Depths (novel)
Encyclopedia
Depths is a 2004 novel by Swedish writer Henning Mankell
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Set in 1914, the novel concerns a naval engineer Lars Tobiasson-Svartman, on board the Swedish navy
's Coast Defence Ship Svea, undertaking a covert mission to find and chart navigable channels through the Stockholm archipelago. During the voyage Svartman alights on a barren skerry, and discovers a young woman there, Sara. Despite her feral nature, something about her strikes him to his core and, even when he has returned to Stockholm and his wife Kristina, he finds himself compelled to go back to the island. Ever since his childhood Svartman has been obsessed by exactness in the measurement of time or distance. He seeks solace through secretly observing or following people, and at night overcomes fear by cradling his most precious possession, his sounding lead
. Svartman's obsessions and growing distrust of others leads him to submerge himself in a web of deceit involving his employer, Kristina and Sara which increasingly threatens to engulf him.
Henning Mankell
Henning Mankell is a Swedish crime writer, children's author, leftist activist and dramatist, best known for a series of mystery novels starring his most famous creation, Inspector Kurt Wallander.-Life and career:...
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Set in 1914, the novel concerns a naval engineer Lars Tobiasson-Svartman, on board the Swedish navy
Swedish Navy
The Royal Swedish Navy is the naval branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet – as well as marine units, the so-called Amphibious Corps .In Swedish, vessels of the Swedish Navy are given the prefix "HMS," short for Hans/Hennes...
's Coast Defence Ship Svea, undertaking a covert mission to find and chart navigable channels through the Stockholm archipelago. During the voyage Svartman alights on a barren skerry, and discovers a young woman there, Sara. Despite her feral nature, something about her strikes him to his core and, even when he has returned to Stockholm and his wife Kristina, he finds himself compelled to go back to the island. Ever since his childhood Svartman has been obsessed by exactness in the measurement of time or distance. He seeks solace through secretly observing or following people, and at night overcomes fear by cradling his most precious possession, his sounding lead
Sounding line
A sounding line or lead line is a length of thin rope with a plummet, generally of lead, at its end. Regardless of the actual composition of the plummet, it is still called a "lead."...
. Svartman's obsessions and growing distrust of others leads him to submerge himself in a web of deceit involving his employer, Kristina and Sara which increasingly threatens to engulf him.