Johanna Kjellander, temporarily resident in room eight, is a priest without a vocation, and, as of last week, without a parish. is a briskly-paced, occasionally bizarre, often hilarious story, with unusually intelligent, though morally questionable protagonists, somewhat less intelligent, bungling antagonists, death, mayhem, oblivious authorities, lashings of karma, and an oddly recurring theme of a briefcase (or two) full of cash. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. In fact, I have been considering a DNF at various points in the story and decided to skim-read the last part because I just couldn't take it any longer.

It's not a heavyweight book by any means, but it was a nice way to while away a few cold evenings here in this goddamn THIRD pandemic winter. I was really looking forward to this book since I absolutely loved The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared, but this one was just meh.

Nothing outright irritated me, nor did it feel like I was reading a bad book, but it wasn't really the book for me. I was expecting a farce and so didn’t have any issues with the ludicrousness of events, but I can imagine some readers may find the continued and escalating daftness annoying. On the way they donate thousands to the needy, holding back enough for themselves and embarking on a trip where they need to avoid running into criminals who had unwittingly funded their operation. If only children could be free of all that crap previous generations had gathered up for them, he said, perhaps it would bring some clarity to their lives.

Anders’ sudden interest in religion might be good for his soul but it’s not good for business, and the vicar and the receptionist have to find a new plan, quick. This is very much in the vein of the other Jonasson books that I have read (100 year old man, girl who saved the king of Sweden) and was a bit samey. But when their money-making scheme targets well-meaning churchgoers, they become much less appealing. If you get the chance, even if you get a copy from the library, I do recommend The 100 Year Old Man.Per Persson, the hotel receptionist, just wants to mind his own business, and preferably not get murdered. On his lunch break one day, he encounters a grubby, but very hungry priest who, despite her utter disgust with God and religion, tries to sell him a prayer.

Since I read The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared I have been a fan of Jonas Jonasson. What’s more, thug-as-born-again-Christian sounds like a premise with plenty of comic potential, at least on this side of the Atlantic. I know, it's supposed to make it sound oh so clever and all, but it just annoys me to no end because it sounds pretentious to me.I really do enjoy this author's work and in particular really liked The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared. The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden was less successful in its attempts to be inventive, but I found it entertaining enough. Hitman Anders isn’t reflective literary fiction, or a textbook on psychology and social problems: it's a silly comic novel with [anti-]heroes readers need more reasons to root for. Per Persson, grandson of a man who failed to spot that tractors were going to be the end of his lucrative horse breeding business and lost the family fortune, causing his son (Per’s father) to become an alcoholic and subsequently abdicate responsibility for Per when his wife asked for a divorce.