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Books with Pace, Plot and Setting. Recommendations?

Some of my favorite things to read are true stories of world war II especially submarine patrols, short poetry, Raymond Chandler, mysteries that take place in Nordic countries (Per Wahloo is great, not Henning Mankell for some reason). I've read the Stieg Larsson books (so-so).

I'd like something in that realm. or something completely new with those characteristics so that I branch out a bit.

That's a tall order I know. So thanks.
CB C@L

Howdy CB C@L:

Well, it's not a true World War II story, but you should give Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada a shot. It's a novel written by an author who participated in German underground activities against the Nazis. You can read more about it in my interview with Alan Furst, who has written ten espionage novels set in World War II that you might find interesting, too. (A counterpart novel to Every Man is Irene Némirovsky, whose recently discovered novel Suite Francaise is the French side of the story.)

You might enjoy Fred Vargas's Inspector Adamsberg mysteries, too. They're very French and not Nordic, but there are some similarities to Wahloo's work.

And I think everyone should give Richard Stark's Parker novels a try. They're revenge crime fiction, and they're brutally, brilliantly written novels.

Are you about to go on a long vacation? Have you read everything by your favorite author but you still want more? Do you want to learn about a new subject, but don't know where to start? I can help. Ask me for book recommendations on Questionland