#1 - Unseen
'There is an icy, dispassionate grip to Jungstedt's writing that recalls Henning Mankell' Metro
The first body they found was the dog. The poor creature's throat has been cut, and one paw severed completely. Then they found the body of the woman. She had been stabbed, again and again; she was naked, a piece of cloth had been stuffed into her mouth.
The picturesque holiday island of Gotland is in the middle of a busy tourist season when the young woman is discovered murdered. Suspicion falls on her husband - the couple had been seen fighting the evening before. Inspector Anders Knutas is hoping it will be a straight-forward case; the local authorities are hoping so too, but more out of an interest in protecting the tourist trade than any desire to see justice served. Then another victim is discovered, again she is a young woman and she has been murdered in the same chilling manner. Inspector Knutas must face up to the horrifying prospect that there is a serial killer loose on the island.
Knutas, aided by investigative journalist Johan Berg, begins to piece together the tragic history that unites the two victims, and alarmingly points to more murders to come. The killer remains unknown, moving freely, unseen, on the island. All that is clear is that the two victims are just the beginning, unless Knutas and Berg find the killer before he strikes again.
The first body they found was the dog. The poor creature's throat has been cut, and one paw severed completely. Then they found the body of the woman. She had been stabbed, again and again; she was naked, a piece of cloth had been stuffed into her mouth.
The picturesque holiday island of Gotland is in the middle of a busy tourist season when the young woman is discovered murdered. Suspicion falls on her husband - the couple had been seen fighting the evening before. Inspector Anders Knutas is hoping it will be a straight-forward case; the local authorities are hoping so too, but more out of an interest in protecting the tourist trade than any desire to see justice served. Then another victim is discovered, again she is a young woman and she has been murdered in the same chilling manner. Inspector Knutas must face up to the horrifying prospect that there is a serial killer loose on the island.
Knutas, aided by investigative journalist Johan Berg, begins to piece together the tragic history that unites the two victims, and alarmingly points to more murders to come. The killer remains unknown, moving freely, unseen, on the island. All that is clear is that the two victims are just the beginning, unless Knutas and Berg find the killer before he strikes again.
#2 - Unspoken
'Strong characters raise questions of how well we know those close to us...gripping' Financial Times
The dead man was a drunk; a regular on the park benches of Gotland's city centre. He had been celebrating winning 80,000 Krona at the races. His body is discovered by one of his drinking buddies: he is drenched in blood and someone or something has left a hole the size of a fist in the back of his head.
It's winter on the island of Gotland. The tourists have returned home. The tree branches are bare, the sky is sleet grey and the days are getting shorter and darker. Winter is a quiet time for Chief Inspector Anders Knutas and Detective Karin Jacobsson; the tourists tend to take the violent crimes with them back to the mainland. To keep their lives simple, they are tempted to assume that the victim died as a result of a drunken brawl over money. But all of the clues point to something far more sinister.
Then 14-year old Fanny Jansson, a volunteer at the local stables, vanishes. At first Knutas and Jacobsson find it hard to believe that the two cases are linked: one is a violent murder, the other, the disappearance of a lonely and isolated child who has probably run away. Painstakingly, they work the clues, assisted by ambitious TV reporter Johan Berg. But what none of them realise is that truth is much closer to home than they'd ever imagine.
The dead man was a drunk; a regular on the park benches of Gotland's city centre. He had been celebrating winning 80,000 Krona at the races. His body is discovered by one of his drinking buddies: he is drenched in blood and someone or something has left a hole the size of a fist in the back of his head.
It's winter on the island of Gotland. The tourists have returned home. The tree branches are bare, the sky is sleet grey and the days are getting shorter and darker. Winter is a quiet time for Chief Inspector Anders Knutas and Detective Karin Jacobsson; the tourists tend to take the violent crimes with them back to the mainland. To keep their lives simple, they are tempted to assume that the victim died as a result of a drunken brawl over money. But all of the clues point to something far more sinister.
Then 14-year old Fanny Jansson, a volunteer at the local stables, vanishes. At first Knutas and Jacobsson find it hard to believe that the two cases are linked: one is a violent murder, the other, the disappearance of a lonely and isolated child who has probably run away. Painstakingly, they work the clues, assisted by ambitious TV reporter Johan Berg. But what none of them realise is that truth is much closer to home than they'd ever imagine.
#3 - Unknown
'One of Scandinavia's best crime writers, no mean compliment in a crowded field' The Times
It's summer on Gotland and an international group of archaeology students are excavating an ancient Viking site. The camaraderie and holiday spirits of the group are shattered when one of their number, a Dutch student called Martina, disappears. Rumours abound about a secret relationship she was having with someone on the island, but is her disappearance simply a lover's intrigue?
When the body of a horse is discovered in a local farmer's field, other rumours begin to circulate. The horse had been decapitated and the head has vanished.
As Inspector Knutas begins his investigation, echoes from Gotland's Viking past begin to trouble his search. When Martina's naked body is found hanging from a tree, with what look like ritualistic markings on her skin, there can be little further question. Someone is calling to the old Gods of Gotland. Martina has been killed according to the Viking ritual of the three-fold death, and the one thing the ritual points to is that more deaths will follow.
It's summer on Gotland and an international group of archaeology students are excavating an ancient Viking site. The camaraderie and holiday spirits of the group are shattered when one of their number, a Dutch student called Martina, disappears. Rumours abound about a secret relationship she was having with someone on the island, but is her disappearance simply a lover's intrigue?
When the body of a horse is discovered in a local farmer's field, other rumours begin to circulate. The horse had been decapitated and the head has vanished.
As Inspector Knutas begins his investigation, echoes from Gotland's Viking past begin to trouble his search. When Martina's naked body is found hanging from a tree, with what look like ritualistic markings on her skin, there can be little further question. Someone is calling to the old Gods of Gotland. Martina has been killed according to the Viking ritual of the three-fold death, and the one thing the ritual points to is that more deaths will follow.
#4 - The Killer's Art
'One of Scandinavia's best crime writers' The Times
It is a cold wintry morning in the picturesque port town of Visby when art dealer Egon Wallin's battered and naked body is found hanging from a gate in the town's old city walls. His was a very public death, but who killed him and why?
As Inspector Knutas begins his investigation, Egon's secrets quickly begin to come to the surface. He died on the eve of leaving his wife. Is his death a spurned lover's revenge? And when a painting by a new cause-célèbre artist is stolen from his gallery, more questions are raised.
Another theft and another death, this time in Stockholm, widens the search for the killer. As the police piece together the clues, one scandal is followed by another and Inspector Knutas will discover that beneath the patina of glamour, the high-society world of art collecting hides many secrets - some worth killing for.
It is a cold wintry morning in the picturesque port town of Visby when art dealer Egon Wallin's battered and naked body is found hanging from a gate in the town's old city walls. His was a very public death, but who killed him and why?
As Inspector Knutas begins his investigation, Egon's secrets quickly begin to come to the surface. He died on the eve of leaving his wife. Is his death a spurned lover's revenge? And when a painting by a new cause-célèbre artist is stolen from his gallery, more questions are raised.
Another theft and another death, this time in Stockholm, widens the search for the killer. As the police piece together the clues, one scandal is followed by another and Inspector Knutas will discover that beneath the patina of glamour, the high-society world of art collecting hides many secrets - some worth killing for.
#5 - The Dead of Summer
'One of Scandinavia's best crime writers' The Times
Mari Jungstedt's compelling series of novels featuring Inspector Anders Knutas continues to go from strength to strength with The Dead of Summer, the fifth crime adventure set on the island of Gotland. Her trademark combination of rich characterisation, taut crime plots and the continuing unfolding drama of her series characters' lives add up to a mix that rivals Henning Mankell's Wallander series.
The murder of a jogger on the beach at Faro is an opportunity for Anders Knutas's newly-appointed deputy, Karin Jacobsson, to prove her worth while her boss is on holiday. But when a second body is discovered, murdered in the same style, Jacobsson's investigations point to a horrifying conclusion.
Mari Jungstedt's compelling series of novels featuring Inspector Anders Knutas continues to go from strength to strength with The Dead of Summer, the fifth crime adventure set on the island of Gotland. Her trademark combination of rich characterisation, taut crime plots and the continuing unfolding drama of her series characters' lives add up to a mix that rivals Henning Mankell's Wallander series.
The murder of a jogger on the beach at Faro is an opportunity for Anders Knutas's newly-appointed deputy, Karin Jacobsson, to prove her worth while her boss is on holiday. But when a second body is discovered, murdered in the same style, Jacobsson's investigations point to a horrifying conclusion.
#6 - Dark Angel
Family ties can bind dangerously tight
Viktor Algard was in love. Reckless in the grip of passion, he left his wife and grown-up children to be with his new lover. His last act was a celebratory drink at a glamorous party . . .
Inspector Anders Knutas must find out who on the island of Gotland hated Algard enough to poison him. At first Algard’s spurned wife seems like the obvious suspect. But a second attack confirms his suspicion that there’s a more complex motive behind the murder.
If Knutas is to catch the killer, he must discover the truth that lies hidden at the heart of a broken family – and face some secrets within his own.
Viktor Algard was in love. Reckless in the grip of passion, he left his wife and grown-up children to be with his new lover. His last act was a celebratory drink at a glamorous party . . .
Inspector Anders Knutas must find out who on the island of Gotland hated Algard enough to poison him. At first Algard’s spurned wife seems like the obvious suspect. But a second attack confirms his suspicion that there’s a more complex motive behind the murder.
If Knutas is to catch the killer, he must discover the truth that lies hidden at the heart of a broken family – and face some secrets within his own.
#7 - The Double Silence
A man is pushed from a cliff; a woman is missing after a bike ride; an elderly man is washed ashore.
The friends are closer than most – too close, some might say. Every year they leave their cosy suburban neighbourhood to go on holiday together to a remote Swedish island. But this year, their holiday won’t go as expected.
A terrible series of tragedies will unfold, seemingly random, all somehow connected. Detective Superintendant Anders Knutas will have to look into the friends’ tangled pasts to find the truth. What malevolent force has followed them to the island? Or was it amongst them all along?
Even the closest friends don’t share everything...
The friends are closer than most – too close, some might say. Every year they leave their cosy suburban neighbourhood to go on holiday together to a remote Swedish island. But this year, their holiday won’t go as expected.
A terrible series of tragedies will unfold, seemingly random, all somehow connected. Detective Superintendant Anders Knutas will have to look into the friends’ tangled pasts to find the truth. What malevolent force has followed them to the island? Or was it amongst them all along?
Even the closest friends don’t share everything...
#8 - The Dangerous Game
The price of fame . . . is DEATH
When Jenny is spotted by a high-profile modelling agency, she goes from ordinary schoolgirl to celebrity overnight. Suddenly her life is a whirlwind of parties and glamour.
Agnes used to be a model too – but now she lies in a hospital bed, slowly being destroyed by an eating disorder. Her father sits by her day after day, praying that his only remaining daughter survives.
An attempted murder during a lavish photoshoot means that Jenny’s and Agnes’s lives will soon intersect in the most terrifying of ways . . . Because someone is watching them. Someone with a plan.
Can Detective Anders Knutas figure out who it is in time to stop a terrible justice being served?
When Jenny is spotted by a high-profile modelling agency, she goes from ordinary schoolgirl to celebrity overnight. Suddenly her life is a whirlwind of parties and glamour.
Agnes used to be a model too – but now she lies in a hospital bed, slowly being destroyed by an eating disorder. Her father sits by her day after day, praying that his only remaining daughter survives.
An attempted murder during a lavish photoshoot means that Jenny’s and Agnes’s lives will soon intersect in the most terrifying of ways . . . Because someone is watching them. Someone with a plan.
Can Detective Anders Knutas figure out who it is in time to stop a terrible justice being served?
#9 - The Fourth Victim
A violent robbery. A hit-and-run. A brutal murder.
In the stifling heat of an August morning on the beautiful Swedish island of Gotland, terror shatters the calm.
An armed robbery is over in minutes, leaving a little girl on the road, hit by the getaway car.
Desperate to find those responsible, the police track down one of the culprits. But he is dead, brutally murdered at a remote farm. Tattooed on his arm are three initials: his own and two others. The only clues to the identity of his friends.
As the hunt to find the remaining two robbers intensifies, there’s every chance the murderer is on their trail too. Can Detective Superintendent Knutas beat them to it?
In the stifling heat of an August morning on the beautiful Swedish island of Gotland, terror shatters the calm.
An armed robbery is over in minutes, leaving a little girl on the road, hit by the getaway car.
Desperate to find those responsible, the police track down one of the culprits. But he is dead, brutally murdered at a remote farm. Tattooed on his arm are three initials: his own and two others. The only clues to the identity of his friends.
As the hunt to find the remaining two robbers intensifies, there’s every chance the murderer is on their trail too. Can Detective Superintendent Knutas beat them to it?