The Moose Paradox by Antti Tuomainen

The Moose Paradox is the sequel to The Rabbit Factor by Antti Tuomainen. I read The Rabbit Factor last year, after seeing Antti at Cheltenham Literature Festival. I loved it and was keen to read the sequel.

The Moose Paradox starts soon after the events of The Rabbit Factor. Henri Koskinen, former actuary, has finally got things in order at YouMeFun, the adventure park he inherited from his brother. The finances are straight and there are no criminals chasing debts. All he needs is to acquire the Moose Chute, the ultimate piece of adventure park equipment, to watch visitor numbers soar…

Then a man from the past turns up and everything goes wrong again.

Suddenly he is under pressure to sell the park, the staff have big dreams with no thought of the costs and his relationship with Laura Helanto is looking shaky. And why won’t long-term supplier, Toy of Finland, sell him the Moose Chute?

It feels like nobody wants to negotiate or listen and Henri is losing his grip on the park. Will maths and logic win the day, will Henri ever get the Moose Chute or will he lose YouMeFun?

This is another very funny comedy thriller from Antti Tuomainen, translated from Finnish by David Hackston. One of the reviews on the back of the book describes him as ‘the funniest writer in Europe’.

If you enjoy crime novels or humorous novels, you will love Henri Koskinen. He reminds me a little bit of Don Tillman in The Rosie Project, which is always a good thing in my opinion.

Can you read The Moose Paradox without reading The Rabbit Factor first? You could do, but I would strongly recommend reading The Rabbit Factor first.

Did I love The Moose Paradox as much as The Rabbit Factor? Not quite. The Rabbit Factor had that element of surprise and joy of first meeting new characters and new situations, like with The Thursday Murder Club. Even though The Moose Paradox was another brilliant read, it didn’t quite give me that joy of first encountering Henri.