1222
Hanne Wilhelmsen Book Eight
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
From Norway’s bestselling female crime writer comes a suspenseful locked-room mystery set in an isolated hotel in Norway, where guests stranded during a monumental snowstorm start turning up dead.
A TRAIN ON ITS WAY to the northern reaches of Norway derails during a massive blizzard, 1,222 meters above sea level. The passengers abandon the train for a nearby hotel, centuries-old and practically empty, except for the staff. With plenty of food and shelter from the storm, the passengers think they are safe, until one of them is found dead the next morning.
With no sign of rescue, and the storm continuing to rage, retired police inspector Hanne Wilhelmsen is asked to investigate. Paralysed by a bullet lodged in her spine, Hanne has no desire to get involved. But she is slowly coaxed back into her old habits as her curiosity and natural talent for observation force her to take an interest in the passengers and their secrets. When another body turns up, Hanne realizes that time is running out, and she must act fast before panic takes over. Complicating things is the presence of a mysterious guest, who had travelled in a private rail car at the end of the train and was evacuated first to the top floor of the hotel. No one knows who the guest is, or why armed guards are needed, but it is making everyone uneasy. Hanne has her suspicions, but she keeps them to herself.
Trapped in her wheelchair, trapped by the storm, and now trapped with a killer, Hanne must fit the pieces of the puzzle together before the killer strikes again.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Retired police detective Hanne Wilhelmsen makes her U.S. debut in Holt's intriguing reimagining of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None, the eighth in a series that started with The Blind Goddess. On her way by train to Bergen from Oslo, Hanne survives a derailment during a blizzard and ends up with the rest of the passengers at the Finse 1222, an immense lodge nearby. With nearly 200 people snowed in, keeping the peace is imperative, so when the body of a popular priest is found, all eyes turn to Hanne, who let it slip that she used to be with the police. Less than thrilled to be interacting with anyone, let alone investigating a murder, Hanne suggests keeping the body on ice (literally) until rescuers arrive. Unfortunately, more bodies start appearing, and it gets harder to keep the guests from panicking. The plot lags in places, but the prickly Hanne is worth getting to know.