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One of Scandinavias best crime writers, no mean compliment in a crowded fieldThe Times

Its summer on Gotland and an international group of archaeology students are excavating an ancient Viking site. The camaraderie and holiday spirits of the group are shattered when one of their number, a Dutch student called Martina, disappears. Rumours abound about a secret relationship she was having with someone on the island, but is her disappearance simply a lovers intrigue?

When the body of a horse is discovered in a local farmers field, other rumours begin to circulate. The horse had been decapitated and the head has vanished.

As Inspector Knutas begins his investigation, echoes from Gotlands Viking past begin to trouble his search. When Martinas naked body is found hanging from a tree, with what look like ritualistic markings on her skin, there can be little further question. Someone is calling to the old Gods of Gotland. Martina has been killed according to the Viking ritual of the three-fold death, and the one thing the ritual points to is that more deaths will follow.