The book’s main protagonist is again the thoughtful Inspector Konrad Sejer. This time around, he has to deal with the mysterious disappearance of ten-year-old Ida Joner and her bike.
A Mute Investigation
Suspicion immediately falls upon Emil, who hasn’t said a single word except "no" for fifty years. He seems harmless enough; he lives alone, with a parrot, and his mother does his cleaning every week, though sometimes she’s afraid of what she might find.
-Superb
This fifth Inspecor Sejer mystery to reach American readers has already received critical acclaim, with Booklist claiming that “Sejer’s interrogation of the mute Emil is one of the most superb scenes in crime fiction … outstanding … essential reading for fans of Scandinavian crime fiction,” and Publishers Weekly lauding its “infectious psychological tension.”
Awards and Adaptations
Karin Fossum is one of Norway’s most prominent crime writers. Her Sejer mysteries have been translated into sixteen languages, and her novels have won numerous awards both internationally and in her native Norway
In 2008 she won the prestigious LA Times Book Prize in the category Mystery/Thriller. Several of her books have been adapted to a hughely successful TV-series in Norway.