Palme was a fascinating politician; an aristocrat and deeply committed socialist. He supported Castro's Cuba, thus guaranteeing he fell out with the US. He was hated by the opposition who accused him of everything from homosexuality to being a KGB spy so, not surprisingly, when he was murdered the rumour mills began grinding and a cycle of fantastic explanations and bizarre conspiracy theories emerged. In this well-written book Jan Bondeson attempts to explain why Palme was killed. The result is a non-fiction work that reads like a Tom Clancy political thriller.
Blood on the Snow is a melodramatic title, but the story of the 1980s murder of a Scandinavian politician so stretches skepticism and credulity that any sober, dry-as-dust academic treatment would have jarred. Jan Bondeson's involved, committed approach is the best way to do full justice to the complexity of an astounding case.... I doubt if the massively tangled web round Olof Palme's killing will inspire a more engrossing or a better-researched book.
-- "Times Literary Supplement"
Bondeson explores a variety of assassination theories that have arisen amid a botched police investigation, conflicting witness testimonies, and Palme's celebrity status.... Bondeson delves into the nature of the investigation and the uncertain guilt of the convicted killer--issues that have captivated Swedes and others for almost 20 years.
-- "Library Journal"
On February 28, 1986, at 11:21 p.m., Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was fatally shot while walking toward a Stockholm subway station. Jan Bondeson, a doctor, scientist, and investigator of unsolved mysteries, has written an extraordinarily penetrating book on the case, complete with a vivid minute-by-minute account of the crime as well as a detailed description of the failed police investigation and, best of all, a keen analysis of the byzantine political and financial intrigues in which Palme had been involved.
-- "Wall Street Journal"
Palme was a fascinating politician; an aristocrat and deeply committed socialist. He supported Castro's Cuba, thus guaranteeing he fell out with the US. He was hated by the opposition who accused him of everything from homosexuality to being a KGB spy so, not surprisingly, when he was murdered the rumour mills began grinding and a cycle of fantastic explanations and bizarre conspiracy theories emerged. In this well-written book Jan Bondeson attempts to explain why Palme was killed. The result is a non-fiction work that reads like a Tom Clancy political thriller.
-- "Sydney Morning Herald"
"On February 28, 1986, at 11:21 p.m., Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was fatally shot while walking toward a Stockholm subway station. Jan Bondeson, a doctor, scientist, and investigator of unsolved mysteries, has written an extraordinarily penetrating book on the case, complete with a vivid minute-by-minute account of the crime as well as a detailed description of the failed police investigation and, best of all, a keen analysis of the byzantine political and financial intrigues in which Palme had been involved."
"The story of Olof Palme's murder and the many turns in the botched murder investigation is truly fascinating and reveals a great deal about Swedish society: the criminal underworld, the police, and social democratic establishment, and possibly, according to the author's own, quite plausible, theory, the arms export business."
"The murder in February 1986 of Olof Palme was a watershed event. It changed Sweden, forcing on it a soul-searching, and had an incalculable effect on the rest of the world. Jan Bondeson gives a lively and comprehensive account of the crime itself and most meticulously examines the fascinating ambiguities and inconsistencies of what happened in its wake. Blood on the Snow should certainly set us all thinking."
Whether or not the 1986 assassination of Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme can be considered "the crime of the century," as Bondeson (The Great Pretenders) asserts, its impact on Sweden's political life and social self-image has been profound and distinctive. Bondeson explores a variety of assassination theories that have arisen amid a botched police investigation, conflicting witness testimonies, and Palme's celebrity status. Adding to these theories, he implicates the Swedish arms manufacturer Bofors in a bribery conspiracy involving India and Iran. Acknowledging himself to be no different from the many Swedish "Palme detectives," Bondeson delves into the nature of the investigation and the uncertain guilt of the convicted killer-issues that have captivated Swedes and others for almost 20 years. Readers less interested in the book's central theme may find valuable its sheer detail concerning the police response. Recommended for larger academic libraries.-Zachary T. Irwin, Pennsylvania State Univ., Behrend Coll., Erie Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
On February 28, 1986, at 11:21 p.m., Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was fatally shot while walking toward a Stockholm subway station. Jan Bondeson, a doctor, scientist, and investigator of unsolved mysteries, has written an extraordinarily penetrating book on the case, complete with a vivid minute-by-minute account of the crime as well as a detailed description of the failed police investigation and, best of all, a keen analysis of the byzantine political and financial intrigues in which Palme had been involved.