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About The Book

From the Edgar Award finalist, the captivating third book in the series featuring the brilliant and tough police investigator Hanne Wilhelmsen, who must investigate the grisly murder of an orphanage director.

In a foster home outside Oslo, a twelve-year-old boy is causing havoc. The institution’s steely director, Agnes Vestavik, sees something chilling in Olav’s eyes: sheer hatred. When Vestavik is found murdered at her desk, stabbed in the back with an Ikea kitchen knife—with Olav nowhere to be found—the case goes to maverick investigator Hanne Wilhelmsen, recently promoted to chief inspector in the Oslo Police.

Could the child be a murderer? As police canvass the city for Olav, Hanne, working alongside the foulmouthed detective Billy T., orders an investigation of the home’s employees. But despite her supreme deductive skills, she is hopeless at delegating, hopeless at pooling information, hopeless at sharing responsibilities. Can Hanne learn to trust others before her bullheaded instincts lead her astray—in the workplace and on the home front?

Meanwhile, Olav makes his way through the city, looking for the mother who was forced to consign him to the state’s care. A dark and captivating new chapter in this brilliant, rollicking series, Death of the Demon examines that murky intersection between crime and justice.

About The Author

Photograph by Jo Michael

Anne Holt is Norway’s bestselling female crime writer. She was a journalist and news anchor and spent two years working for the Oslo Police Department before founding her own law firm and serving as Norway’s Minister for Justice in 1996 and 1997. Her first novel was published in 1993 and her books have been translated into over thirty languages and have sold more than 7 million copies. Her novel 1222 was nominated for an Edgar Award for Best Novel. She lives in Oslo with her family.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Scribner (June 18, 2013)
  • Length: 288 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781451634921

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Raves and Reviews

“Anne Holt is the godmother of modern Norwegian crime fiction.”--Jo Nesbø

"A perfect entry point into Scandinavian crime.... A sure pleasure for police-procedural fans who read everything from Slaughter to Nesbo.”

– Booklist (starred review)

“Expertly translated forAmerican readers by the highly capable Anne Bruce… A wonderful combination ofold-school police procedure and amateur detective work…. Holt is a master ofbalancing criminal procedure with suspense…. This is a series that demands tobe read, and the more quickly the better.”

– Bookreporter

"Always adept at balancing emotional narrative and strong suspense, Holt has crafted another must-read with this fascinating peek into a modern Sherlock’s investigative mind."

– Booklist

"Unforgettable."

– Kirkus

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More books from this author: Anne Holt

More books in this series: A Hanne Wilhelmsen Novel