done by the main character and his meticulous attention to details. I found the stance against informants getting away with crimes. I admit it was taken a little far, and was underhanded, but it seems commonplace to overlook minor crimes to catch major criminals. I did keep picturing Joel Kinnaman as Piet...

#abookbecomingamoviein2019
#theinformer
#abs

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Dec 31, 2010 Trish rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mysteries, fiction, scandinavian, spies-and-such, audio

An undercover agent is sent to jail to burn a crime ring from the inside, only to find that he is suspected by both the regular police and the crime ring he has gone to infiltrate. Devilishly clever, this novel showcases a truly unique plan by an inmate to elude his pursuers. This was my first time to realize a connection between tulips and drug-smuggling, which had the result of completely unfettering my imagination.

Stockholm has a group of mystery writers that clearly exploit some real or imag ...more

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Jan 31, 2015 Toni Osborne rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Book 5, in the Grens & Sundkvist series

This book is by far from being short in fact it is close to 500 pages of intense reading. The plot is multi-faceted and it takes its merry time to spring into action but once started it crakes up tension and our engagement with the novel. Some entering midstream into this series may feel at a lost since the bleakly eccentric protagonist has a very heart wrenching past which is essential to know.

The novel deals with criminals in contemporary Sweden, the Pol ...more

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May 16, 2011 Anthony rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is the second book in the series that I've read by these Swedish authors. I thought this book was even better than the first. These two authors, one of them a former criminal, write so well and thoroughly draw out their characters in addition to developing a walloping good story.

The gist of the novel is that the Swedish police, through an undercover former petty thief, have infiltrated the Polish mafia. The send this infiltrator into the prison system to learn more about how drugs are smugg ...more

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Aug 11, 2011 Kevin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This was a fantastic Sweedish read By Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom and written in the style of the "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" series by Stieg Larsson. This story takes place in Stockholm and surrounds the plight of "Paula" (the main character is male) who is caught up in the Polish mafia's attempt to flood the Sweedish drug trade as well as being hung out by the justice system. Until the conclusion, it is difficult to predict who will survive and who will fall to their respective life c ...more

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Dec 23, 2010 Ronald Roseborough rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-adventure-thriller, mystery, murder, crime

Riding high on the wave of Scandinavian novels breaking on our shores, comes this first rate thriller from the award winning team of Roslund and Hellstrom. Names we will definitely be hearing a lot more of in this country. Superb plotting and in depth characterizations highlight this novel. It details the relations between the Swedish police and the informants they use to help stem the rising tide of the Polish Mafia in Sweden. The book is shared by two main characters. Ewert Grens, an old schoo ...more

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Jan 15, 2020 susan howard rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Exciting story, started a little slow building the story but really took off and what a great ending. At times the book was hard to read because of the street names and foreign names throughout the book but overall it did not take away from the story. I enjoyed the fierce intensity that Ewert Grens had in this book, he doggedly pursued his investigation and at times I thought he was going to ruin the outcome of the story but in the end it all came together!

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Nov 12, 2010 Sissy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Received via Goodreads First Reads. Thank you Goodreads and Publishers!

A relatively quick read. This wasn't a can't put it down book, for me - but I can see that it would be for some readers. I feel like this book would be highly enjoyed by anyone who loved the Dragon/Millenium series. For those that found Girl with a Dragon Tattoo slow (like myself) well, I think you may end up feeling the same way about this novel. Like Tattoo, I found there was a lot of repetition (the conversations Ewert ha ...more

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Feb 10, 2012 Rosemarie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed

Piet Hoffman, Swedish undercover police informer, has climbed very high in the ranks of the Polish Mafia when he haplessly witnesses a murder during a drug deal gone terribly wrong. While Inspector Ewert Grens investigates the murder, Hoffman's Mafia masters want him in prison to take over drug operations there. A secret arm of the law agrees, and offers him and his family protection and new identities for breaking the drug operations of the Mafia in the Swedish prison system. But they reckoned ...more

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Jan 05, 2013 Caroline rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: thriller

Deciding to become a police informant puts Piet Hoffman in the position of having to hide his criminal past and lie to his wife and sons. But his increasingly successful infiltration of a Polish drug ring operating in Sweden puts him puts him in a position where he is unable to prevent a murder.

When the opportunity comes for Piet to be temporarily arrested and placed in a Swedish prison, the danger he faces rises. He strikes a deal with a certain team of the Swedish police and government agency ...more

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Feb 08, 2011 Bookmarks Magazine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mar-apr-2011

In this superb translation, Sweden's latest contribution to crime writing tackles some weighty subjects -- specifically, the nature of identity, the Swedish police force's use of civilians in its operations, and the safekeeping of its prisoners -- as it twists, turns, and hurdles towards its conclusion. Despite the intensity of its finale, however, Three Seconds is a novel to be savored, its multifaceted story line leisurely unfurling over the first 200 pages. The critics diverged over the novel ...more

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Aug 16, 2011 Pat rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: thriller, scandinavian-author, favourite, crime-fiction

This was an extraordinary 'experience', a heart-in-your-throat thriller of the first order. The title hints at the sense of 'real time' pacing of the story and the characters are ones that you grow to like/admire despite their human frailties. Sometimes the level of detail seemed too heavy, but as a mechanism to lock you into the story it was perfect. This is a wonderful mystery despite the fact that it isn't a 'whodunit' but rather a 'howdunit'. It's a contemporary look at the ambiguities in Sw ...more

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Mar 18, 2012 Skip rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: foreign-translated, award-winners, crime-detective

Ex-con Piet Hoffman has been working undercover for the Stockholm police for nine years, rising within the Polish mafia to lead its effort to control the supply of drugs to Swedish prisons. Getting himself arrested after assurances from senior police and governmental officials, Piet is burned and sets up his own death after taking hostages to expose his double dealing masters. Relentless Inspector Grens orders the sniper to fire and then has to unravel the strange behavior of Hoffman. Probably 3 ...more

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What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Scandinavian Noir. Involved weapons being secreted inside a prison.[s]	4	31	Feb 24, 2018 12:03AM
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About Anders Roslund

Anders Roslund

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Anders Roslund is a Swedish author and journalist. He is the founder and former head of Kulturnyheterna (Culture News) on SVT, Sweden's national television broadcaster. For many years he worked as a news reporter – specializing in criminal and social issues – and as an Editor-in-chief at Rapport and Aktuellt, the two major News programmes on SVT.

Roslund regularly collaborates with Börge Hellström, ...more