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THE DEVIL'S STAR
by Jo Nesbo
Harvill Secker, October 2005
448 pages
11.99GBP
ISBN: 1843432161


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Harry Hole's career is about to crash and burn. One of the best detectives in the Oslo force, he's also an alcoholic who used to be able to function pretty well. But the murder of his closest colleague Ellen Gjelten has sent him into a tailspin.

Chief Inspector Bjarne Moller has covered for Harry in the past, but now Harry's been given notice to quit the police force. There's one last job that he must investigate, though, as Oslo swelters under a hot summer.

A young woman has been found dead in her flat. Her left hand little finger has been cut off, and a weird red diamond in the shape of a pentagram is found behind her eyelid. Other deaths suggest that there's a serial killer on the loose who is operating to a bizarre pattern.

Harry reluctantly drags himself out of his stupor to investigate. But he has an ulterior motive, as he is determined to bring down smarmy high-flying colleague Tom Waaler who he suspects of being implicated in Ellen's death.

THE DEVIL'S STAR is firmly rooted in a city in the middle of a heatwave. And it's peopled by some intriguing characters, including Harry's awkward but conscientious colleague Beate, his computer hacker-turned-taxi driver mate Oystein and Olaug Sivertsen, the elderly woman with an unconventional past and an unusual home.

Harry himself is good value. Yes, he's a wreck, and yes, he has the requisite mucked-up private life (his partner and son have left him), but he's an incorruptible and dedicated cop who dredges something from the depths of despair to crack the case.

So THE DEVIL'S STAR definitely isn't same old, same old. Jo Nesbo is an excellent writer who can pace well, give characters voices, and provide real menace. This is a book worth reading, and I hope there are more on the way from him very soon.

Reviewed by Sharon Wheeler, March 2006

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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