Frozen Tracks: A Chief Inspector Erik Winter Novel

From the land of the midnight sun, a compelling and dark thriller by Sweden's master of crime fiction.

The autumn gloom comes quickly on the Swedish city of Gothenburg, and for Detective Chief Inspector Erik Winter the days seem even shorter, the nights bleaker, when he is faced with two apparently unrelated sets of perplexing crimes. Mysterious assaults on college students in Gothenburg's parks are carried out in the dark of the night, while during the day toddlers are abducted from their nursery schools and quickly returned, seemingly unharmed, before anyone even notices they are missing.

Investigating these bizarre cases, D.C.I. Winter and his team follow their scant leads to "the flats," the barren prairies of rural Sweden, whose wastelands conceal crimes as sinister as the land itself. Winter must deduce the labyrinthine connections between the cases before the culprit — or is it culprits? — closes in on his own family.

Haunting and psychologically astute, Frozen Tracks is another triumph from the award-winning master of Swedish noir.

"'The reader stays perpetually ahead of the irritatingly slow detectives in Swedish crime writer Edwardson's third Erik Winter police procedural to be translated into English (after 2006's Never End). DCI Erik Winter and his team are baffled by a rash of beatings in Gothenburg that have nearly killed several young men, who are linked only by the distinctive mark left by the attacker's mysterious weapon. Meanwhile, nursery school children begin to report being lured to the car of a strange 'mister,' who gives them candy. The police brush off these incidents until one boy is found badly beaten in the woods. Soon Winter is thrown into a race to save a kidnapped boy from the clutches of a monster. Readers will connect the dots faster than Winter, whose investigation is jarringly interrupted by scenes from the abductor's point-of-view. The denouement leaves too many loose ends, making for an uninspired take on the tired topic of child abductions.' Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

"Edwardson creates endlessly interesting characters, in particular Winter, who tackles crime after crime with a shrewd mind and a heavy heart. Recommend this one to readers of Henning Mankell." Booklist

"Piercing attention, anxiety wound tight — Edwardson is a master at this. And if he pushes it too far, with a finale drawn out past all endurance, this doesn't discount the satisfaction in visiting his inspectors' gray world." Houston Chronicle

"Fans of Henning Mankell and Karin Fossum (as well as Ian Rankin and Donna Leon) will find a great new friend in Edwardson." Bookpage

From the land of the midnight sun, a compelling and dark thriller by a master of crime fiction

The autumn gloom comes quickly on the Swedish city of Gothenburg, and for Detective Inspector Erik Winter the days seem even shorter, the nights bleaker, when he is faced with two seemingly unrelated sets of perplexing crimes. The investigation of a series of assaults and a string of child abductions take Winter to the flats, the barren prairies of rural Sweden whose wastelands conceal crimes as sinister as the land itself. Winter must deduce the labyrinthine connections between the cases before it is too late and his own family comes into danger. Stylish, haunting, and psychologically astute, Frozen Tracks features characters who would be at home in any American procedural, but with a sensibility that is distinctly European. Frozen Tracks will appeal to fans of Henning Mankell and George Pelecanos, and to anyone who relishes superbly crafted crime novels.

Åke Edwardson has won the Swedish Academy of Crime Writers Award three times. His twelve Erik Winter novels have been published in twenty-one countries.