Hanna Duncker is a skilled police investigator in Stockholm. When her father dies, she is forced to return to her childhood home on Öland, after 16 years. She left after her father was arrested for the murder of a young boy all those years ago. Despite these bad memories from the past, and despite the stares and rumours, she feels that she belongs in the little cottage by the sea.
When 15-year-old Joel is found dead and badly beaten at a rest area on the Great Alvar, Hanna is drawn into an investigation that concerns her oldest friend. The friend she abandoned all those years ago. Hanna’s past defines her as a person and a police officer, she is a survivor that we will want to follow in many books.
The Island Murders is a detective series about living in the shadow of a crime and not being able to cut the strings to the past and one’s hometown.
With The Night Singer, critically acclaimed and award-winning detective writer Johanna Mo, starts a new suspense series with Öland as the crime scene. In her earlier works she has proven that she skilfully masters an intricate plot, but at the same time never forgets the soul life and development of her characters. In The Night Singer, she returns with the same winning recipe for suspense, and in a new environment. Öland, with its rugged nature and wild atmosphere makes the perfect scenery.
The Night Singer is the first book in a series set on the island of Öland.
424 pages
RIGHTS
Croatia: Fraktura
Denmark: Lindhardt og Ringhof
Estonia: Eesti Raamat
Finland: Like
Germany: Random House / Heyne
Greece: Livanis
Hungary: Animus
Iceland: Bjartur & Veröld
Italy: Neri Pozza
Lithuania: Obuolys
Netherlands: HarperCollins Holland
Norway: Aschehoug
Portugal: Porto Editora
Romania: RAO
Sri Lanka: Sooriya Publishers
Sweden: Romanus & Selling
UK: Hachette / Headline
US: Penguin Books
REVIEWS
“A Swedish noir at its best. The perfect paperback for the summer vacation.”
Morgunbladid / IS
“Gripping.”
Mein TV & Ich / DE
“This book sucks you right in.”
Delmenhorster Kreisblatt / DE
“Highly suspenseful until the tragic case is solved.”
Westfalen-Blatt / DE
“The start of Mo’s series makes you want to read more.”
Börsenblatt /DE
“[A] welcome English-language debut… readers will readily engage with Hanna, a no-nonsense, dogged, and thoughtful investigator. Mo is off to a strong start.”
Publishers Weekly / US
“Mo explores themes of bullying, infidelity, familial violence, discrimination based on sexuality and gender—in short, many of the bugbears that plague 21st-century Western culture. The Night Singer is just excellent and the perfect setup for a sequel, which I hope is in the offing imminently.”
Bookpage / US
“Immensely thrilling psychological suspense.”
Fränkische Nachrichten / DE
“The Night Singer is a classic police procedural where the writing is spot-on. Mo has constructed a thrilling cast of characters both when it comes to the police as well as the family and suspects surrounding the deceased Joel […] [Mo] succeeds in capturing the strong emotions that a murder evokes in a captivating and authentic way.”
Skånska Dagbladet / SWE
“Johanna Mo has established herself as one of Sweden’s most reliable crime writers. Quality is guaranteed when you get one of her books in your hands. […] The characters are brimming with life and are of flesh and blood, it feels like they come straight out of real life. […] Johanna Mo really delivers. She’s written good books before, but The Night Singer is her best one so far.”
Dast Magazine / SWE
“The start of a new series that is incredibly promising.”
Dagens Nyheter / SWE
“Johanna Mo wants more than to write a crime novel, she wants to examine atonement and forgiveness. She asks questions about what it’s like to live with guilt and the crimes committed by someone else. […] This is a captivating journey into the minds and psyches of both victims and perpetrators, and it’s so much more than just a clever crime mystery.”
SVT Sommaröppet / SWE
“I’m extremely taken by how intimate this book is. Never before have I read a fictional novel that feels so real. […] It’s also a page turner and I was urged to devour it in one sitting – just the right book to get me in holiday mood.”
Kalmarposten / SWE
“The Night Singer centers around a trauma that is charged with anxiety. […] The intensity is gruesome and consistent throughout the novel. From the beginning to the very last page, Hanna’s thoughts are continuously centered on the crimes of her father. After sixteen years it’s still ever present, with both her and the reader. It’s distressing and thought-provoking. […] Hanna Duncker is a sombre police protagonist who will be interesting to follow.”
Kristianstadsbladet / SWE
“The Night Singer is the first part in The Island Murders series. It centers on prejudices and relationships, and follows both the victim and the perpetrator closely. The characters are complex, and the setting is gorgeous. […] A crime novel about not being able to cut the ties to your hometown and past.”
Sveriges Radio / SWE
“I can barely wait for the next book in The Island Murders series. I already knew that Johanna Mo was a great writer, but here she has undoubtedly hit a bull’s eye.”
Norra Skåne / SWE
“The Night Singer is an understated crime novel. No action-packed car chases, no serial killers or over-the-top gory details. Rather, it’s a liberatingly close-to-home tale, and it’s incredibly fitting that it is set on the island of Öland.”
Ölandsbladet / SWE
“The Night Singer is even better than Johanna’s previous novels. Returning to Öland feels fantastic. This is a classic police procedural in the best possible way. The character depictions are fantastic. What Johanna Mo does so unbelievably well is the way she portrays how people are affected by a crime. Her characters are engrossing – you really want to know more about Hanna Duncker and I cannot wait for the next book in the series.”
Deckardårarna / SWE
“Intensely suspenseful in the most beautiful of settings.”
Femina / SWE
“It hurts to read about Joel’s approaching, brutal death, and his brooding over who he is and what he wants. I so want things to go well for this boy, the he’ll find himself and find peace, but all the while I know that his time is running out. Hanna Duncker is a character that I look forward to reading more about. There’s something almost touching about her secret persona. Beneath the surface she’s contemplative and full of longing, but on the outside she seems a bit stiff and intangible. […] The Night Singer is a strong first book in the series and it bodes well. It’s thrilling and well-written!”
Dagens Bok / SWE
“The Night Singer is the first book in the new series The Island Murders and it’s promising, well-written and cleverly constructed. It’s thrilling to follow Hanna Duncker’s search for truth, and her struggle against those with a bad eye towards her because of her father’s crimes. And an extra plus for how close we get to the teenager Joel, who is found dead at the opening of the book.”
Dalarnes Tidning / SWE
“Starting a new series is demanding: it takes a strong foundation that will last for many books to come, and [Mo] has done so excellently. Plot, characters, setting, language, and narrative technique are combined in a way that makes me instantly long for the next book in this new series. […] Mo is incredibly good at permeating the psychology of the individual as well as the group, which gives empathy for both victim and perpetrator – and anyone in-between. Impressively skillful!”
Kapprakt / SWE
“Well-written rural crime from Öland. […] Johanna Mo is interested in the people who live there, and portrays them with precision and warmth. She has a keen eye for everyday trivialities and what sudden changes and gruesome events can do to people. Instead of indulging in gory action, she creates suspense through the portrayal of people, relationships, and emotions.”
Stavanger Aftenblad, 5/6 Stars / NO
“Intrigues and complicated relationships that go back through generations come to light with a rich and credible cast of characters. The Night Singer is a timeless portrayal of sins inherited in a small town, and at the same time it’s quite a modern book. Both due to an underlying theme that is highly topical, and because Hanna Duncker is a fascinating and complex character. […] This one will get you hooked!”
Adresseavisen, 6/6 Stars / NO
“Incredibly well-written.”
Solbryggen / NO
“Johanna Mo’s new crime series about police detective Hanna Duncker is a smashing new book with an authentic plot and a believable cast of characters that captures the reader. Even though Hanna Duncker doesn’t exactly come off as a charming Swede, she is a person that you as a reader want to get to know. The Night Singer is a crime novel that you just can’t put down, and it deserves a big and loyal audience.”
POV International / DK
“The Night Singer is an excellent suspense novel by Swedish Johanna Mo. […] A very realistic crime story packed with engaging psychological aspects such as the relationship between spouses, infidelity, parents and children, the relationship between siblings, teenage life, he/she/they, the past versus the present, and so on. […] I am extremely taken with The Night Singer. It proves that poised and authentic crime novels can hold intense suspense.”
Findals Krimside, 5/5 / DK
“The Night Singer is a very well-written crime novel, where the level of suspense increases steadily from the first page. The plot is solid and extremely well thought-out. It is one those crime novels where the pages nearly turn themselves, that are impossible to put down. […] This author really knows how to portray people, and I’m very enthusiastic about the cast of characters, not least Hanna Duncker. Both main and supporting characters appear authentic and relevant. It will be exciting to get to know both Öland and the characters more in the next books in the Island Murders series.”
Litteratursiden / DK
“The Night Singer is the first book in the Island Murders series, and it lived up to all of my expectations. The fact that Hanna was being judged because of her past even though she herself was not to blame made me feel immediate sympathy for the otherwise lonely police investigator. And the tragical fate of 15 year old Joel is constructed in such a way that I couldn’t help thinking that this could happen to my own child. How one unfortunate event leads to another, and how frighteningly little many young people share with their parents. I really look forward to the next book in the series.”
Bokblogger / DK