A well-reviewed suspenseful historical thriller
Stockholm, 1793. Since the death of King Gustav III. More than a year has passed, and a stifling atmosphere of suspicion and conspiratorial rumors has spread through the city. In the stinking waters of the lake, a corpse is found without arms and legs, mutilated beyond recognition. The investigation must be as discreet as possible, so the case is taken up by Cecil Winge, a special associate of the Stockholm police, a peculiar lawyer with a strong sense of justice, dying of consumption. His partner is veteran Mickel Cardell, tough on the surface but with his heart in the right place. What Winge can't solve with his intellect, Cardell will provide with a thud - he has a nifty wooden prosthetic for that. Soon they are both entangled in a web of dark secrets and bottomless evil, a web whose threads reach into the highest echelons of Stockholm society. Through the eyes of four narrators, we peer beneath the powdered and painted surface of late 18th century Stockholm, beneath which a terrifying but fascinating reality emerges.
The intriguing world of dark Stockholm at the end of the 18th century was quickly embraced by readers all over the world, including Germany, the UK and the USA. Hold your nose, open your eyes and dive into the sewer of crime!
* Swedish Academy of Crime Literature Award for best debut. It has sold to 35 countries.
* Winner of the Crimetime Specsavers Award for Best First Crime Novel in 2018
* Sweden's Book of the Year 2018
* The Swedish Academy of Crime Writers' Award for Best First Novel in 2017
* One of Humo's "Top 12 Fiction Books of 2018"
* Chosen as "Best Crime Novel of 2018" by Adresseavisen
* One of Aftenposten's "Best Crime Novels of 2018"
* One of Dagbladet's "Favorite books of 2018".
