A recurring main character is called Van Veeteren, a detective in the early novels and later the owner of an antique books shop.
Ludwig van Beethoven | Vincent van Gogh | Van Morrison | Van Halen | Gus Van Sant | Anthony van Dyck | Ellen van Dijk | Van Diemen's Land | Van | Martin Van Buren | Eddie Van Halen | Melvin Van Peebles | Jean-Claude Van Damme | Jan van Eyck | Armin van Buuren | Van Cliburn | Townes Van Zandt | Van, Turkey | Dave Van Ronk | Van Dyke Parks | Van der Graaf Generator | The Dick Van Dyke Show | Lee Van Cleef | Van Gogh | Han van Meegeren | Armin Van Buuren | Van Johnson | Dick Van Dyke | Van Heflin | van Gogh |
Barbarotti is a more upbeat character than Van Veeteren and the books are firmly set in Sweden, although the town of Kymlinge is fictitious and named after an "abandoned tube station" in Stockholm.