This 13th Harry Hole detective novel by the Norwegian author, Jo Nesbo, begins with Hole in a California bar slowly drinking himself to death.  He is approached by another heavy drinker, a woman who fears for her safety because she owes a loan shark nearly a million dollars which she borrowed to invest in a movie project which failed.  Harry agrees to escort her to her car but ends up in a brawl with the Mexican loan collectors and thus starts this improbable tale of violence and evil.

I had started Nesbo’s last Hole novel a few years ago and was so turned off by the violence and disgusting gore in the first chapter that I swore off his books for the future. So much for good intentions, and I’m glad I relented.  This book also is way too violent, gory, and even disgusting in parts, but it’s very well done and presents some interesting character sketches from the serial killer to the police to the forensics experts who help them.  If your reading tastes run to beheadings, cannibalism, pederasty, and a few other minor misbehaviors, this is the book for you.

Having spent way too many hours turning the pages of this 500 page tome, I’d have to say that it’s not for everyone, but it is one of Nesbo’s more creative plots.  Read it at your peril.