When the Norwegian ambassador to Thailand is found dead in a Bangkok brothel, Inspector Harry Hole is dispatched from Oslo to help hush up the case.

But once he arrives Harry discovers that this case is about much more than one random murder. There is something else, something more pervasive, scrabbling around behind the scenes. Or, put another way, for every cockroach you see in your hotel room, there are hundreds behind the walls. Surrounded by round-the-clock traffic noise, Harry wanders the streets of Bangkok lined with go-go bars, temples, opium dens, and tourist traps, trying to piece together the story of the ambassador’s death even though no one asked him to, and no one wants him to—not even Harry himself.

Review

"Satisfyingly twisty. . . . A compelling, hard-edged thriller."
     --Booklist

“Excellent . . . the most popular among [Nesbø’s] earlier novels and one that casts a cold eye on the reality of expatriate life of some Europeans in Asia.”
     —The Irish Independent

“The complex narrative and large dramatis personae are handled with steely authority . . . The picturesque seediness of Bangkok and Thailand turns out to be Harry Hole's natural element, with Nesbo plumping his hero down in a very non-Norwegian setting.”
      —The Independent (UK)

Praise for Jo Nesbø

“Nesbø writes like an angel. As in Lucifer.”
    —The Philadelphia Inquirer
 
“Harry Hole is fast becoming cone of the planet’s favorite detectives. And his demons are almost as legendary as his observational and analytical skills.”
    —The Mirror (UK)

“Nesbø explores the darkest criminal minds with grim delight and puts his killer where you least expect to find them. . . . His novels are maddeningly addictive.”
    —Vanity Fair

About the Author

Jo Nesbø’s books have been translated into forty-seven languages. He is the author of the Harry Hole series, the latest of which is Police, as well as Headhunters and several children’s books. He has received the Glass Key Award for best Nordic crime novel. He is also a musician, songwriter, and economist and lives in Oslo.