Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Short Story Wednesday: An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed by Helene Tursten

Two years ago I read and reviewed the first set of short stories featuring Maud, An Elderly Lady Is Up To No Good. I liked the stories very much, and looked forward to reading the next collection. Recently I read the first five stories in An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed.


Maud is an 88-year-old Swedish woman with an ample income, a loner who is content with her life. But she has no second thoughts about eliminating anyone who gets in her way. In my review of the first book of short stories about Maud, I tried to avoid direct references to how Maud deals with the problems in her life. I think it is more fun to read that book not knowing much about the character. But most people know the premise when they read this second book, and I couldn't  avoid it when discussing this book.

When Maud is presented with a person who is causing problems in her life (or that of her family or friends), she looks for a way to fix that problem, by whatever means available. The solution doesn't always end in death, but she is fine if it does. She is very clever and usually the murder is not identified as such. But in the first story in this book she remembers the results of one of her exploits when she was interviewed by the police several times.


I am of two minds about the stories in this book (so far). I definitely enjoyed the first book. But for some reason I was less comfortable reading about Maud's exploits in the first five stories in this book. The stories were a bit depressing. 

On the other hand, I think the writing is very good and the character is interesting. I like the structure of the book. The short stories in this book all center around Maud's memories of earlier in her life as she flies on an airplane to South Africa, where she will join a tour that includes a safari.


I have not yet read the last story in this book, "The Elderly Lady Takes a Trip to Africa." It is not short at all, about 150 pages long, although admittedly the page size is small. So, closer to a novella than a short story. Once I finish that story I will decide whether to use this book for the European Reading Challenge, since about half the book is set in Sweden and the rest in Africa.

Both collections of short stories about Maud have some connection to Christmas, and this one has two recipes for gingerbread cookies, so you could save them for reading at Christmas (or even for a Christmas present) if you were so inclined.

These stories were written by Helene Tursten, the author of the Inspector Irene Huss series. The author is Swedish, and the stories were translated by Marlaine Delargy.

18 comments:

Cath said...

I enjoyed that first book so will be getting this at some stage. The older I get the more her attitude appeals I must say. LOL!

George said...

Lawrence Block has written stories and novels about killers so Helene Torsten follows somewhat the same recipe.

pattinase (abbott) said...

How is when I am going to begin to regret the books I gave to the library because there was an excellent collection of stories about a guy who does that. The first one or two are accidents but eventually they are more deliberate. Maybe some day I will remember it.

TracyK said...

Cath, I am not sure why the short stories did not appeal as much in this book. They are still very clever stories. I still have the last (much longer) story to read and that could change my mind.

TracyK said...

George, I have read two of Lawrence Blocks books about Keller, short stories about a hit man, Hit Man and Hit List. Of course, he was doing it for hire, and Maud's adventures are personal. Although I don't know why that would make a difference.

I liked the relationship Keller had with Dot, the woman who gave him his assignments, although she was not his employer. I loved Hit Man, did not like the second book so much. So I did not read the third book, Hit Parade, but I still have it in case I change my mind. And there are two more books of short stories about Keller after that.

TracyK said...

Patti, I have a hard time parting with books I haven't read yet, for that same reason, that I will regret it and want to read the book. I have even had that happen a couple of times. But it is easier now. I know I won't be able to read all the unread books I have, and I keep buying more.

Rick Robinson said...

So it sounds like she is an 88 year-old serial killer? Oh my, not sure about reading that.

TracyK said...

Rick, some reviews described her as serial killer (and some of those were positive reviews and some not). For some reason that I still don't understand, I found the first book fun and this one not... but then I haven't finished it yet. A lot of readers enjoyed it, and that surprised me.

Kathy's Corner said...

The title alone makes me want to read the book! But I think the fact that one way she solves her problems is by literally getting rid of people might start getting depressing as you say. I fear Maud might wear out her welcome over time.

col2910 said...

Sounds really good. I'll add it to my list. I'm actually reminded more of Lawrence Block's lawyer Martin Ehrengraf than Keller. His cases always have a sinister way of getting resolved.

Margot Kinberg said...

Sorry I'm a bit late to this, Tracy. IO really like Helen Tursten's Irene Huss novels, so I am interested in reading this collection. It sounds as though the writing is good (which doesn't surprise me) and the characters interesting. I'll have to wait for a time when I'm ready for stories that are a bit more bleak and sometimes sad.

TracyK said...

Kathy, the book does have a great title, and a nice cover. It sells itself. It is worth a try, especially if you can borrow it or sample it.

TracyK said...

You would like it, Col. I am glad you mentioned the Martin Ehrengraf stories. I have those in a big book of his short stories, Enough Rope, and I will check them out.

TracyK said...

I agree with you on the Irene Huss novels, Margot. I have only read the first two, but they are good police procedurals and a good picture of Sweden.

CLM said...

I have been meaning to read the Elderly Lady since you read the first one. I see it is available on Hoopla so maybe I will get it on audio for my commute.

TracyK said...

Constance, it would be a good book for a commute. Someday I will try reading a book on audio.

CLM said...

Headphones give me a headache so I can't listen to books while walking unless I am completely alone and can just play my phone loudly. I guess some people listen to books on audio while cooking or knitting but I find that too distracting. However, I spend about 75 minutes commuting to work, which would otherwise be very dull.

TracyK said...

I think I would be distracted unless I just concentrated on listening. But I have never tried it, so who knows. 75 minutes is a long commute. The longest I have ever done on a regular basis was 20-25 minutes, and that was many decades ago.