Woman With Birtmark by Hakan Nesser

Book title : Woman with Birtmark
Author : Hakan Nesser
Publisher : Pan Books Date published   : 2010
Number of pages: 344
 Genre (write one) : Mystery                         Book Code           : HAK/PBI/NV/1010
Actually there are group of characters in this novel, because it’s the series of inspector stories. But the most standout characters of this novel are Van Veeteren, a philosophical detective with a unique ability to draw lines between dots that are far apart and nearly invisible. He firmly believes that he is able to solve any murder case. He and his team try to find the murder of four men that were killed with the same way. The second character is A young woman who made a death-bed promise to her mother and has cleared the way to begin her plan of revenge. Known only as Maria Adler, and I’m not quite sure if that is her real name or not. She goes by many throughout the book. She has made it her goal, however, to avenge her mother and the wrongs done her by killing all four of her fathers.
The most interesting part of this story is when the inspector Van Veeteren and his team try to find the murder and the connection between the victims. The only clue that turned up was that for several weeks before their murder they got several phone calls where there was no person on the line, but there was music playing; the same song every time. They were killed in the same manner. The victims lived very different lives, so the team has to begin the tedious and difficult task of linking each victim's pasts together, not only to identify the killer and the motive, but to possibly warn anyone else connected with these men. This part really makes me feel that I was working the case with the detectives. I become a part of the thinking process to find what actually happen in their past.
There is a part of the story that makes confused.  Before killed, the victims got several phone calls where there was no person on the line, but there was only music playing; the same song every time. In the story, the detectives knew about it and announced it to the media to anticipate the next victims. What make me confused is why didn’t the detective investigate the phone call? What I knew that the detective often uses the signal phone to trace where the user of the phone was but not in this story. They don’t even talk about it.
The part that I dislike most from the story is when the detectives  find the killer and the motive but after the fourth victim is discovered, shot dead in the same manner in the mens’ room at a country inn. This man is the last victim of this serial murder. This part is very regrettable for me. After a long journey to find the truth, the story ended with the letter addressed to the inspector from the killer, woman with birthmark. She told him all the stories, who she was and why she did it. In the end of the story the killer ended her life with sinking herself to the ocean. I think this part shows that the mission is not accomplished successfully and makes the end of the story less satisfying.
What is told in the story reminds me to what happened in my country. How many children are born without knowing who they fathers are. The mother was raped by inhuman man who was not irresponsible. The father left them and the mother was frustrated.  The most pathetic one are the children. They didn’t do any mistakes but they should carry the big burden on their shoulders. It was happened to Maria, the main character of the story.
If I had an opportunity to change the story I would change the ending of the story. I would let the detective catch the woman and investigate her. Let her tell the story by herself and receive the consequence of her wrong done but after that Van veteran would take care of her or even would take her as his companion. I would tell it with a great sensitivity so it would take the readers’ emotion and make them satisfied as they read the story.
This is the Scandinavian mysteries that takes the largest issue about sexual harrasment. The revenge of a daughter to her unknown and irresponsible fathers rises as the climax of the story due to the sexual harassment they have done to her mother. It uses criminal investigations as a way to explore pressing that issue. Van Veeteren carefully tracks down the bad guys clue by clue, visiting one rundown location after another until finally found the truth about the case.
The lesson that I got from the story is that sometimes humans can reach that exact kind of insane reasoning when they are in particular circumstances that makes them sad, upset, and even frustrated without thinking about that consequences which actually can make it worst. It is what the woman did in this novel. She chose to avenge her mother and the wrong done by killing four men. She may fell satisfied but it would solve her problem. It would not happen if we are able to control ourselves and choose to follow our common sense than our passions of anger.