Author:Henning Mankell
Four nuns and a fifth woman are killed in a savage night-time attack in Africa. A year later, Inspector Kurt Wallander investigates the disappearance of an elderly birdwatcher and discovers a gruesome and meticulously planned murder - a body impaled in a trap of sharpened bamboo poles. Then, another man is reported missing.
Once again Wallander's life is put on hold as he and his team work tirelessly to find a link between the series of vicious murders.
Winner of the CWA Gold Dagger for Sidetracked.
Inspector Wallander is one of the most wonderful creations in contemporary crime writing
—— Mark Lawson , GuardianTruly horrifying... The novels become a compulsion - one reads them all
—— Daily TelegraphA first-class police procedural
—— Independent on SundayThe real test of thrillers of this kind is whether you want to spend more time in the detective's company. I certainly do
—— Sean French , IndependentMankell's long, subtle, involving novel could turn you to crime
—— Daily TelegraphA page-turning caper filled with well-timed surprises...there is also the saving grace of Reacher's deadpan humor -as when he is sawing with a motel key at a captive's rope bindings. "Don't you have a knife?" the man asks. "I have a toothbrush,! Reacher responds. "That won't help," the captive says, to which Reacher retorts: "It's good against plaque."
—— Wall Street JournalWith Child, you can always count on furious action - and a damned good time.
—— Miami HeraldMasterful writing and storytelling...Child makes it look effortless...If there were such a thing as a writer-magician, Lee Child woud be the face above the cloak.
—— Washington PostChild always puts his heart into the elaborate quasi-military operations he cooks up for Reacher...But there's something even more chilling about those lonesome hours spent riding the Interstate, watching the rundown family farms and commercial strip malls and topless bars go by.
—— International Herald TribuneWill leave the legion of Reacher addicts satisfied but craving for their next fix.
—— Irish IndependentThe most satisfying of all 17 thrillers in the series. The unfolding of events nudges along at just the right rate... toward an authentically gripping climax.
—— Toronto Star