April 9, 2012
Det. Hanne Wilhelmsen and her colleague Håkon Sand, an attorney with the Special Branch of the Oslo police, look into two murders in Edgar-finalist Holt’s well-paced first Hanne Wilhelmsen novel, the second to be published in the U.S. (after 2011’s 1222). A frightened Dutchman, who won’t give his name, quickly confesses to the first murder, that of a drug dealer. When the Dutchman insists that inexperienced lawyer Karen Borg, an old friend of Sand’s, represent him, the police suspect that unknown corrupt lawyers, part of a massive criminal organization, are behind Borg’s selection. The subsequent fatal shooting of a sleazy lawyer may be linked to the first murder. Snippets of the crooks’ reactions to the police investigation add tension, while the breaking of a “book code” helps bring the criminal activities into focus. Characterizations that compel without being obtrusive compensate for the somewhat disappointing reveal of the ultimate culprit’s identity.
Starred review from August 27, 2012
When a young man is found covered in blood and arrested for the murder of an amateur drug dealer, he makes an unusual request: he will only be represented by lawyer Karen Borgâthe very woman who stumbled across the dead body in Oslo, Norway. But when another body and a coded message are found, investigating officers Hakon Sand and Hanne Wilhelmsen realize the events are linked and the case is more complicated than it first appeared. In this audio edition of Holt's thriller, narrator Kate Reading turns in a standout performance. As Borg, she is stern and confident; unwavering despite everything she discovers. Her narration is well paced and compelling, and the dialects she employs for the book's many characters are unique and realistic. With the greatest of ease, Reading bends her voice, creating an atmosphere as chilling as the book's snowy setting, or shocking readers as the novel's plot twists and turns. A Scribner paperback.