by Jo Nesbø
Part of Harry Hole, book 9
First published 2012
Harry Hole thought he had left Oslo behind for good. The former police detective fled to Hong Kong, trying to escape the trauma of his cop years. Then devastating news arrives: Oleg, the son of the woman Harry loves and the boy he helped raise, has been arrested for murder. Harry abandoned Oleg when he fled Norway, and now the young man faces a killer's fate. Harry returns to Oslo determined to prove Oleg's innocence. The police force refuses to take him back, so Harry launches his own investigation. He discovers Oslo has been invaded by a deadly new drug that reaches into the highest levels of city government. As Harry digs deeper into the case, he must also confront his own painful past. The truth he uncovers will determine not only Oleg's future but Harry's own chance at redemption.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: redemption-arc, second-chance, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Hong Kong, Norway, Oslo
Period: 21st-century
378 pages · Hardcover · Knopf
Content warnings: addiction, drug-use, murder