The eighth book in the classic Martin Beck detective series from the 1960s & 70s
- the novels that shaped the future of Scandinavian crime writing. Hugely acclaimed, the Martin Beck series were the original Scandinavian crime novels & have inspired the writings of Stieg Larsson, Henning Mankell & Jo Nesbo. In one part of town, a woman robs a bank. In another, a corpse is found shot through the heart in a room locked from within, with no firearm in sight. Although the two incidents appear unrelated, Detective Inspector Martin Beck believes otherwise, & solving the mystery acquires the utmost importance. Haunted by a near-fatal bullet wound & trying to recover from the break-up of his unhappy marriage, Beck throws himself into the case to escape from the prison that his own life has come to resemble.