Don Bartlett

Gunnar Staalesen

Wolves at the Door

This is one of Scandinavia's top crime writers in the tradition of Henning Mankell. It was one of those days in February of which there are far too many, despite its being the shortest month of the year. February is the year's parenthesis. The tax forms have already been sent in and the tourist season has not yet started: there is nothing on the schedule. Greyish-brown slush lay in the gutters and the hills around the city were barely visible through the fog. Like the golden buttons on the waistcoat of a forgotten snowman, you could just make out the lights of the funicular up the hillside and the street lamps were lit even in the middle of the day...In this crime drama detective Varg Veum's adventures lead him into a dark world of privileged teenage girls who have been drawn into drugs and prostitution. The situation worsens when the local judge is discovered in a luxury hotel, dead and clad only in women's lingerie. Called in by anxious parents to look for a missing daughter and explain the judge's death, Varg finds clues that lead him only deeper into Bergen's criminal underworld.

The Writing on the Wall

It's September 1995, and Veum is in his office when a telephone call takes him back 25 years, to a case he was involved in while working as a child protection officer. A small boy was separated from his mother under tragic circumstances, but now he is on the run, determined to take revenge on those responsible for destroying his life."

The Consorts of Death

Ever-dogged Bergen PI Varg Veum has to dig deep into his own past as he investigates the murder of a former classmate. Vintage, classic Nordic Noir from international bestselling author Gunnar Staalesen. ________________ When Bergen PI Varg Veum finds himself at the funeral of a former classmate on a sleet-grey December afternoon, he's unexpectedly reunited with his old friend Jakob - the once-famous lead singer of 1960s rock band The Harpers - and his estranged wife, Rebecca, Veum's first love. Their rekindled friendship come to an abrupt end with a horrific murder, and Veum is forced to dig deep into his own adolescence and his darkest memories, to find a motive ... and a killer. Tense, vivid and deeply unsettling, Fallen Angels is the spellbinding, award-winning thriller that secured Gunnar Staalesen's reputation as one of the world's foremost crime writers. ________________ Praise for Gunnar 'Gunnar Staalesen is one of my very favourite Scandinavian authors. Operating out of Bergen in Norway, his private eye, Varg Veum, is a complex but engaging anti-hero. Varg means "wolf " in Norwegian, and this is a series with very sharp teeth' Ian Rankin 'The Norwegian Chandler' Jo Nesbø 'Not many books hook you in the first chapter - this one did, and never let go!' Mari Hannah 'Almost forty years into the Varg Veum odyssey, Staalesen is at the height of his storytelling powers' Crime Fiction Lover 'Staalesen continually reminds us he is one of the finest of Nordic novelists' Financial Times 'Chilling and perilous results -- all told in a pleasingly dry style' Sunday Times 'Staalesen does a masterful job of exposing the worst of Norwegian society in this highly disturbing entry' Publishers Weekly

Fallen Angels

Gunnar Staalesen er en af Nordens mest populære kriminalforfattere. I romanen med den hårdføre detektiv Varg Veum er handlingen henlagt til Bergen. Handlingen rummer mord og børneprostitution i den ellers så nydelige by. Skriften på væggen udkom 1996 på forlaget Vindrose.

Skriften på væggen

Päivi Kivelä

Ruususen unta

Das Haus mit der grünen Tür.

One of the fathers of Nordic Noir offers a chilling, timeless story of love, revenge, and desire, set against contemporary issues 1998. Varg Veum sits by the hospital bedside of his long-term girlfriend Karin, whose life-threatening injuries provide a deeply painful reminder of the mistakes he's made. Investigating the seemingly innocent disappearance of a wind-farm inspector, Varg Veum is thrust into one of the most challenging cases of his career, riddled with conflicts, environmental terrorism, religious fanaticism, unsolved mysteries, and dubious business ethics. Then the first body appears--tied to a cross, facing the mouth of the fjord.

We Shall Inherit the Wind

En ny sag fører Varg Veum ud på dybere vand end nogensinde før, og over fjeldet til Norges hovedstad, Byen med det knuste hjerte, som han kalder den. I Oslo møder han mægtigere modstandere end han er vant til, og et handlingsmønster mørkere end natten. Mørkets kerne er en hemmelighed, ingen tør nævne ved navn. Mens han krydser ukendt territorium, fra Ullernåsen til Grünerløkka og fra Vaterland til Nesoddtangen, nærmer den bergensiske privatdetektiv svaret på en af vor tids største, uløste kriminalgåder.

Død mand sladrer ikke

The wolves are no longer in the dark … they are at his door. And they want vengeance… The next instalment in the international, bestselling Varg Veum series by one of the fathers of Nordic Noir … ‘Gunnar Staalesen is one of my very favourite Scandinavian authors. Operating out of Bergen in Norway, his private eye, Varg Veum, is a complex but engaging anti-hero. Varg means "wolf" in Norwegian, and this is a series with very sharp teeth' Ian Rankin ‘The Norwegian Chandler' Jo Nesbø One dark January night a car drives at high speed towards PI Varg Veum, and comes very close to killing him. Veum is certain this is no accident, following so soon after the deaths of two jailed men who were convicted for their participation in a case of child pornography and sexual assault … crimes that Veum himself once stood wrongly accused of committing. While the guilty men were apparently killed accidentally, Varg suspects that there is something more sinister at play … and that he's on the death list of someone still at large. Fearing for his life, Veum begins to investigate the old case, interviewing the victims of abuse and delving deeper into the brutal crimes, with shocking results. The wolves are no longer in the dark … they are at his door. ‘Not many books hook you in the first chapter – this one did, and never let go!' Mari Hannah ‘Staalesen continually reminds us he is one of the finest of Nordic novelists' Financial Times ‘Chilling and perilous results — all told in a pleasingly dry style' The Sunday Times ‘Staalesen does a masterful job of exposing the worst of Norwegian society in this highly disturbing entry' Publishers Weekly ‘With an expositional style that is all but invisible, Staalesen masterfully compels us from the first pages … If you're a fan of Varg Veum, this is not to be missed, and if you're new to the series, this is one of the best ones. You're encouraged to jump right in, even if the Norwegian names can be a bit confusing to follow' Crime Fiction Lover ‘With short, smart, darkly punchy chapters Wolves at the Door is a provocative and gripping read' LoveReading ‘Haunting, dark and totally noir, a great read' New Books Magazine

On a frosty January day in Bergen, Norway, private investigator Varg Veum is visited by a prostitute. Her friend Margrethe has disappeared and hasn't been seen for days. Before her disappearance, something had unsettled her: she'd turned away a customer and returned to the neighbourhood in terror. Shortly after taking the case, Veum is confronted with a brutal, uneasy reality. He soon finds the first body--and it won't be the last. His investigation leads him into a dark subculture where corrupted idealism has had deadly consequences.--Provided by publisher.

Cold Hearts

O que realmente sabemos sobre nossos filhos? As aventuras do detetive Varg Veum o levam a um mundo obscuro, em que adolescentes privilegiados são atraídos para as drogas e a prostituição. E a situação fica ainda pior quando o juiz local é encontrado morto em um hotel de luxo, usando lingerie, e pais desesperados imploram para que Veum encontre uma garota desaparecida. No rastro das pistas que encontra, Veum percebe que precisa seguir com suas investigações no impiedoso submundo de Bergen, na Noruega. O que era, a princípio, uma investigação de rotina, torna-se um jogo extremamente perigoso e eletrizante, que o detetive precisará resolver em uma corrida contra o tempo...

Estava escrito

At Night All Wolves are Grey

The single-mother families of an isolated community are being terrorised by a teenage gang. Varg Veum encounters the gang's pathetic but deadly ferocity to help a young client.

Yours Until Death

September 1977. Mette Misvær, a three-year-old girl disappears without trace from the sandpit outside her home. Her tiny, close middle-class community in the tranquil suburb of Nordas is devastated, but their enquiries and the police produce nothing. Curtains twitch, suspicions are raised, but Mette is never found. Almost 25 years later, as the expiry date for the statute of limitations draws near, Mette's mother approaches PI Varg Veum, in a last, desperate attempt to find out what happened to her daughter. As Veum starts to dig, he uncovers an intricate web of secrets, lies and shocking events that have been methodically concealed. When another brutal incident takes place, a pattern begins to emerge… Chilling, shocking and full of extraordinary twists and turns, Where Roses Never Die reaffirms Gunnar Staalesen as one of the world's foremost thriller writers. 'Mature and captivating' Herald Scotland ‘One of the finest Nordic novelists - in the tradition of Henning Menkell' Barry Forshaw, Independent ‘Masterful pacing' Publishers Weekly ‘Norwegian master Staalesen is an author who eschews police procedural narratives for noirish private eye pieces' Financial Times ‘Staalesen is one of my very favourite Scandinavian authors and this is a series with very sharp teeth' Ian Rankin ‘A Norwegian Chandler' Jo Nesbo ‘One of Norway's most skilful storytellers' Johan Theorin

Where Roses Never Die

On the path to self-destruction after the death of his girlfriend, things take a turn for the worse, when child pornography is found on Varg Veum’s computer and he must battle to prove his innocence ... the chilling new instalment in the award-winning Varg Veum series, by one of the fathers of Nordic Noir. ‘Mature and captivating’ Rosemary Goring, Herald Scotland ‘Moving, uncompromising’ Publishers Weekly _________________ Reeling from the death of his great love, Karin, Varg Veum’s life has descended into a self-destructive spiral of alcohol, lust, grief and blackouts. When traces of child pornography are found on his computer, he’s accused of being part of a paedophile ring and thrown into a prison cell. There, he struggles to sift through his past to work out who is responsible for planting the material ... and who is seeking the ultimate revenge. When a chance to escape presents itself, Varg finds himself on the run in his hometown of Bergen. With the clock ticking and the police on his tail, Varg takes on his hardest – and most personal – case yet. Dark, emotive and compulsive, Wolves in the Dark is the absorbing, shocking next instalment in the addictive Varg Veum series, by one of the fathers of Nordic Noir. _________________ Praise for Gunnar Staalesen 'There is a world-weary existential sadness that hangs over his central detective. The prose is stripped back and simple ... deep emotion bubbling under the surface – the real turmoil of the characters’ lives just under the surface for the reader to intuit, rather than have it spelled out for them’ Doug Johnstone, The Big Issue ‘Gunnar Staalesen is one of my very favourite Scandinavian authors. Operating out of Bergen in Norway, his private eye, Varg Veum, is a complex but engaging anti-hero. Varg means “wolf ” in Norwegian, and this is a series with very sharp teeth’ Ian Rankin ‘Staalesen continually reminds us he is one of the finest of Nordic novelists’ Financial Times ‘Chilling and perilous results — all told in a pleasingly dry style’ Sunday Times ‘Staalesen does a masterful job of exposing the worst of Norwegian society in this highly disturbing entry’ Publishers Weekly 'The Varg Veum series is more concerned with character and motivation than spectacle, and it’s in the quieter scenes that the real drama lies’ Herald Scotland 'Every inch the equal of his Nordic confreres Henning Mankell and Jo Nesbo' Independent ‘Not many books hook you in the first chapter – this one did, and never let go!’ Mari Hannah ‘With an expositional style that is all but invisible, Staalesen masterfully compels us from the first pages ... If you’re a fan of Varg Veum, this is not to be missed, and if you’re new to the series, this is one of the best ones. You’re encouraged to jump right in, even if the Norwegian names can be a bit confusing to follow’ Crime Fiction Lover ‘With short, smart, darkly punchy chapters Wolves at the Door is a provocative and gripping read’ LoveReading ‘Haunting, dark and totally noir, a great read’ New Books Magazine ‘An upmarket Philip Marlowe’ Maxim Jakubowski, The Bookseller ‘Razor-edged Scandinavian crime fiction at its finest’ Quentin Bates

Wolves in the Dark

Varg Veum is persuaded to take on the case of a missing teenager, by a half-sister he didn’t know he had, in a case that quickly becomes personal ... A dark, chilling and startling relevant new instalment in the award-winning Varg Veum series, by one of the fathers of Nordic Noir. ***Shortlisted for the Petrona Award for Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year*** ‘Staalesen continually reminds us why he is one of the finest of Nordic novelists’ Barry Forshaw, Financial Times ‘Chilling and perilous’ Sunday Times ‘Employs Chandleresque similes with a Nordic Noir twist’ Wall Street Journal _________________ Varg Veum receives a surprise visit in his office. A woman introduces herself as his half-sister, and she has a job for him. Her god-daughter, a 19-year-old trainee nurse from Haugesund, moved from her bedsit in Bergen two weeks ago. Since then no one has heard anything from her. She didn't leave an address. She doesn't answer her phone. And the police refuse to take her case seriously. Veum’s investigation uncovers a series of carefully covered-up crimes and pent-up hatreds, and the trail leads to a gang of extreme bikers on the hunt for a group of people whose dark deeds are hidden by the anonymity of the Internet. And then things get personal... Chilling, shocking and exceptionally gripping, Big Sister reaffirms Gunnar Staalesen as one of the world’s foremost thriller writers. _________________ Praise for Gunnar Staalesen ‘Gunnar Staalesen is one of my very favourite Scandinavian authors. Operating out of Bergen in Norway, his private eye, Varg Veum, is a complex but engaging anti-hero. Varg means “wolf ” in Norwegian, and this is a series with very sharp teeth’ Ian Rankin ‘Almost forty years into the Varg Veum odyssey, Staalesen is at the height of his storytelling powers’ Crime Fiction Lover ‘Staalesen continually reminds us he is one of the finest of Nordic novelists’ Financial Times ‘Chilling and perilous results — all told in a pleasingly dry style’ Sunday Times ‘Staalesen does a masterful job of exposing the worst of Norwegian society in this highly disturbing entry’ Publishers Weekly 'The Varg Veum series is more concerned with character and motivation than spectacle, and it’s in the quieter scenes that the real drama lies’ Herald Scotland 'Every inch the equal of his Nordic confreres Henning Mankell and Jo Nesbo' Independent ‘Not many books hook you in the first chapter – this one did, and never let go!’ Mari Hannah ‘With an expositional style that is all but invisible, Staalesen masterfully compels us from the first pages ... If you’re a fan of Varg Veum, this is not to be missed, and if you’re new to the series, this is one of the best ones. You’re encouraged to jump right in, even if the Norwegian names can be a bit confusing to follow’ Crime Fiction Lover ‘With short, smart, darkly punchy chapters Wolves at the Door is a provocative and gripping read’ LoveReading ‘Haunting, dark and totally noir, a great read’ New Books Magazine

Big Sister

It was at their 'torture chamber', a hut in the pinewoods nearby, that Varg Veum, Private Investigator, first encountered the gang's pathetic but deadly ferocity. Eight-year-old Roar's bicycle had been stolen and not an adult in sight dared retrieve it. But a preliminary brush with such youthful violence was as nothing compared to what awaited Veum when he got to know Roar's blue-eyed, shy yet sensuous mother, Wenche Andresen, and her estranged husband, Jonas. Veum's attempts to break up Joker and his pack of young thugs by enlisting the help of the local youth club leader proved a dead end. But not so dead as the man who lay prone with a knife in his back on the floor of Andresen's flat. Yours Until Death is an unbearably tense novel of revenge and murder about marriage, childhood, bereavement and the destructive force of passion. First published in Norwegian in 1979, it was described by the critic Nils Nordberg as 'one of the finest, most serious, most ambitious books in post-war Norwegian crime writing'.

FOUR instalments of the Varg Veum series from the international, bestselling father of Nordic Noir: Gunnar Staalesen, Translated by Don Bartlett PI Varg Veum returns to solve a series of dark, dangerous cases in his hometown of Bergen, Norway, in a series of chilling, perfectly plotted and thought-provoking thrillers... BOOK ONE – We Shall Inherit the Wind 1998. Varg Veum sits by the hospital bedside of his long-term girlfriend Karin, whose life-threatening injuries provide a deeply painful reminder of the mistakes he’s made.. Investigating the seemingly innocent disappearance of a wind-farm inspector, Varg Veum is thrust into one of the most challenging cases of his career, riddled with conflicts, environmental terrorism, religious fanaticism, unsolved mysteries and dubious business ethics. Then, in one of the most heart-stopping scenes in crime fiction, the first body appears... BOOK TWO – Where Roses Never Die WINNER OF THE PETRONA AWARD September 1977.Mette Misvær, a three-year-old girl disappears without trace from the sandpit outside her home. Her tiny, close middle-class community in the tranquil suburb of Nordas is devastated, but their enquiries and the police produce nothing. Curtains twitch, suspicions are raised, but Mette is never found. Almost 25 years later, as the expiry date for the statute of limitations draws near, Mette’s mother approaches PI Varg Veum, in a last, desperate attempt to find out what happened to her daughter. As Veum starts to dig, he uncovers an intricate web of secrets, lies and shocking events that have been methodically concealed. When another brutal incident takes place, a pattern begins to emerge... BOOK THREE – Wolves in the Dark Reeling from the death of his great love, Karin, Varg Veum’s life has descended into a self-destructive spiral of alcohol, lust, grief and blackouts. When traces of child pornography are found on his computer, he’s accused of being part of a paedophile ring and thrown into a prison cell. There, he struggles to sift through his past to work out who is responsible for planting the material ... and who is seeking the ultimate revenge. When a chance to escape presents itself, Varg finds himself on the run in his hometown of Bergen. With the clock ticking and the police on his tail, Varg takes on his hardest – and most personal – case yet. BOOK FOUR – Big Sister SHORTLISTED FOR THE PETRONA AWARD Varg Veum receives a surprise visit in his office. A woman introduces herself as his half-sister, and she has a job for him. Her god-daughter, a 19-year-old trainee nurse from Haugesund, moved from her bedsit in Bergen two weeks ago. Since then no one has heard anything from her. She didn’t leave an address. She doesn’t answer her phone. And the police refuse to take her case seriously. Veum’s investigation uncovers a series of carefully covered-up crimes and pent-up hatreds, and the trail leads to a gang of extreme bikers on the hunt for a group of people whose dark deeds are hidden by the anonymity of the Internet. And then things get personal... ‘A Norwegian Chandler’ Jo Nesbø ‘Staalesen is one of my very favourite Scandinavian authors and this is a series with very sharp teeth’ Ian Rankin ‘Chilling and perilous results — all told in a pleasingly dry style’ The Sunday Times ‘Masterful’ Publishers Weekly

Varg Veum collection

On a frosty January day in Bergen, Private Detective Varg Veum is visited by a prostitute. Her friend Margrethe has disappeared and hasn't been seen for days. Before her disappearance, something had unsettled her: she'd turned away a customer and returned to the neighbourhood in terror. Shortly after taking the case, Veum is confronted with a brutal, uneasy reality. He soon finds the first body - and it won't be the last either. His investigation leads him into a dark subculture where corrupted idealism has had deadly consequences.

Gunnar Staalesen

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