Saunas, love and a ladleful of murder: The Burning Stones by Antti Tuomainen tr. David Hackston #bookreview #TheBurningStones

A cold-blooded killer strikes at the hottest the head of a sauna-heater company is murdered … in the sauna. Who has turned up the temperature and burned him to death?
The evidence points in the direction of Anni Korpinen – top salesperson and potential successor at Puhti Saunas. And as if hitting middle-age, being in a marriage that has lost its purpose, and struggling with work weren’t enough, Anni realizes that she must be quicker than both the police and the murderer to uncover who is behind it all – before it’s too late…
International bestselling author, Antti Tuomainen, returns with a darkly funny, delightfully tense new thriller that showcases humanity at its most bare – in middle age, suspected of murder and, of course, in a sauna…

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Hi and welcome to my review of The Burning Stones!

I was thrilled to find out a new Antti Tuomainen novel was on the horizon, and The Burning Stones turned out to be exactly what I’d hoped and expected it would be: a suspenseful, quirky and fun thriller / mystery. 

In The Burning Stones, we follow the events from the point of view of Anni. At first glance, Anni seems rather well put together, she’s happy at her job with a huge promotion within reach and happy in her marriage even if it’s not perfect.

And then a co-worker is murdered and Anni is at the top of the suspect list and her whole world crumbles around her. She’s not guilty, but obviously, she’s the only one who can know that for sure. She not only has to prove her innocence to the police, she has to outsmart the killer as well: if they are picking off the people who are in the running for becoming the new CEO, she may be next. Meanwhile, an old spark rekindles between Anni and one of the investigating officers and Anni starts to realise a thing or two about her hubby and her marriage.

The thing about Anni, even as her world crumbles, she’s resilient, she’s got moxie, and I loved her for it. This story could easily have acquired a bit of a woe-is-me angle, but not in the hands of Antti Tuomainen, who always keeps up the pace and has his protagonist look at herself and her own dire situation with a dry sense of humour.

Always: shout-out to translator David Hackston for bringing The Burning Stones to an English-speaking audience while staying true to the author’s voice.

With characters that are somehow simultaneously larger than life and understated, and a rather unique string of sauna-related murders, The Burning Stones is another fun thriller in that unique Antti-style that I’ve been trying – and failing – to put into words for years now. Recommended.

The Burning Stones is out in digital formats on 26 September and in hardcover on 10 October. Get it directly from Orenda Books here.

Massive thanks to Orenda Books for the digital review copy. All opinions are my own.