The Beaver Theory – Antti Tuomainen

Henri Koskinen, intrepid insurance mathematician and adventure-park entrepreneur, firmly believes in the power of common sense and order. That is until he moves in with painter Laura Helanto and her daughter… As Henri realises he has inadvertently become part of a group of local dads, a competing adventure park is seeking to expand their operations, not always sticking to the law in the process… Is it possible to combine the increasingly dangerous world of the adventure-park business with the unpredictability of life in a blended family? At first glance, the two appear to have only one thing in neither deals particularly well with a mounting body count. In order to solve this seemingly impossible conundrum, Henri is forced to step far beyond the mathematical precision of his comfort zone … and the stakes have never been higher..

Ah, it’s good to be back with the (mis)adventures of everyone’s favourite actuary-turned-adventure park owner. Following on from the excellent The Rabbit Factor and splendid The Moose Paradox, The Beaver Theory rounds out Henri’s story (for now, at least).

And what fun it is. Facing down the threat of a rival adventure park, Henri and the YouMeFun gang have to figure out how Somersault City can offer free entry, and free food to their customers, and why they want to bankrupt Henri. All while Henri seems to have fallen into the local dad group who are organising fundraising events for a school trip to Paris and simultaneously navigating the perilous world of family life with his girlfriend Laura and her young daughter Tuuli.

Henri has moved on a long way from his days as an actuary, and isn’t above a spot of mild industrial espionage whilst on the run for an alleged murder…

There’s a glorious vein of dark Finnish humour running through these books which I just adore. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it once again here – Antti Tuomainen is one of my favourite authors and I will gladly put everything to one side to spend a couple of hours in the worlds he creates. Tuomainen is on top form as ever, with a cast of brilliantly odd characters playing out their lives against the background of the YouMeFun adventure park.

This is not the place to start with Henri Koskinen, and if somehow you’ve managed to miss me nagging you to read these books, get yourself all three in the series, pour a large mug (or glass) of something delicious and settle in for quite the adventure.

Any review of these books must acknowledge and give a tip of the hat to the excellent translation by David Hackston.

As a way of rounding out the trilogy, The Beaver Theory is quite simply, highly recommended. I shall miss Henri, Laura and the others.

The Beaver Theory by Antti Tuomainen, translated by David Hackston, is published by Orenda Books and is out now. Many thanks to Karen Sullivan from Orenda Books for the review copy.