And they reap their nightmares...

The Nightmare: A Novel - Lars Kepler

I enjoyed one half of The Nightmare, and got bored with another half.

First, what I like. The concept of Paganini contract and the reaping of one’s nightmares were very interesting. For a moment, I could even fancy a tinge of supernatural element in the plot. Though the killer’s movement was kind of unbelievable, even for a contract killer, like how he can go to various places in such a short times, I liked the whole chasing scene. I was sorry Viola and Stefan had to die through no fault of theirs though.

Saga was a nice addition. I’d like it should she and Joona become partners in crime solving. Saga had her temper while Joona was cool. Penelope also portrayed as a very admirable character. She kept herself and Bjorn alive as best as she could and didn’t give up the fight till the end. I’m glad she survived the ordeal and that she patched things up with her mother.

Now that the positive part is over, I’m going to talk about what I don’t like. The first reason is it’s me, not the book reason. I am never a fan of extremists, left wings groups, and illegal trafficking plot in stories, so since this book has plenty of that, I definitely got bored easily. Again, the fault is totally on my side. However, what I really can’t stomach is the romance scenes between Joona/Disa and Saga/Stefan. I mean, I read this book for the crime solving part, not the romance of characters that has no discernible meaning to the overall plot. Blegh. It would’ve been okay if the romance is minimal but that’s not the case. There’s also something that doesn’t sit right with me since I’ve read the third book. I don’t like that Joona has something with Disa. I don’t understand why he has to do what he did ten years ago if he can freely has a relationship with another woman. It’s screw up to say the least.