A Stroke of Sadness

Leena Lehtolainen

Original title: Surunpotku

Author: Leena Lehtolainen

Published: 2015

Publisher: Tammi

Genre: Crime & Suspense

Pages: 360

Part of a series: Maria Kallio series

Reading material

Finnish edition
German edition

The body of Jaakko Pulma, an antiques and diamond dealer, is found at the church of Tapiola near Helsinki. Whoever murdered him appears to also have stolen a set of priceless family diamonds. A former employee becomes the primary suspect, but the situation becomes more complicated when Pulma’s lost phone begins to send out messages. Maria Kallio and her colleagues soon receive tips of a money laundering operation.

A hunt for the missing diamonds leads the police into an international web of crime. Buried deep into Pulma’s history is evidence of blackmail and an accident that turns out to not have been one at all. Not even the police is safe in the final showdown. A hit song, A Stroke of Sadness, by a band called Starflower adds an unusual twist to the story.

Download reading materials

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Tammi (orig.)
GERMANY: Rowohlt
TV RIGHTS: Jarowskij Finland

Video

About author

Leena Lehtolainen

Leena Lehtolainen is the top female crime author in Finland: her new titles always head straight to #1 on the Finnish bestseller lists.

Lehtolainen created her successful protagonist, detective Maria Kallio, in 1993. Having already featured in 16 novels and a complete TV series, a new Maria Kallio TV reboot series was launched in Fall 2021 on C More. Lehtolainen’s novels have been translated into 30 languages and have sold over 2.5 million copies worldwide.

And just like the events in Bodyguard, a that takes the heroine Hilja Ilveskero all around Europe, Lehtolainen’s own work takes her to book festivals, exhibitions and other events across the globe.

Leena Lehtolainen has also published outside the crime genre; her book The Charm of Figure Skating was voted sports book of the year 2010 in Finland, and A Life in Six Scenes showed her return to literary fiction.

The Crossing of the Green Dragon is her first title for YA audiences.

In her free time, Lehtolainen enjoys all kinds of music and follows lynx trails in the forests – just like Maria Kallio.

Photo credit: Ville Juurikkala