The Harbor - by Katrine Engberg (Paperback)

About the Book

"When fifteen-year-old Oscar Dreyer-Hoff disappears ... the police assume he's sim ply a runaway--a typically overlooked middle child doing what teenagers do all around the world. But his frantic family is certain that something terrible has happened. After all, what runaway would leave behind a note that reads: He looked around and saw the knife that had stabbed Basil Hallward. He had cleaned it many times, till there was no stain left upon it. It was bright and glistened. As it had killed the painter, so it would kill the painter's work, and all that that meant. It would kill the past, and when that was dead, he would be free. It's not much to go on, but it's all that detectives Jeppe Kørner and Anette Werner have. And with every passing hour, as the odds of finding a missing person grow dimmer, it will have to be enough"--

Book Synopsis

This "must-read for fans of Nordic noir" (BookPage, starred review) follows detectives Korner and Werner as they search for a missing teenager and uncover the web of lies that may prevent him from ever being found.When fifteen-year-old Oscar Dreyer-Hoff disappears in this "masterpiece" (Booklist, starred review), the police assume he's simply a runaway--a typically overlooked middle child doing what teenagers do all around the world. But his frantic family is certain that something terrible has happened. After all, what runaway would leave behind a note that reads: He looked around and saw the knife that had stabbed Basil Hallward. He had cleaned it many times, till there was no stain left upon it. It was bright and glistened. As it had killed the painter, so it would kill the painter's work, and all that that meant. It would kill the past, and when that was dead, he would be free. It's not much to go on, but it's all that detectives Jeppe Kørner and Anette Werner have. And with every passing hour, as the odds of finding a missing person grow dimmer, it will have to be enough.

Review Quotes

"One of the best armchair travelogues in ages... It is the absolute humanity of the storytelling that makes the book a masterpiece of Nordic noir." -Booklist (starred review)

About the Author

A former dancer and choreographer with a background in television and theater, Katrine Engberg launched a groundbreaking career as a novelist with the publication of her fiction debut, The Tenant. She is now one of the most widely read and beloved crime authors in Denmark, and her work has been sold in over twenty-five countries. She lives with her family in Copenhagen.