Christian Jungersen's The Exception - Norway

Jungersen masterfully juxtaposes the merciless harassment of Anne-Lise – the scheming, petty cruelties to which she is subjected – with the insightful articles that those who are harassing her are at the same time writing about big-time perpetrators of genocide and their psychology...
    The book, in a natural and fascinating way, also interweaves information about the violent scope and tragic results of genocidal actions over the past hundred years, incoporating an undercurrent of bemused self-irony over Danish good will, the mysterious machinations of bureaucracy, and the jockeying for human rights funding. The Exception has much more to offer than a typical thriller.
NRK

The Danish author Christian Jungersen has garnered several prizes for his second novel, The Exception. You don’t need to read many pages of this psychological thriller to realize that they are well-deserved. It is suspenseful, carefully constructed, elegantly told, and makes us think about big, unpleasant topics.
What brings out the evil in us – and what brings out the good? And is goodness or evil the exception? Jungersen addresses these big, difficult questions. He doesn’t give easy answers, but paves the way for several different ones. The author introduces a number of social-psychological theories and discreetly tests them out through his plot. In this way he mixes research and facts with fiction, effortlessly drawing the reader into various thought processes.
At the same time the book is suspenseful, so suspenseful that it is hard to put down.
    The author’s style is effective and elegant. It emphasizes that not everything is as it seems, amplifying the tension. The language is strong, naked and precise.
Vårt Land

This is a novel that is suspenseful, challenging, and wise — and so well written that the 670 pages just fly past... It is no exaggeration to assume that this will be one of the most-read books this spring. Christian Jungersen has written a close to perfect thriller, with believable characters, a plot that adds up perfectly, and a storytelling ability that strongly enhances the reading experience.
Dagbladet

Events are first described through Iben’s eyes, then Malene’s, then Anne-Lise’s, etc. Some places this is done with amazing succes …. By humanizing both the harassers and the victim the author makes it impossible for the reader to demonize any of those involved. The entire story becomes humanized.
    The high sales figures are definitely well deserved. In the best sections, especially when Anne-Lise is speaking, the book is deeply moving and powerful. Because the story is told from the different points of view, it achieves both depth and credibility in its description of human relations.
Frederikstad Blad

Slowly but surely the author paints the picture of an office marked by strong personal antagonisms, harassment, and freeze-outs... The paranoid mood in and around the workplace of these four women soars as the author uncovers more and more layers of the complex psyches of those involved... A contemporary thriller that offers both depth and suspense.
VG

The Exception is definitely no traditional crime novel, despite some criminal elements. It is an accomplished psychological thriller about genocide around the world both past and present, and about harassment in a Danish workplace today. Jungersen’s great achievement is that he manages to demonstrate that the driving forces behind both genocide and harassment are frighteningly similar, a sort of psychology of evil.
    Another convincing feature of the author’s writing skill is that his central characters are four women,
who are depicted with great sensitivity.
Aftenposten

Norway - Unntaket