The Killing (Killing 1) [Hardcover]

'This adaption of 'The Killing' is a huge success…So how does it survive this possibly awkward transmutation? The answer, in short, is extremely well. David Hewson - the author of more than a dozen detective novels set in Italy and with no need to stoop to anything too hurriedly commercial - has taken what was television gold and turned it into literary gold. Indeed he has done it so well that his book is now being translated and readied for publication in Danish....The publisher makes much of the fact that instead of sitting in front of his telly with one finger on the pause button and the other on his keyboard, Hewson went to Copenhagen and 'constructed with' Soren Sveistrupp, the series script writer. What has emerged from their meetings is really very interesting...His (Hewson's) take is as valid as yours or mine. It creates an odd dynamic between author and reader which I rather liked...This is one of the most engrossing detective novels I've read in a long time' --The Daily Telegraph, 5-Star Review

'Crime veteran Hewson is a solid choice to adapt the Scandi TV sensation...It's a quality product' --Guardian

'As gripping as the TV series. It will keep you pinned to very last page' -- Jens Lapidus

'David Hewson has achieved the seemingly impossible . . . just as gripping as the television serial . . . this book is worth reading' --The Literary Review

'a novel in the hugely experienced hands of David Hewson that defies expectation. Hewson’s style is tight, lean, almost like a film script' --Express

'clear, clipped prose is beautifully up to the task, as is his forensic attention to the original's details . . . And the ending leaves a very different, but no less thought-provoking taste' --Mirror

'David Hewson should be commended for writing such a page-turner of a book . . . The Killing has enough twists and turns to satisfy not only any avid follower of the series but also readers that are coming to it first time around'
--www.shotsmag.co.uk

'David Hewson's literary translation is far more than a cheap tie-in...the book allows the characters more room to breathe. It means the emotional heart of the show is much more clearly defined: it s less a whodunnit in Hewson's hands...And yet in changing the ending he also makes a bold statement about the techniques required for satisfying drama on the page. All of which makes The Killing an excellent stand-alone novel - but perhaps Hewson's greatest achievement is that it's compelling reading' --The Observer

'Hewson is a highly regarded crime writer in his own right...for those who missed watching Sarah Lund and the Danish police in action, I believe they will get a great deal of pleasure from reading about them' --The Times

'The result is a very fine novel...with the bonus of a brand new twist to the ending. It is a different experience reading the book to viewing the thriller on screen - but just as fulfilling'
Daily Mail

'He adds real depth to the characters. The best bit of the whole book is his alternative ending, which is a refreshing twist. It's a fast-paced crime novel that's five-star from start to finish' --Birmingham Sunday Mercury

'far more relaxing than subtitles. --Irish Times

'much more interesting novelisation by David Hewson'
--Choice

'The book is an excellent read in which the author manages to dig deeper into the characters without having to rewrite their original television characterisation. For those who haven t seen the series, this is a very cleverly constructed and beautifully written crime drama; for those who already know the ending, a new twist awaits.' --Irish Times

'David Hewson's literary translation is far more than a cheap tie-in...the book allows the characters more room to breathe. It means the emotional heart of the show is much more clearly defined: it s less a whodunnit in Hewson's hands...And yet in changing the ending he also makes a bold statement about the techniques required for satisfying drama on the page. All of which makes The Killing an excellent stand-alone novel - but perhaps Hewson's greatest achievement is that it's compelling reading' --The Observer

'Hewson is a highly regarded crime writer in his own right...for those who missed watching Sarah Lund and the Danish police in action, I believe they will get a great deal of pleasure from reading about them' --The Times

'The result is a very fine novel...with the bonus of a brand new twist to the ending. It is a different experience reading the book to viewing the thriller on screen - but just as fulfilling'
Daily Mail

'He adds real depth to the characters. The best bit of the whole book is his alternative ending, which is a refreshing twist. It's a fast-paced crime novel that's five-star from start to finish' --Birmingham Sunday Mercury

'far more relaxing than subtitles. --Irish Times

'much more interesting novelisation by David Hewson'
--Choice

Through the dark wood where the dead trees give no shelter Nanna Birk Larsen runs . . . There is a bright monocular eye that follows, like a hunter after a wounded deer. It moves in a slow approaching zigzag, marching through the Pineseskoven wasteland, through the Pentecost Forest. The chill water, the fear, his presence not so far away ... There is one torchlight on her now, the single blazing eye. And it is here ... Sarah Lund is looking forward to her last day as a detective with the Copenhagen Police department before moving to Sweden. But everything changes when nineteen-year-old student, Nanna Birk Larsen, is found raped and brutally murdered in the woods outside the city. Lund’s plans to relocate are put on hold as she leads the investigation along with fellow detective Jan Meyer. While Nanna’s family struggles to cope with their loss, local politician, Troels Hartmann, is in the middle of an election campaign to become the new mayor of Copenhagen. When links between City Hall and the murder suddenly come to light , the case takes an entirely different turn. Over the course of twenty days, suspect upon suspect emerges as violence, political intrigue cast their shadows over the hunt for the killer.