The Marco Effect by Jussi Adler-Olsen

 

(hb; 2014: fifth book in the Department Q series. Translated from the Danish by Martin Aiken. Translation Consultant: Steve Schein.)

From the inside flap

“All fifteen-year-old Marco Jameson wants is to become a Danish citizen and go to school like a normal teenager. But his uncle Zola rules his former Gypsy clan with an iron fist. Revered as a god and feared as a devil, Zola forces the children of the clan to beg and steal for his personal gain. When Marco discovers a dead body─proving the true extent of Zola’s criminal activities─he goes on the run. But his family members aren’t the only ones who will go to any lengths to keep Marco silent. . . forever.

“Meanwhile, the last thing Detective Carl Mørck needs is for his assistants, Assad and Rose, to pick up a missing persons case on a whim: Carl’s nemesis is his new boss, and he’s saddled Department Q with an unwelcome addition. But when they learn that a mysterious teen named Marco may have as much insight into the case as he has a fear of the police, Carl is determined to solve the mystery and save the boy. Carl’s actions propel the trio into a case that extends from Denmakr Africa, from embezzlers to child soldiers, from seemingly petty crimes to the very darkest of cover-ups.”

 

Review

This is one of my favorite Department Q novels thus far. Adler-Olsen’s usual, deft mix of mainstream cop procedural thrills, humor, pathos, and social conscience is kicked up a notch by the author’s especially sympathetic portrayal of teenager Marco Jameson, who’s far from sainthood, but still a real, especially relatable victim (and avenger). Like previous Department Q novels, this jumps between multiple characters and their outlooks in an easy-to-follow manner, with enough action (some of it quite brutal and moralistic) to satisfy those looking for a violence kick with their law-and-order entertainment. Worth owning, this, like earlier books in this series.

Followed by The Hanging Girl.

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The resulting Danish film was released on May 27, 2021 in Denmark. Martin Zandvliet directed it, from a screenplay by Anders Frithiof August and Thomas Porsager.

Ulrich Thomsen played Carl Mørck. Zaki Youssef played Assad. Sofie Torp played Rose. Thomas W. Gabrielsson played Hardy.

Lisa Carlehed played Mona. Mads Reuther played Gordon. Lobus Olàh played Marco Jameson.

Joen Bille played Jens Brage-Schmidt. Anders Mattheson plays Teis Snap. Caspar Phillipson played Rene Erickson. Zdenek Godla played Zola.