Summertime Death: Malin Fors 2 - Tapa blanda

My current favourite among the Scandinavian crime writers is another Swede, Mons Kallentoft. So far, three of his Malin Fors books have been translated into English: Midwinter Sacrifice, Summertime Death and Autumn Killing. I loved them all, particularly for the way Kallentoft gives a voice to his victims. * Alex Gray, author of Sleep Like the Dead * Meditative. Dark. Really, really cold . . . This is a worthy successor to Larsson's Millennium trilogy . . . This first installment in Kallentoft's crime series is a splendid representative of the Swedish crime novel, in all its elegance and eeriness. * Booklist Starred Review * It is Kallentoft's characterisation and distinctive, often poetic style which make his crime-writing more memorable than most . . . It is compelling reading. The atmosphere of oppressive heat creates the sense of a hell on earth, where evil thrives. It is a powerful and disturbing vision. * Canberra Times * The strengths of this complex and excellent novel include realistic dialogue, thorough characterisation and concern for social issues * New Zealand Listener * The highest suspense * Camilla Lackberg, international bestselling author of The Stonecutter * One of the best-realised female heroines I've read by a male writer * Guardian * Don't bother with Stieg Larsson, Kallentoft is better * Magnus Utvik, Sweden's leading critic * He has a completely unique style, an exquisite narrative that you drink in with pleasure . . . I'm convinced: a crime novel doesn't get much more beautiful than this * Kristian Stadsbladet * Kallentoft's books have been called beautiful, exquisite and original. I can see why. * Literary Review *

Winter was chilling. Summer will be brutal. Every season is perfect for murder.As the temperature in Sweden reaches a record-breaking 45 Degrees, forest fires break out. All those who have failed to escape Linkoeping for the summer take shelter indoors, shocked and paralysed by the heat. However, when a teenage girl is discovered naked and bleeding in the local park, it is clear that the raging heat is not the only plague affecting the town. Then a second girl is found dead. Alarmed by the fact that the victims are the same age as her daughter, Tove, detective Malin Fors will work round-the-clock to capture the perpetrator. But as every lead comes to nothing, it is as though the oppressive heat is clogging up the wheels of her investigation. And time is not on Malin's side . . .