The Killing III: Based on the BAFTA Award–Winning TV Series Written by Søren Sveistrup

Hewson’s third novelization of the Danish TV series (after The Killing II) will appeal mainly to viewers of that series. Soon after Emilie, the nine-year-old daughter of Robert Zeuthen, the managing owner of a shipping conglomerate, disappears into the forest surrounding the family estate, a masked figure appears on Emilie’s phone, which the police find in the girl’s rucksack, and speaks vaguely of debts owed. Meanwhile, Det. Sarah Lund suspects that the murder of two men aboard a ship may be related to an assassination threat to Prime Minister Troels Hartmann, which brings in Mathias Borch of PET, the national security intelligence agency, who thinks Zeuthen may be the real target. Hewson tracks the political maneuvering between Hartmann and his opponents in great detail. He does the same with the clash between the aims of PET and Lund’s investigation aimed at saving Emilie. Readers unfamiliar with the large cast of characters may feel lost. (Sept.)