Anxious People by Frederick Bachman

 I heard about this book from a person that I follow on TikTok actually, which is quite a random place to find book recommendations.  Fredrik Backman actually wrote A Man Called Ove, which I suspect is more well known here because there was a movie made about it.I haven't read that book, but now am interested.

This book is set in a small Swedish town a few days before New Year's Eve. A distraught parent, seeking to get rent money, attempts to rob a bank and fails miserably.  As the bank robber realizes that their options are slowly running out, the robber runs across the street to an apartment showing and unintentionally turns it into a hostage situation. There are eight people in the apartment and they interact with the bank robber and each other during the course of this mystery, most of which occurs in the apartment during the so-called hostage situation. There are two police officers involved in staking out the hostage situation while the investigators from Stockholm are on their way - Jim and Jack, father and son.

I loved this book. It deals with things like "Stockholm Syndrome" - where the hostages bond with their captor.  It also deals with the anxieties that all of us have, some of which really struck home for me in a way that I cried and laughed and cringed. Perhaps most importantly, it demonstrates the importance of empathy towards our fellow human beings. I loved this book and will be giving it another read.