The Healer by Antti Tuomainen

Unabridged Audio Version

Antii Tuomainen is (a new to me) Finnish author that I first heard about last June while attending the Bay Area Book Festival in Berkeley, California.

I'm always on the look out for new authors to explore, so with that in mind I decided to listen to the unabridged audio version of The Healer by Antti Tuomainen and narrated by Simon Shepard before the end of March. Listening time for The Healer by Antti Tuomainen is 5 hours, 40 minutes.

The Healer is a dystopian, mystery/thriller set in Finland. I liked the characters and the storyline of this novel very much. The Healer is a very quick read. My only complaint about the novel is the ending. It leaves the reader hanging as to what the leading character meant by what he said!!! Arrggh, don't you dislike it intensely when an author leaves you wondering the ending of the book is supposed to mean??? Boo, to ambiguous endings!! Other than the ending, The Healer was a really good read.

The following is a summary of The Healer by Antti Tuomainen from Audible:

It’s two days before Christmas, and Helsinki is battling ruthless climate catastrophe: subway tunnels are flooded and abandoned vehicles are burning in the streets. People are fleeing to the far north where conditions are still tolerable. Social order is crumbling and private security firms have undermined the police force.

Tapani Lehtinen, a struggling poet, is among the few still willing to live in the city. When Tapani’s wife, Johanna, a journalist, goes missing, he embarks on a frantic hunt for her. Johanna’s disappearance seems to be connected to a story she was researching about a serial killer known as "The Healer". Determined to find Johanna, Tapani’s search leads him to uncover secrets from her past - secrets that connect her to the very murders she was investigating.

Atmospheric and moving, The Healer is a story of survival, loyalty and determination. Even when the world is coming to an end, love and hope endure.

I am giving The Healer by Antti Tuomainen a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars. I would have probably given this novel a higher rating if I'd understood the ending.

Until my next post, happy reading!!