My First Murder

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I found this book annoying at times, but, ultimately, I decided it was a decent mystery.

Maria Kallio is a rookie detective, but for some reason, she is the only person on the Helsinki Violent Crimes Unit when a murder among wealthy young socialites, who are part of a Finnish student choir, comes to the office. Worse, she knows and is somewhat involved with the other members of the choir.

The book progresses as Kallio interviews the choir members, interacts with them socially, discovers their secrets and confronts various choir members as the likely killer. The story does sometimes bury the clue, but eventually the story comes together with a sound and fitting conclusion.

A nice feature of the book is its Finnish setting. Experiencing the Finnish names and setting was exotic in its way. I typically get wrapped up in those kinds of details and get distracted by investigating Finnish geography and culture.

What I found annoying was the main characters constant obsession with the fact that she is a young female in a male occupation. It seemed so dated, but that is explained by the fact that this book was written in the early 1990s. It also explains some of the other odd details, such as the absence of cell phones. What was most annoying was simply the fact that it didn't seem likely that any police department would leave a premeditated murder case to a rookie officer who was short-timing her police career in order to pay for her legal education.

Nonetheless, it was an enjoyable and competent read.