Rating: 
Summary: A Crime of Rediscovery
Review: Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo's novel, The Laughing Policeman, is set in Stockholm, Sweden during the 60's. While the genre of detection leads a reader to expect the progression of an investigation into an unsolved crime, this novel presents a twist. The crime in this case has been solved, and the detectives on the job must follow a predecessor to solve the mystery. The clues and evidence in this case are left by this initial investigator and not the actual murderer. Instead of focusing on or leading up to the discovery of the criminal, the novel leads the reader to a closer understanding of the character of one of the victims. The novel also adds dimension to the act of detection by incorporating the narratives of an entire homicide unit. The piecing together of the mystery by multiple detectivies allows the reader the more active role of putting together the clues discovered by the individual detectives. The political issues of the time period are highlighted in the beginning and act as an undercurrent throughout the book. The time-span of the novel, 1967-1968, surrounds the height of an almost universal confrontation between public opinion and government. The novel explores both the public view of police and the detectives' views on the job they serve. While not suggesting that police have the power to bring peace or enforce order, the detectives seem urgent to prove that they can at least find some sort of order. The investigation of the mystery mirrors the detectives' quest to validate their way of life.
Rating:
Summary: A complicated police procedural
Review: Set against the backdrop of 1960s Socialist Sweden, a gruesome mass killing on a bus shatters the peace of Stockholm. Facing the shock of this seemingly random crime, the likes of which Sweden has never known; homicide detectives Martin Beck and Lennart Kolberg are called in to investigate. Matters are further complicated when amongst the dead is one of their own, a talented, but young detective on the Squad. Persuaded that his death was no accident of coincidence, and left with nothing but questions, Beck and Kolberg must dive beneath the surface of seemingly idyllic Sweden. There, amongst the failures of society they must follow in the footsteps of their deceased maverick comrade in an attempt to explain his presence on the fatal bus. Their quest takes them through the Stockholm underworld, the precinct's unsolved cases file and into the past. Faced with an unsolvable case, years old and nine horrible murders in the present, the clash between the individuality of the detectives and the necessity of teamwork intensifies in this complex police procedural. Led by Kolberg and Beck, the Homicide Squad leaves no stone unturned in their painstaking search for truth, both past and present. As everything comes together towards resolution, the final truth seems less an ending than a cause for more questions, questions this time directed at society itself.
Rating: 
Summary: The Swedish Version of "NYPD Blue"
Review: Sweden meets "NYPD Blue" in this non-action-packed police detective mystery by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo. All of the action of "The Laughing Policeman" seems to take place before the book even begins. At the start of the book we learn that a terrible crime has been committed, nine passengers have been shot dead on a public bus in the streets of Stockholm. In light of the current events that have recently taken place in the U.S., it is ironic that the Swedish detectives on the case speak of how strange the crime is, stating that such a crime would more likely be seen on U.S. soil. The reader gains a good knowledge of the city of Stockholm, its streets, its people, its dark side, as the detectives leave no stone unturned in their search for the killer. Yet, while the characters are busy searching all over the city, we, the readers, are busy exploring the depths of the characters themselves. Each character has many interesting distinctions and, much like the way the details of the crime are slowly unraveled, different facets of the characters involved are revealed as the novel progresses. It almost seems, at times, that the novel is more about the detectives and their lives than it is about solving the crime at hand. It comes across as a kind of police detective television show where there is always a crime to be solved, but people really watch the show just to see what will happen in the characters' personal lives. Overall, a good mystery, with an exciting conclusion, but perhaps more for the "NYPD Blue" fan, than the "Murder She Wrote" type.
Rating:
Summary: Mass murder mystery
Review: Swedish writing team Maj Sjowell and Per Wahloo's vintage crime drama "The Laughing Policeman" is a no frills novel involving the police investigation into a mass murder. Two bumbling constables from the suburban city of Solna, bordering on Stockholm, discover a transit bus that has jumped the curb and crashed through a fence near the terminal. Upon entering the bus, they are confronted by a charnel house of blood and death. Eight passengers and the driver have been massacred apparently by gunshots.
Stockholm police homicide inspector Martin Beck and his squad are summoned to the scene. To their horror, they discover that one of their own happens to be one of the victims. Young detective Ake Stenstrom, part of the homicide team is found riddled with bullets and slumped in a seat.
A paucity of clues leads to frustration as the homicide team individually check out the victims of the slaughter. Weeks and months pass but no breakthrough occurs.
Beck and his squad begin delving into the affairs of Stenstrom. They learn that he, in his spare time, has re-opened an investigation into an unsolved homicide. Sixteen years ago a Portuguese born, nymphomaniacal whore (the authors' description) named Teresa was found strangled and lying in the street nude. No shortage of clues and an accurate description of a vehicle at the crime scene still yielded no resolution. Speculation arose that Stenstrom had uncovered new evidence that would solve the Teresa killing. It was supposed that this could be a reason for the mass murder on the bus.
The authors chronicle the painstakingly intensive police investigation into this heinous crime. They create a worthy piece of drama that captivates your interest throughout.
Rating:
Summary: A Rough Brand of Justice
Review: The 1960?s were riotous and pivotal years in both the United States and Europe. This police procedural starring Martin Beck, the notable detective and superintendent of the Stockholm Homicide Squad, captures the political and social unrest of a nation and the world at a time of both great loss and possibility. The scene is Stockholm, Sweden. ?The time was three minutes past eleven on the evening of the thirteenth of November, 1967? (8). And while hundreds of demonstrators and policemen were finally breaking up outside the American embassy in response to the War in Vietnam, on the other side of town, ?eight murders and one attempted murder were committed in Stockholm? (5). With their straightforward, frank approach to the detective novel, Sjowall and Wahloo launch the reader into the thick of the homicide squad?s tangled investigation of the worst mass murder in Sweden?s history. The detectives, led by Superintendent Martin Beck, involve themselves in the painstaking and tedious tasks of detection in their concerted attempt to discover the perpetrator of such a heinous act. In doing so, the reader glimpses the emotional predicament that such a life and line of work at this contentious time in history created for these men. They match the brute strength of the police force against the mob of the underworld, straining to preserve humanity in the face of the awful charge of solving a terrible crime. Though in the end, intelligence and a rough justice do prevail, the final twist of the novel does not come until the final pages. Anyone fan of detective fiction will find themselves entranced by the unique combination of detective procedure and dry, black humor that resonates throughout the pages of this engrossing detective thriller.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome
Review: The fourth book in the Martin Beck series of novels, and one of the best. This is the first one that really begins to lay on the social and political commentary, but never loses sight of the series' attention to the details and virtues of methodical police work. The crime this time is the inexplicable slaughter of seven city bus passengers by an unknown maniac with a machine gun. Included among the victims was one of Beck's colleagues on the homicide squad. Was this just a meaningless coincidence? Or something more? An excellent thriller, also notable for its incisive criticism of the incompetence and corruption of modern law enforcement.
Rating:
Summary: Fun, but not the best of the series
Review: The Laughing Policeman is not in the same league as Roseanna, The Man on the Balcony, or Murder at the Savoy, but you'll enjoy Martin Beck, Gunvald Larson, and Kohlberg in action. Full of politicisms of the 60's era, but the authors never violate laws of logic. Writers had a conscience of Scandinavian socialists, but that has nothing to do with "commies". Russian reviewers have a very poor grasp of Western socialist ideas or of true political coscience. The most unforgivable thing about the Laughing Policeman is that it was made into a horrible movie, with a ridiculous San Francisco setting, with Walter Matthaeu. Avoid the movie at all costs.
Rating:
Summary: Compassionate glimpse into dehumanized officers
Review: The Laughing Policeman will satisfy anyone searching for a classic crime novel with a truly original and engaging storyline, but the most satisfaction comes in its subtle social commentary. Ace detective Ake Stenstrom has been murdered in the deadliest case of mass murder in Stockholm (the detectives on the case have only heard of such atrocities happening on the violent soil of America). But the husband-wife co-authors present more than an intriguing knot of clues to demand the reader?s intellect?they present characters as complex and worthy of unraveling as the murder case itself. Chief Inspector Martin Beck, former boss and close friend to the victim, is the foremost example. He not only leads us to the solution of the mystery with intelligence and compassion, but through Beck and the other detectives, we begin to see the condition of man, as well as the sacrifices made to improve society. Perhaps Detective Beck articulates this condition of the policeman: the dehumanizing effect of seeing the most brutal, violent and loathsome aspects of society. But despite the police officer?s submersion in this victimized, grotesque reality, the Stockholm Homicide Squad is able to maintain (not without sacrifice) the ideals of justice. Even the brutish Gunvald Larsson expresses his sympathy for the victimized lower class?including victims and petty lawbreakers alike: ?I feel sorry for nearly everyone we meet in this job. They?re just a lot of scum who wish they?d never been born. It?s not their fault that everything goes to hell and they don?t understand why.? From page one till the final climax, The Laughing Policeman provides the customary suspense and entertainment of a detective novel, as well as lucid glimpses of the complex relationship between Man and Law.
Rating:
Summary: The Swedish Mistake
Review: The Laughing Policeman, written by Swedish authors May Sjowall and Per Wahloo, is a fascinating journey into the minds and actions of a society built upon an idealist social experiment. Sweden, in the throes of a creating an egalitarian state, bears witness to a gruesome, incomprehensible murder. On a foggy evening in November in the 1960s, nine people are mysteriously gunned down on a public bus leaving no survivors. While the Swedish citizens lock their doors, wring their hands, and speak in furtive whispers about the mysterious murder, the nation's policemen grapple with the seemingly unexplainable facts of the murder. The author painstakingly outlines every aspect of a police investigation - the lists, the information, the interviews, the copious sheets of paper, and the official procedures that must take place. Ironically enough, in a society where the ideal is heralded as the only solution to societal problems, following the idealist measures of police sleuthing fails to solve the crime. The eventual solution to the crime lies down twisting, doubling, dark alleyways that only shed light on the true state of Swedish and world affairs. Sweden has more to tackle than simply clearing up this shocking murder case. Its people are emotionally distanced from one another, love exists solely in perverse forms, true friendship seems to exist only within same-gender relationships, and money apparently runs the lives of many. The country as a whole must come face to face with the political rhetoric that it has been feeding to its people and the world in order to comprehend the magnitude at which this murder case reflects the disease that is eating Sweden alive.
Rating:
Summary: The best mystery story ever written.
Review: This is the best Martin Beck mystery. The plot is simple but intricate. The story is beautifully crafted. The whole thing fits together like jig saw puzzle and the suspense never lets up until the end. The few subplots enhance the main plot. It's perfectly balanced. So many mystery novels seem to come out like a lopsided Christmas tree with too many unrelated decorations. The Laughing Policeman is a pure and perfect work of art.
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