The Stages - thom satterlee

This novel was a good reminder of why you must invest in a book before deciding if you like it or not.  The difficulty of the topic made the first chapter difficult, by the second chapter I could not stop.  Once you gain the voice of the American translator who suffers from Aspergers it becomes a fascinating murder mystery in an exotic setting (at least for Americans).

This book is set in Copenhagen and the back story is the work of Storen Kierkegaard.  I love Copenhagen, but until this book I have not been motivated to learn about Denmark's most famous classic writer and philosopher.  Fortunately you are not required to understand his complex and multi-voice writing.

The person you follow through this story has to fight through the limitations of emotional expression and lack of ability to read the nuances of public discourse.  He is the American translator of Kierkegaard and is excellent at the job because it is what he can concentrate on and avoid confusing changes of schedule and routine.

However the director of the institute where he works, his first and only love, is murdered.  A manuscript is missing.  The translator was the last known person to be at the address before the murder and also finds another dead person along the way.

How does he sort this out, what does Kierkegaard say?  What is the strange clue that the murder victim left to him?  Can he sort out the clues, can he make things right after striking a policeman?  Can he find time for is Mozart deserts and hot dogs?

It is an adventure that spins through people and settings and arrives at a conclusion that may leave you clapping or unsatisfied.  Getting there is a wonderful literary journey.