His colleague is dead. His daughter may be next. It’s time to do things his way… Two of Nordic Noir’s most accomplished writers return with the explosive, staggeringly complex and unbearably emotive third instalment in the international bestselling Blix & Ramm series.
When police investigator Sofia Kovic uncovers a startling connection between several Oslo cases, she attempts to contact her closest superior, Alexander Blix, before involving anyone else in the department. But before Blix has time to return her call, Kovic is shot and killed in her own home – execution style. And in the apartment below, Blix’s daughter Iselin narrowly escapes becoming the killer’s next victim. Four days later, Blix and online crime journalist Emma Ramm are locked inside an interrogation room, facing the National Criminal Investigation Service. Blix has shot and killed a man, and Ramm saw it all happen. As Iselin’s life hangs in the balance, under-fire Blix no longer knows who he can trust, and he’s not even certain that he’s killed the right man…
Jørn Lier Horst and Thomas Enger are the internationally bestselling Norwegian authors of the William Wisting and Henning Juul series respectively. A former investigator in the Norwegian police, Horst imbues all his works with an unparalleled realism and suspense. Thomas Enger is a journalist-turned-author whose trademark has become a darkly gritty voice paired with key social messages and tight plotting. Besides writing fiction for both adults and young adults, Enger also works as a music composer. Death Deserved was Jørn Lier Horst & Thomas Enger’s first co-written thriller, closely followed by Smoke Screen, and the series has sold more than two million copies worldwide, outselling Jo Nesbo in their native Norway, Sweden and Germany. @LierHorst @EngerThomas.
My thoughts: this was a shocking book, starting with the violent death of Blix’s friend and colleague Sofia Kovic and the brutal kidnapping and assault of his daughter Iselin. Blix is off the case but can’t stay away from trying to solve it. With the help of blogger Emma Ramm, he’s determined to work out why Sofia and Iselin were targeted and by whom.
I could not put this down, it was so tense and gripping. It was also really sad and awful at times, neither Sofia or Iselin should have had to suffer, but Sofia had spotted a link between a series of cases, and was determined to pursue it and the killer couldn’t let her stop him. Blix will have to finish her work. But in doing so Blix comes into the spotlight and risks his career.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 