The Kurt Wallander Mysteries - Book 5
Sidetracked
“Mankell at his best…if you haven’t bought Sidetracked, do so ASAP.”
Los Angeles Times Book Review
Detective Kurt Wallander is called to a nearby rapeseed field where a teenage girl has been loitering all day long. He arrives just in time to watch her douse herself in gasoline and set herself aflame. The next day he is called to a beach where Sweden’s former minister of justice has been axed to death and scalped. The murder has the obvious markings of a demented serial killer, and Wallander is frantic to find him before he strikes again. But his investigation is beset with obstacles: a department distracted by the threat of cutbacks and the frivolity of World Cup soccer, a tenuous relationship with a widow, and the unshakably haunting preoccupation with the girl who set herself on fire.
Fascinating and astute, Sidetracked is a compelling mystery enhanced by keen social awareness.
“Mankell at his best…if you haven’t bought Sidetracked, do so ASAP.”
Los Angeles Times Book Review
“Mankell is one of the most ingenious crime writers around.”
The Observer (London)
“Mankell’s meticulously detailed descriptions of the inspector’s investigation—and his often lyrical portrayal of Wallander’s struggle to rearrange his thought processes in order to catch the criminal—are masterful.”
Publishers Weekly
“Full of emotion yet cleanly written, apparently straightforward yet fraught with intriguing revelations, Mankell’s latest mystery is strongly recommended.”
Library Journal
“Connoisseurs of the police procedural will tear into this installment like the seven-course banquet it is.”
Kirkus Reviews
Dick Hill was one of the most awarded narrators in the business. We was named by AudioFile magazine as a Golden Voice and also as a Voice of the Century. He earned several of the prestigious annua Audie Awards for Best Narration and thirty-four AudioFile Earphones Awards. In addition to narrating, he both acted in and wrote for the theater. He passed away in 2022.