The Child Thief

Luka is a war veteran who now wants only to have a quiet life with his family. His village has, so far,remained hidden from the advancing Soviet brutality. But everything changes the day the stranger arrives,pulling a sled bearing a terrible cargo.When the villagers' fear turns deadly, they think they have saved themselves. But their anger has cursed them: in the chaos, a little girl has vanished. Luka is the only man with the skills to find who could have stolen a child in these frozen lands--and besides, the missing girl is best friend to Luka's daughter, and he swears he will find her.Together with his sons, Luka sets out in pursuit across lands ravaged by war and gripped by treachery.Soon they realize that the man they are tracking is no ordinary criminal, but a skillful hunter with the child as the bait in his twisted game. It will take all of Luka's strength to battle the harshest of conditions, and all of his wit to stay a step ahead of Soviet authorities. And though his toughest enemy is the man he tracks,his strongest bond is a promise to his family back home.

"Haunting stuff from a new writer to watch." The Mail on Sunday

"Dangerous and compelling - a powerful thriller with a dark heart." Raymond Khoury

"Smith succeeds in creating a narrative that is both an engrossing thriller and the story of a man struggling in the grip of historical events that he only partially understands." The Sunday TImes (London)

In the tradition of and , a troubled First World War veteran races across the frozen steppe of 1930s Ukraine to save a child from a shadowy killer with unthinkable plans.

In the tradition of City of Thieves and Child 44, a troubled World War I veteran races across the frozen steppe of 1930's Ukraine to save a child from a shadowy killer with unthinkable plans.

December 1930, Ukraine. Luka is a war veteran who now wants only to have a quiet life with his family in his village. But everything changes the day the stranger arrives, pulling a sled bearing a terrible cargo. In the chaos that ensues, a little girl vanishes. Luka is the only man with the skills to find who could have stolen a child in these frozen lands - and besides, the missing girl is best friend to Luka's daughter. Together with his sons, Luka sets out in pursuit across lands ravaged by war. Soon they realize that the man they are tracking is no ordinary criminal, but a skillful hunter with the child as the bait. It will take all of Luka's strength to battle the harshest of conditions, and all of his wit to stay a step ahead of Soviet authorities.

For the first eighteen years of his life Dan Smith followed his parents across the world to Africa, Asia and South America. Since turning to fiction, he’s had a number of short stories published and his debut novel, Dry Season, shortlisted for a Brit’s Writers’ award and the Authors&