Reviews

• “It is difficult to read Palm Beach Finland without Carl Hiaasen coming to mind. I mean that as a compliment, not a suggestion that Antti Tuomainen has copied the master. He’s his own man, but he too has brilliantly created unreal, exaggerated characters who nevertheless move us, satire that suddenly approaches the truth, and a storyline, often dark, that we know to be absurd, but which makes us want to read more. /…/ Tuomainen is the funniest writer in Europe.”

• “Palm Beach, Finland is entirely successful as a comic crime novel – a difficult combination to pull off this successfully. /…/ Tuomainen presents a very enjoyable beach read, a thriller that doesn’t take itself too seriously and offers a nice dark touch that’s in fact only an appealingly shimmering veneer to a novel that is actually hearteningly cheerful, through and through.”

• “Tuomainen’s story flies as it always does; the use of language is sharp and witty without being extravagant and the doses of black humor arrive at exactly the right time.”

• “Fargo meets Baywatch in Antti Tuomainen’s crime comedy Palm Beach Finland /…/ Chasing the imaginary bundles of money gifts the story with the same kind of harsh realism as in Tuomainen’s previous novels. The small time criminal characters are just as skillfully drawn as what Jari Tervo had in his youth.”

• “The book combines the picaresque novel with outright slapstick (admittedly bloody) and a romantic sideplot. /…/ The brisk novel shakes and moves with vigor on its chosen course all the way to the finish line.”

• “Finnish criminal chucklemeister Tuomainen is channelling Carl Hiaasen in this hilarious novel set in a bizarre Florida-style beach resort on Finland's chilly shore. There are comically inept dim-crims, inventive psychos, a hot babe and even a blow-up pink flamingo.”

• “Tuomainen’s second foray into humorous crime fiction may remind you of Carl Hiaasen at his best. /…/ Tuomainen is one of those authors whose books are an automatic must-read so pick up or download a copy as soon as you can.”

• “Sardonic, offbeat and cleverly plotted story. /…/ Guaranteeing plenty of spontaneous bouts of laughter. /…/ Funny and poignant.”

• “Tuomainen delivers another delightful slice of dark humour and crime, full of bizarros, downbeats and deluded characters worthy of Carl Hiaasen. The premise of the story is familiar but the twists and highly original absurdities Tuomainen weaves around it will have you in stitches and his characters jump out of the page with gusto, both larger than life and terribly fallible but loveable. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry with laughter, what is there not to like? Welcome to a classic new holiday resort!”

• “Palm Beach Finland, brings us satire and criminal slapstick. /…/ Palm Beach Finland takes a Finnish slice from the comic, crazy, greedy, crime world of the likes of Get Shorty or Fargo. /…/ Read this one. /…/ Absolutely recommended.”

• “Antti Tuomainen adds a blackly comic dimension to contemporary Scandinavian crime fiction. /…/ The plot is an exercise in literary plate-spinning as a rogue’s gallery worth of absurd characters pinball around in a full-blooded, off-kilter caper-gone-wrong that also serves as an acerbic commentary on the crime genre.”

• “[An] inspired meld of crime and dark comedy. /…/ Colorful characters and awkward situations. /…/ Tim Dorsey fans will have fun.”

• “A quirky, smirky, entertaining slice of fabulous. /…/ The first paragraph of Palm Beach, Finland is beautifully written, it quite literally slapped my attention and I settled in with something approaching ghoulish glee! A wonderful wave of dark humour rolls through this novel gathering raised eyebrows and snorts. The cast increases, the action builds, and oh how my tummy and mind tied themselves in knots as the story spun in ever decreasing eccentric circles. /…/ I thoroughly, completely and totally recommend Palm Beach, Finland, do grab yourself a copy and pop a do not disturb sign on your door!”

• “The sun peeks through the lines, the trembling magic of the story is found in carefully drawn characters. Not to mention, of course, tragicomic twists and turns. I love the author’s prose, its different variations and meanings!”

• “[Antti Toumainen’s] stories are about people with big dreams and […] always lead to bizarre situational comedy. /…/ [He] proves in this humorous analysis of Finnish neurosis an admirable knowledge of human nature.”

• “[An] inspired meld of crime and dark comedy. /…/ Colorful characters and awkward situations […] enhance the zany plot. Tim Dorsey fans will have fun.”