Abstenerse lectores de historias fáciles, los relatos no lo son, el autor parte, en cada relato, de un total caos literario en el que poco o nada tiene sentido para el lector, para después, brillantemente ir poniendo luz en cada historia. Si quieres enterarte desde el principio de lo que está pasando, si no quieres o no tienes tiempo para prestar mucha atención, no es tu libro. In “London,” the standout first story in “Part One – Jealousy,” we have a mental showdown between two characters who are found aboard a plane together. A man and a woman are seated on the flight, not by accident, and I had to grin when one of them refers to the Patricia Highsmith classic, STRANGERS ON A TRAIN. One claims to be petrified of flying, while the other confesses to hoping the plane crashes because they want to die. Are we being victimized by an unreliable narrator, or is something entirely different going on? The dialogue is so razor-sharp that you simply will not have time to think too deeply about the characters. You just want to find out if they both make it to London alive. With Nesbø’s characteristic gift for outstanding atmosphere and gut-wrenching revelations, The Jealousy Manconfirms that he is at the peak of his abilities.

Al fin y al cabo, la muerte no deja de ser lo más serio. Ese enemigo que siempre halla nuestro rastro y del que nos pasamos la vida hyyendo, pero que tarde o temprano nos encontrará, es solo cuestión de tiempo" Edoardo Ballerini (another favorite narrator) read The Shredder. Quote: "Research projects are like films or building projects; they're never finished on time, or within budget."

Robert Ferguson

Me gustó que dentro de todo dio la sensación que los relatos eran crueles (siempre habían asesinatos de por medio), pero tenían un tono de esperanza y de bondad mezclada con toda la crueldad detrás. Además, a pesar de lo frustrante que podían llegar a ser por ciertas injusticias la mayoría tuvo un final que dejaba una sensación de satisfacción por el desenlace que tomaba la historia. You’re thinking she wasn’t the type to take her own life. And you’re absolutely right. Don’t ask me how, officer, but I know she was murdered.’ I read that when Henrik Bakke found her he thought at first she was asleep. Pity he wasn’t there when she died. He might have learned something. I mean, it must be fascinating to study a human being in transit between life and death, don’t you think?’ On paper the money was hers, but it was her father who pulled the strings. The insistence on a prenup when we got married was, of course, his idea. He probably saw it all, how she’d soon grow out of her longhaired young photographer with his lofty dreams and his ‘artistic ambitions’. The writing is typical Nesbø, which, for those who have read some of his work, will know is steeped in symbolism and a deeper analysis of the emotional being. Hidden meanings and ideas permeate the narrative, such that the reader may play close attention to get all that Nesbø presents in his writing. With stories that vary in length, it is even more important to pay attention, as there are times when a piece is over before it really begins, meaning the reader will miss what is being presented.

Svidio mi se i način na koji Nesbø ovdje portretira likove, tj. naglasak koji stavlja na likove koji su više možda zlikovci nego heroji i splet okolnosti koji ih je natjerao da to budu. Ljubomora je sama po sebi snažna emocija, korijen mnogih krivih postupaka i skretanja u pogrešnom smjeru. Ovdje je ona ono nešto što sve priče povezuje, ali i ono nešto što ih sve pokreće. The stories were read by a variety of narrators, several of whom I was already familiar with. All performances were excellent. I put down my coffee cup and take a Twist from the dish of chocolates. Coconut. Not my favourite, but perfectly acceptable. I straighten the liquorice wrapper between my fingers. ‘Lakris – lakrits – lakrids’ it says. Danish and Swedish as well as Norwegian. Easy to understand anyway. It’s good when neighbours speak almost the same language.

The chocolate spins round four times when I pull on the ends of the wrapper. I remove the silver foil, fold it four times, run a fingernail over the folds and put it on the coffee table. Then I close my eyes and pop the chocolate into my mouth. Holy Communion. The absolution of sins. Anyway, he turned out to be a really nice person – polite without being servile, intelligent but in a discreet way, and with a humorous appreciation of the comical aspect of our situation. We drank a couple of beers, and when he began after a while to talk about Simone it didn’t take long for me to realise that he was having exactly the same trouble with her as I had had. She was a cat. She came and went as she pleased, she was spoiled and moody, and loyalty was not her most outstanding quality. If I can put it like that. He complained of all the men friends she had and wondered why she couldn’t have female friends like other women. Talked about the nights she’d come home drunk after he’d gone to bed, and all the new and exciting people she’d met who she was so keen to tell him about. In a sort of aside he asked if I’d seen her since we’d split up and I’d moved out, and with a smile I had to tell him no. The smile was because I had realised that he was probably more jealous of me than I was of him. Isn’t that something of a paradox, officer?’ I say this as though I’ve just made up my mind here and now, but of course that’s not the case. For several minutes now I’ve just been waiting for the right moment. And the right moment is now.

Cigarras fue mi favorito entre todos, este era más cifi que otra cosa, mezclaba la idea de mundos paralelos, celos y un poder relacionado más a la inteligencia. Me encantó, disfruté mucho el cómo se dio todo y que detesté a un personaje, pero para el final igual tuvo un arco de redención corto pero interesante. Antídoto estuvo bien, predecible y la verdad es que no me llamó mucho la atención, aunque sí me gustó el final. Caballo negro también me gustó mucho, vuelve a una sociedad post apocalíptica con nuevas reglas sociales, pero que se parece a la nuestra. Una historia interesante sobre asesinos con distintos códigos morales y cómo la astucia puede ser superior a la maldad. Una vez más voy a diferir de las corriente generalizada de opiniones sobre este libro: a mi me ha parecido una puñetera maravilla. Los primeros relatos ( Londres, El hombre celoso y La cola) se sintieron como algo conocido, tenían un giro predecible que no les quitó que fueran entretenidos. Toda la construcción de El hombre celoso estuvo bien hecha, pero como dije, era predecible y eso le quitaba un poco de potencia al final. Basura resultó interesante, aunque principalmente por el tono y la voz narrativa, la forma en que el mismo protagonista no sabía bien lo que sucedió y el cómo todo se fue develando, admito que esperé un poco más del final, pero estuvo bien. A veritable crime lover’s delight from a true master of mystery and suspense. Experience the #1 New York Times best-selling author as never before in this dark and thrilling short story collection that takes us on a journey of twisted minds and vengeful hearts.La isla de las ratas es el primero de la parte sobre el poder, un relato más largo tipo apocalíptico, un poco Mad Max, con una anarquía y grupos de pandillas amenazando por las calles. Me gustó, en especial el final pues dentro de todo el protagonista mantuvo su brújula moral de siempre, pero fue capaz de obtener lo que quería. Es un relato un poco más duro que los otros, más cruel y frustrante. Maculadora estuvo bien, interesante por el tema de la vida eterna y el costo que esta podría tener, volvemos a tener un protagonista con un fuerte código moral que se mantiene firme a sus principios, a pesar de traspasar otros. This collection of short stories by the talented Jo Nesbø is divided into two themes. The first centres on JEALOUSY and part two around POWER. I enjoyed the first group much better than the second as there’s a really good mix of stories and the theme is evident throughout. The first entitled "London" is outstanding and one of my favourite stories as I love the clever twist at the end which makes me smile wryly. The second "The Jealousy Man" which gives the collection it’s title, has a great premise of sibling rivalry and how that manifests itself into jealousy. It is a bit on the long side with some digressions, but it is still a clever story. I didn't much care for "The Line" which is short and sharp which focuses on the nasty revenge for a someone who jumps the queue in a shop. In "Trash" we have an angry and jealous bin lorry driver who really cleans up after himself and "The Confession" has a particularly delicious Twist! The Confession really appeals to my rather dark sense of humour!! "Odd" was about a writer who is fed up with fame or is he? "The Earring" was really fun with a dark twist to it too...That reminds me, I better get my car serviced soon 🤔 And yet I’ve never been jealous of Henrik Bakke. Isn’t that funny? At least not in the sense of hating him or having a grudge against him. I think the way I looked at it was that he was just another guy same as me, he loved Simone more than anything else on earth. I actually thought of him more as someone in the same boat as me than as a rival.’