Priest of Evil, By Matti Joensuu, trs David Hackston

Now a leading crime writer, Matti Joensuu was once an investigator for the Helsinki Police Department and draws on this experience to create a highly detailed and credible excavation of the darker forces of human nature. The protagonist of several of his thrillers, Detective Sergeant Timo Harjunpää is a complex and compelling creation who grips the reader. In an excellent translation by David Hackston, Priest of Evil centres around a series of deaths which take place in Helsinki tube stations and baffle the police force. As the plot progresses, all must grapple with their identity.

Shortlisted for the 2006 Glass Key Award for Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year, Priest of Evil is accomplished in its technical construction and thematic depths, conveying both brutality and tenderness. In evocative geographical as well as psychological territory, Joensuu gets under the skin not only of the characters but of the city of Helsinki itself.