The Consorts of Death

Book excerpt: 'The Norwegian Chandler' Jo Nesbø 'One of my very favourite Scandinavian authors' Ian Rankin 'Staalesen's most striking novel' Independent MORE THAN FIVE MILLION BOOKS SOLD WORLDWIDE September 1995. A phone call takes Verg Veum back 25 years to a case from when he was a working as a child protection officer in the summer of 1970. A small boy was separated from his mother under tragic circumstances, but it didn't end there. In 1974, the same boy surfaced in connection with a sudden death at his new home; and once again, ten years later, after a dramatic double murder in Sunnfjord. The boy is now an adult, on the run in Oslo and determined to take revenge on those responsible for destroying his life - among them Veum, now a private investigator. A chilling series of complex motives, puzzling links and deeply dysfunctional relationships are cleverly drawn together in a stunning plot that will leave you gripped to the final page. The Consorts of Death shows Staalesen at his most thrilling, thought-provoking best. Translated from the Norwegian by Don Bartlett