If what hooked you in The Keeper of Lost Causes was Carl Mørck and Assad methodically reviving a dead file—sifting small inconsistencies in Merete Lynggaard’s disappearance until a buried truth surfaced—then you’ll click with The Dry. Federal Agent Aaron Falk returns to his drought-stricken hometown to probe a supposed murder–suicide, and the case unspools through careful interviews, forensic details, and old lies resurfacing, delivering that same meticulous, procedural satisfaction.

You liked how The Keeper of Lost Causes plunged into a grim underworld—Merete’s claustrophobic captivity and the institutional apathy that let her case gather dust. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo matches that darkness: journalist Mikael Blomkvist and hacker Lisbeth Salander dig into a decades-old disappearance and uncover abuse and corruption behind a polished family name, delivering the same hard-edged, unsettling atmosphere.

If the slow-blooming bond between Carl Mørck and Assad—basement coffee, mismatched skills, unexpected trust—was your favorite part of The Keeper of Lost Causes, you’ll love the spark between Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott. As they reexamine a supermodel’s “suicide,” their complementary strengths and gently shifting dynamic echo that same rewarding partnership energy.

One of The Keeper of Lost Causes’ most gripping moves is cutting between Department Q’s present-day digging and Merete’s harrowing past-in-captivity chapters. The Distant Echo uses a similar structure, shifting between the night of a young woman’s murder and the renewed investigation years later, steadily closing the temporal gap until the truth snaps into place.

If Carl Mørck’s abrasive, corners-cutting approach and complicated conscience drew you in—particularly as he bulldozes bureaucracy to chase what really happened to Merete—then John Rebus in Black and Blue will scratch the same itch. Rebus juggles overlapping cases, defies superiors, and wades into moral gray zones to get answers, delivering that rugged, ethically knotty drive.