Malin Stehn (2022) Happy New Year translated by Rachel Willson-Broyles.

Scandinavian noir. Happy New Year is set in Skane near Malmo. It involves a murder mystery. Seventeen-year-old Jennifer Wiksell goes missing after a New Year’s party—involving teenagers and drink—in the Anderssons’s house to bring in 2019.

Jennifer’s parents, Max and Lollo are simultaneously holding a party for adults. Something they traditionally do.  The adult Andersonns attend. Both Fredrik and Nina are scared their house will be trashed. They’ve more to worry about.

But their daughter Smilla and Jennifer have been friends forever. A promise is a promise.  Fredrik and Nina agreed to trust their daughter.

Fredrik, his wife Nina, and Jennifer’s mum, Lollo over fifty chapters offer alternate points of view of what has happened to Jennifer.

The murder doesn’t seem to be much of a mystery.

Fredrik is the killer. Or so it seems. He also seems to have made one of those mistakes familiar to Jeffrey Epstein and his friends.  After all, Jennifer has a secret life, and she’s a very mature and attractive girl. So it’s really her fault.

Fredrik is waiting to get picked up by the police and for his life to fall apart. He wonders how his wife and children will take it.

The reader already knows. Nina believes Fredrik is exhausted from work and stress. A catchall term.  She doesn’t really know and isn’t sure if Fredrik still loves her or if she loves him. Jennifer going missing is just one more thing she needs to deal with alone.  

Similarly, Lollo’s marriage to Max is shown to be a showcase of presenting a united front of wealth and entitlement to the world. Max being racist thug as forgivable and forgettable as having too much to drink and fucking up.

Beautiful and smart Jennifer is part of the package, one swipe away from Like, Like, Like.

‘Families,’ In This Be Verse, Phil Larkin tells us, ‘they fuck you up’.

Happy New Year had it been self-published I’d have praised it more. I’m not sure why or how it made the jump into the international market and translated into English. The failing may well be mine. Read on.