Per Wahlöö

Number 2 in the Martin Beck Mystery Series, 1966.

Translation into Dutch of the Swedish title.

Detective.

In opdracht van zijn regering wordt een commissaris van politie uit het buitenland teruggeroepen omdat het land in een noodtoestand verkeert na het uitstellen van de verkiezingen en het uitbreken van een epidemie.

The third thrilling classic instalment in the Martin Beck detective series from the 1960s – the novels that have inspired all crime fiction written ever since.

In an unnamed country, in an unnamed year sometime in the future, Chief Inspector Jensen of the Sixteenth Division is called in after the publishers controlling the entire country's newspapers and magazines receive a threat to blow up their building, in retaliation for a murder they are accused of committing. The building is evacuated, but the bomb fails to explode and Jensen is given seven days in which to track down the letter writer. Jensen has never had a case he could not solve before, but as his investigation into the identity of the letter writer begins it soon becomes clear that the directors of the publishers have their own secrets, not least the identity of the 'Special Department' on the thirty first floor; the only department not permitted to be evacuated after the bomb threat.

The thrilling ninth classic installment in the Martin Beck detective series from the 1960s – the novels that have inspired all crime fiction written ever since.Widely recognised as the greatest masterpieces of crime fiction ever written, these are the original detective stories that pioneered the detective genre.Written in the 1960s, they are the work of Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo – a husband and wife team from Sweden. The ten novels follow the fortunes of the detective Martin Beck, whose enigmatic, taciturn character has inspired countless other policemen in crime fiction. The novels can be read separately, but do follow a chronological order, so the reader can become familiar with the characters and develop a loyalty to the series. Each book will have a new introduction in order to help bring these books to a new audience.

The final classic installment in the excellent Martin Beck detective series from the 1960s – the novels that have inspired all crime fiction written ever since.Widely recognised as the greatest masterpieces of crime fiction ever written, these are the original detective stories that pioneered the detective genre.Written in the 1960s, they are the work of Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo – a husband and wife team from Sweden. The ten novels follow the fortunes of the detective Martin Beck, whose enigmatic, taciturn character has inspired countless other policemen in crime fiction. The novels can be read separately, but do follow a chronological order, so the reader can become familiar with the characters and develop a loyalty to the series. Each book will have a new introduction in order to help bring these books to a new audience.

Number 8 in the Martin Beck Mystery Series.

The fantastic fourth classic instalment in the Martin Beck detective series from the 1960s – the novels that have inspired all crime fiction written ever since.The Martin Beck series is widely recognised as the greatest masterpiece of crime fiction ever written. These are the original detective stories that pioneered the detective genre and inspired writers from Agatha Christie to Henning Mankell; Graham Greene to Jonathan Franzen. Translated into 35 languages, they have sold over 10 million copies around the world.Written in the 1960s, they are the work of Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo – a husband-and-wife team from Sweden. The ten novels follow the fortunes of the detective Martin Beck, whose enigmatic, taciturn character has inspired countless other policemen in crime fiction. The novels can be read separately, but do follow a chronological order, so the reader can become familiar with the characters and develop a loyalty to the series. Each book will have a new introduction in order to help bring these books to a new audience.On a cold and rainy Stockholm night, nine bus riders are gunned down by an unknown assassin. The press, anxious for an explanation for the seemingly random crime, quickly dubs him a madman. But Martin Beck of the Homicide Squad suspects otherwise: this apparently motiveless killer has managed to target one of Beck's best detectives – and he, surely, would not have been riding that lethal bus without a reason.With its wonderfully observed lawmen, its brilliantly rendered felons and their murky Stockholm underworld, and its deftly engineered plot, 'The Laughing Policeman' has long been recognised as a classic of the police procedural.

The excellent fifth classic installment in the Martin Beck detective series from the 1960s – the novels that have inspired all crime fiction written ever since.Widely recognised as the greatest masterpieces of crime fiction ever written, these are the original detective stories that pioneered the detective genre.Gunvald Larsson sits carefully observing the dingy Stockholm apartment of a man under police surveillance. He looks at his watch: nine minutes past eleven in the evening. He yawns, slapping his arms to keep warm. At the same moment the house explodes, killing at least three people.Chief Inspector Martin Beck and his men don't suspect arson or murder until they discover a peculiar circumstance and a link is established between the explosion and a suicide committed that same day, in which the dead man left a note consisting of just two words: Martin Beck.Written in the 1960s, they are the work of Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo – a husband and wife team from Sweden. The ten novels follow the fortunes of the detective Martin Beck, whose enigmatic, taciturn character has inspired countless other policemen in crime fiction. The novels can be read separately, but do follow a chronological order, so the reader can become familiar with the characters and develop a loyalty to the series. Each book has a new introduction in order to help bring these books to a new audience.

"The masterful first novel in the Martin Beck series of mysteries ... finds Beck hunting for the murderer of a lonely traveler. On a July afternoon, a young woman's body is dredged from Sweden's beautiful Lake Vattern. With no clues, Beck begins an investigation not only to uncover a murderer but also to discover who the victim was. Three months later, all Beck knows is that her name was Roseanna and that she could have been strangled by any one of eighty-five people on a cruise. As the melancholic Beck narrows the list of suspects, he is drawn increasingly to the enigma of the victim, a free-spirited traveler with a penchant for casual sex, and to the psychopathology of a muderer with a distinctive -- indeed, terrifying -- sense of propriety"--P. of cover.

"Containing seventeen stories, never before published in English, 'A Darker Shade of Sweden' illuminates this beguiling country and its inhabitants as never before. Included are stories from such Swedish literary luminaries as: Stieg Larsson, Henning Mankell, Asa Larsson, and Eva Gabrielsson."--Provided by publisher. Reunion -- Tove Alsterdal He liked his hair -- Rolf and Cilla Bo˜rjlind Never in real life -- Ake Edwardson In our darkened house -- Inger Frimansson Paul's last summer -- Eva Gabrielsson The ring -- Anna Jansson The mail run -- Asa Larsson Brain power -- Stieg Larsson An unlikely meeting -- Henning Mankell and Hakan Nesser An alibi for Senor Banegas -- Magnus Montelius Something in his eyes -- Dag O˜hrlund Day and night my keeper be -- Malin Persson Giolito The multi-millionaire -- Maj Sjo˜wall and Per Wahlo˜o˜ Diary Braun -- Sara Stridsberg Revenge of the virgin -- Johan Theorin Maitreya -- Veronica von Schenck Too late shall the sinner awaken -- Katarina Wennstam.