Safe Return Doubtful

translated from the Danish by Caroline Waight & published February 2025

Just when you’re wondering where the hell the next Danish heptalogy will arrive, two come along all at once..
I’m two into Solvej Balle’s offering, On the Calculation of Volume I…VII and haven’t quite made my mind up yet.

But there seems more to this. It centres around Maggie and Kurt, two ordinary folk weighed down by the burden of poverty. The story is told with various flashbacks, with a sparse style, rich with imagery that is compelling to read.

But any routine to the detail is interrupted by a journalistic style telling of the 1990 Scandinavian Star ferry fires, which killed 159 people and turned out to be an insurance scam that is still being investigated.

Just where Maggie’s and Kurt’s stories fit into this is uncertain at first, but ultimately revealed.
There’s a quietly building sense of claustrophobia, and almost without realising it, the two key characters become familiar and easy to relate to.

It’s interesting to see where Nordenhof will takes us next..

My GoodReads score 4 / 5