ARC Fiction/Thriller: Red Wolf, by Liza Marklund

Red Wolf, by Liza Marklund (co-author of The Postcard Killers, with James Patterson), is the fifth book in a series that follows the life of Annika Bengtzon, a crime reporter for the Swedish tabloid Evening Post. Chronologically in the life of the main character, The Bomber precedes Red Wolf. In The Bomber, Annika is taken hostage and terrorized. Coming into Red Wolf, she is still battling with fear and anxiety caused by her abduction, which greatly affects the way Annika deals with life.

Annika decides to reheat a long cold trail leading from an attack on a Swedish military base many years before. What she ends up stumbling upon takes her to a dark place where twisted minds lurk and people end up dead. How deep does the rabbit hole go? Deeper than you know.

During her journey, Annika also makes discoveries about herself and uncovers the truth about her relationship with her husband. Interwoven are the side stories of her husband, Thomas, and her dearest friend, Anne. Will Thomas stray, and will Anne find harmony with her ex?

This was my first ARC. I was very excited to have won it! I enjoyed reading it, especially knowing that not everyone was privy to the book yet.

This book is very similar in many ways to the Millennium Trilogy, by Steig Larrson. You have the reporter who follows clues to untangle an old mystery, places in Sweden of course, and political scandal. But it is a story that stands out alone in the way it introduces multiple characters whose lives intermingle and the personal relationships each encounters. Not to mention a strong woman as the main character.

Aside from the few technical problems that I'm sure will be addressed in the final cut, I really enjoyed this book. It had good drama, action, and suspense, along with some nice plot twists. If only full names weren't used every time a character was reintroduced!

On a scale of 1-4, I give this book a 3.5. I almost loved it, but definitely recommend it!
This book is published by Atria Books, a division of Simon and Schuster.
ISBN: 978-4516-0206-7 (On sale February 15, 2011)
Thank you to the author, via @ShelfAwareness and Rachel Bostic at Atria Books/Simon and Schuster for the gift of this book.