The Absent One: A Department Q Novel, Book Cover May Vary Paperback – May 7, 2013

Wow! Another page-turner that I would usually only put down when my eyes just could not stay open any longer. Mr Adler-Olsen combines drama, humor, philosophy and social-political commentary with such skill and balance! He has created so many living and breathing 3D characters in his stories that you almost feel them there in the room with you as you are reading.This story has one character that blew me away - Kimmie. A character who, on the one hand you kind of feel revulsion for, while on the other you feel great sympathy. A deftly handled bit of writing here. Carl, Assad, Yrsa, even Vigga, Hardy and Mona are all characters that are fully fleshed out and that you feel greatly invested in and care for.There is some non-PC racial and sexist language used, but with full self-realization, so don't take it personally. It works in long run as you read more of the series. Grumpy Carl will keep you both applauding and sometimes wanting to kick his lazy butt!The film version of this presents the tale well, with some changes, of course. I highly recommend seeing the Department Q Trilogy first, then read these first three novels. Going back later is a nice revisit.

I hate giving this book just three stars, especially when I gave Adler-Olson's first book, "The Keeper of Lost Causes," five, but the truth is - I just didn't enjoy it as much. Somehow, any small imperfections I was completely willing to overlook in the first book seemed much more of a distraction this time around.Obviously, Adler-Olson is a terrific writer. Before I was even 1/2 way through "The Keeper of Lost Causes" I had already ordered the next three titles in the series that are available in English. And, as with the previous book, I finished "The Absent One" in just a few days - four, to be exact. However, I realized fairly soon into it that I wasn't enjoying the interactions between the characters, especially those of Carl and his now partner, Assad, nearly as much as I had in his previous book. And since it was exactly those interactions that I was looking forward to, this was a let-down.For me, the introduction of Rose - a secretary who is assigned to Carl's newly formed Department "Q" (think "Cold Case") was definitely a distraction. There was no real explanation given for why she's assigned to this particular department, other than that fact that she passed all of her exams - except the driving one - with flying colors. Her character wasn't very well-developed, true. But honestly, I couldn't really put my finger on what exactly I didn't like about her and maybe this is why I found her such a distraction. To give credit, Carl has a problem with her, too.I also found that I didn't have nearly as many of those laugh-out-loud moments as I did with "The Keeper of Lost Causes." There were some, sure, but not like before. Carl and Assad's relationship does continue to develop, somewhat, but the mystery that is Assad isn't delved into like the last book led me to believe it would be. And this was disappointing, because Assad's is one of my favorite fictional characters EVER! I loved all the little clues dropped in the first book and I was really hoping we'd learn more this time around, but we don't :(!I'll admit now, I don't understand Carl's relationship with the division's therapist, Mona Ibsen. First, her name alone is a distraction, because Mona is also the name of Kurt Wallander's ex-wife in Henning Mankell's popular detective series which is set in Sweden, another Scandinavian country. And, I don't particularly like Kurt's (ex-)wife - she comes across as rather bitchy, although I'd suspect that she's written this way.Second, I am a therapist myself and apparently the rules over in Norway are quite a bit different from those in the States, as Carl frequently daydreams about dating his Mona and her responses seem to indicate that this just might be a possibility. Indeed, they have their first "date" in this book and although it doesn't go that well, Mona leads Carl to believe that there's still hope. Obviously. A therapist dating a client, especially one that s/he still has a therapeutic relationship with, is definitely a no-no in the US. So, I guess the rules are different in Norway. Not sure what to think about this, but definitely disconcerting.Third, I just can't figure out why Carl is attracted to Mona. She's beautiful - ok, but that's it? She doesn't seem particularly smart, witty, fun - honestly we don't get much of a feel for her at all. Since her character was introduced in the first book, I think that it was reasonable to expect that we'd learn a little more about her this time. And looks alone just don't seem like something Carl would choose to build a relationship on, unless I've read him completely wrong.Finally, the violence in this book was very disturbing. I know it was intended to be, but in this case, it made it hard for me to enjoy the story. Maybe because this story centers around the perpetrators of the violence - six fifth-form students who attend a fancy boarding school and become known, collectively, as "The Gang." They are basically a bunch of psychotic barbaric savages who get their rocks off by hurting anything or anyone they perceive as vulnerable and weak.Adler-Olson's last book focused primarily on the stories of Carl, a traumatized detective seeking redemption, and Merle, a smart, savvy, up-and-coming politician who is kidnapped and held without ransom. While Merle's kidnappers are definitely of the heinous sort, there is at least some attempt to explain the source of their pathology. In "The Absent One," there is simply no way to account for the pathological savagery of Kristian, Ulrik, Ditlev, Torsten, Bjarne, and Kimmie. They are evil, period.Adler-Olson makes a half-hearted attempt to give us a back-story on "Kimmie," the sole girl in "The Gang," that will give us some context in which to understand her later acts of cruelty and violence. However, it falls so pathetically short, it would have been better to have left it out completely, but that would have made for a different story altogether.The members of "The Gang," including Kimmie, are far worse than apathetic and ammoral - they actively seek out victims to humiliate and beat, often to death, because they enjoy it. I've got to give Adler-Olson credit here - as at least half of the book is told from their perspectives - he can write and he can draw you in. What's most disturbing about "The Absent One" is just how much. You experience their excitement and heightened emotions so vividly that you catch yourself thinking "wtf is going on here?" It's sick, it's disturbing, and it's brilliant story-telling.Okay, four stars.

Spoken in many voices and a thrilling plot line.

After reading Adler-Olsen's first book, Keeper of Lost Causes, and loving it, I scanned the reviews on The Absent One. There were more than a few poor ratings due mainly to graphic violence. I decided to skip The Absent One and go on to his 3rd book. About 3 pages in I realized I had missed out on some rather important events by skipping book #2. I immediately bought it and dove in. I am so glad I read this book. The story is, once again, incredible. Adler-Olsen's writing style is unique and not to be missed. I hope there are 40 more books in this series as they just get better and better.

Wow, Adler-Olsen just gets a grip on you, and doesn't let go! Another terrific novel from a new to me author.I've read reviews that complain about the treatment of animals in this book, and was a bit concerned about that. Not to worry - incidents were short and not difficult to get through.Where does this guy get his IDEAS? I've read that his father was a psychiatrist. . . and that they lived in a psychiatric hospital for awhile. Who knows?And the story behind Assad is getting more and more intriguing. What TERRIFIC characters!

My book club read the first book in this series. We liked it so much, decided on the second book. Still reading it, hard to follow with the many foreign names of characters. I’m keeping notes, chapter by chapter in prep for our next meeting. Not sure we’ll go with the third in the series.

The Q series are smart, addictive, highly entertaining-

I enjoyed the book. It stayed true to character, the ending is excellent, and not cliche.