When the Devil Holds the Candle (Inspector Sejer Mysteries)

"[I]t is an impossible book to put down, a psychological thriller that will haunt you long after the final page has been turned." --Bruce Tierney"Bookpage" (09/01/2006)

"[T]he story is so chillingly told that we can only marvel at the author's skill at illustrating how a random sequence of events can cause so many lives to intersect in so many horrifying ways." --Marilyn Stasio"New York Times" (09/01/2006)

PRAISE FOR WHEN THE DEVIL HOLDS THE CANDLE

"Either somebody just slid an ice cube down your back or you're reading the opening pages of When the Devil Holds the Candle, a psychological tour de force."--O, THE OPRAH MAGAZINE

"The story is so chillingly told that we can only marvel at the author's skill at illustrating how a random sequence of events can cause so many lives to intersect in so many horrifying ways."--THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

"A stunning exploration of social isolation... Masterfully plotted." -- (09/01/2006)

"Fossum . . . writes like Ruth Rendell with the gloves off."
-- (05/15/2006)

"This is not your usual police procedural -- Fossum's third Sejer novel ... is psyhcological suspense at its best."
-- (06/01/2006)

"Either somebody just slid an ice cube down your back or you're reading the opening pages of When the Devil Holds the Candle...a psychological tour de force." -- (09/01/2006)

"Skillful characterization and revealing detail lift Fossum's third mystery to be published in the U.S featuring thoughtful and intelligent Insp. Konrad Sejer."
-- (05/22/2006)

When two teenagers steal a purse from a stroller, it results in an infant’s death. Unaware of the enormity of their crime, Zipp and Andreas are intent on committing another. They follow an elderly woman home, and Andreas enters her house with his switchblade. In the dark, Zipp waits for his friend to come out.

Inspector Konrad Sejer and his colleague Jacob Skarre see no connection between the infant’s death and the reported disappearance of a local delinquent. And so while the confusion outside mounts, the heart-stopping truth unfolds inside the old woman’s home.

Unflappable as ever, Sejer digs below the surface of small- town tranquility in an effort to understand how and why violence destroys everyday lives.