Mercy is the first book in Jussi Adler-Olsen’s Department Q series, featuring traumatised but brilliant detective Carl Mørck.  In his native Denmark, Adler-Olsen is all-but peerless.  Mercy broke into the Danish top ten bestseller list on its release in 2007, and at time of writing had remained there for an unbroken four years. As of mid January 2011, six of the top ten bestselling books in Denmark were works by Adler-Olsen, including the next two instalments of the Department Q series. Let’s not for a moment consider this is due to a dearth of quality writers in the homeland of Kierkegaard and Hans Christian Andersen. The reason for this is simple; Adler-Olsen is a coruscating talent.tr

Mercy begins with the foundation of Department Q, initially created as a convenient place to sequester Mørck, a man crushed by the guilt and distress of witnessing two of his colleagues gunned down in his presence.  The department is created to re-open cold murder cases, although initially Mørck intends to do nothing more than while away the years wallowing in indolence. He continues in this vein until he hires a cleaner for the office, a Syrian by the name of Assad. Mørck’s first case is that of Merete Lynngaard, a high profile politician who disappeared on a ferry crossing five years previously. What follows is a truly exceptional work of crime fiction.

Mørck and Assad are beautifully complex characters, drawn with near-perfect depth and detail.  Mørck is abrasive and morose but compassionate; recalcitrant and aggressive, but also witty and sensitive. He has no qualms about haranguing his superiors in public over their failures, but is also sensitive enough to the needs of his assistant to install a series of compasses in the basement to help him face Mecca while praying.

Assad is perhaps the most fascinating character; his immigration status is dubious, his history vague, but his duties quickly begin to extend far beyond making refreshments and cleaning, and he acquits himself mysteriously well for a humble assistant. Certainly there is more than enough material here to flesh out several subsequent novels.

Adler-Olsen seems comfortable not just writing about crime and law enforcement, but also about the political milieu, which he describes with a refreshing lucidity. In turn, the descriptions of Mørck’s personal life are wholly engaging. Rather than overburdening the character with conflict and tragedy as is the preference of many writers, Adler-Olsen instead gives Mørck a neurotic lodger, an unruly stepson and a dysfunctional, darkly comical relationship with his ex-wife.

This dark comedy is an ongoing theme throughout the book, elevating it above the typical. There are humorous cultural and linguistic misunderstandings between Mørck and Assad, moments of wonderful excess as the detective launches into tirades against his bosses, and a wicked ear for simile and metaphor on the part of the author, which, combined with the unflinching brutality and arresting human drama throughout, make Mercy a rich tapestry indeed.

The language throughout is exquisite.  Translated superbly from the original Danish by Lisa Hartford, each page is finely crafted and engaging. Indeed, in terms of immediate and enduring attention grabbing, Adler-Olsen is in the Chandler class. A single short paragraph from the prologue was enough to get this reviewer hooked, an addiction which was not kicked until after the turn of the final page.

Mercy then, is a truly outstanding achievement. A newcomer to the genre, Adler-Olsen has created something sublime, that merits comparison with the work of the very biggest names in crime fiction. For any avid readers undeterred by infrequent but strong violence, this is highly recommended.  For fans of the genre though, this really is nothing short of essential reading.

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