Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Things aren't going so well for Annika Bengtzon in Marklund's superlative seventh novel featuring the tenacious Stockholm crime reporter (after 2012's Last Will). For starters, Annika's house burns down, and her husband leaves her for another woman. Meanwhile, she has to investigate the brutal murder of Supt. David Lindholm, "Sweden's most well-known and respected detective." David's traumatized wife, Julia, is the primary suspect in his death and the possible kidnapping of their young son. Annika discovers that David, the model policeman, hid a darker side and may have been involved in illegal activities that led to his murder. Annika's race against time to uncover the truth and exonerate Julia is intensified by multiple roadblocks, including governmental red tape and the ever-changing infrastructure at her newspaper, the Evening Post. Marklund has created a complex page-turner, complete with gritty realism, a flawed but likable protagonist, and nonstop suspense. Agent: Niclas Salomonsson, Salomonsson Agency (Sweden). (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Swedish tabloid reporter Annika Bengtzon investigates the murder of a legendary police detective whose unstable wife has been wrongly charged for the killing. Meanwhile, the brash Annika is investigated for the firebombing of her own house following the departure of her cheating husband. The murdered cop, David Lindholm, who was shot in the genitals, was a TV celebrity known for his brilliant handling of a hostage crisis. But he was no hero to his wife, Julia, a former cop he subjected to years of psychological abuse. Experts say she suffers from multiple personality disorder, but she swears she saw another woman leave the murder scene after grabbing her now-missing 4-year-old son. Annika, who has two young children of her own, must get them resettled while digging into the Lindholms' shadowy past. Dragged into an alley by thugs who cut her with a knife and threaten to do worse to her kids if she doesn't back off, Annika finds a reluctant ally in a cop, Nina Hoffman, who has been friends with Julia since their days at the police academy but is mysteriously mum about David. The missing boy gets short shrift, and Marklund's use of italicized lines to punch up her characters' inner thoughts is annoying. But the plot is smart and suspenseful. The agreeably flawed Annika's personal story, which avoids clichs even as her husband falls into one in taking up with a beautiful blonde, draws us in. And Marklund knows her journalistic turf: Her rendering of the methods, internal politics and economics of newspapers is spot on. The best of Marklund's books to be published in the U.S., this work sets readers up for the next installment of the Annika Bengtzon series, A Place in the Sun, with a tantalizing last-minute revelation.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

Nina Hoffman is the closest cop to the scene when gunshots are heard in a swanky Stockholm apartment building. She responds to find cop David Lindholm shot dead in his bed. Nina's best friend, David's wife, Julia, is incoherent, mumbling that a woman took her boy. Their small son is missing, and all evidence points to Julia. Even Nina can't vouch for her friend's innocence, but reporter Annika Bengtzon is on the case. The more she investigates, the clearer Julia's innocence seems, but no one else believes Annika. Julia's court-appointed lawyer is a dolt, and her case is pushed through the courts quickly; law enforcement wants revenge for David's death. Annika doesn't have the time she needs to prove her case, but she pushes on despite a crisis in her personal life (her husband has left her for another woman). The latest in Markland's Annika Bengtzon series tells a complex but fascinating story full of misdirection and police obfuscation. Recommend Marklund to fans of Jussi Adler-Olsen and Camilla Lackberg.--Alesi, Stacy Copyright 2010 Booklist