When Varg Veum reads the newspaper headline ’Young Man Missing’, he realises he’s seen the youth just a few days earlier – at a crossroads in the countryside, with his two friends. It turns out that the three were on their way to a demonstration against a commercial fish-farming facility in the tiny village of Solvik, north of Bergen.
Varg heads to Solvik, initially out of curiosity, but when he chances upon a dead body in the sea, he’s pulled into a dark and complex web of secrets, feuds and jealousies.
Is the body he’s found connected to the death of a journalist who was digging into the fish farm's operations two years earlier? And does either incident have something to do with the competition between the two powerful families that dominate Solvik’s salmon-farming industry?
Or are the deaths the actions of the ‘Village Beast’ – the brutal small-town justice meted out by rural communities in this part of the world.
Shocking, timely and full of breathtaking twists and turns, Pursued by Death reaffirms Gunnar Staalesen as one of the world's greatest crime writers.
As part of this Blog Tour, I am delighted to share an extract from the book with you today.
Extract from Pursued by Death by Gunnar Staalesen (translated by Don Bartlett)
‘What the hell shall we do?’ Aga asked.
I sent him an anxious look. ‘Just report what we’ve seen. I’m
seriously worried – the van could well have been there for close
on two weeks now. We’ll just have to cross our fingers and hope
there’s no one inside.’
Aga leaned over the edge and peered down into the sea.
‘Looks to me as if the driver’s door is open. What do you think?’
I leaned over as well. ‘It’s definitely not jammed shut anyway,
from what I can see.’
‘What number should we ring? 112?’
‘I’ll do it. I know the officer on this case.’
No sooner said than done. The operator on 112 noted down
where we were, who I was and promised to pass on the message
to Signe Moland or one of her colleagues. It wasn’t long before
I had her on the phone.
‘Varg? Have I understood correctly? You’ve found the vehicle
Kleiva was driving when he went missing?’
‘Yes. But it’s in the sea – and most likely has been ever since
he disappeared, I’m afraid.’
‘OK, can you see if there’s anyone inside?’
‘Impossible to see from this angle, and jumping into the water
to check isn’t exactly tempting.’
‘No, we’ll sort that out. I’ll contact the Masfjorden chief of
police, but I’m sure a few of us from Bergen will come, too. Will
you be there?’
‘I’m in no great rush, so if you need me to stick around …
’
‘We’ll have to talk to you anyway. Are you alone?’
‘No, there’s someone with me. A guy who has a cabin here.
We discovered the camper van together.’
‘Good. Stay there until we arrive.’
I glanced at Aga. ‘Looks like we’ll have to stay here a while.’
He nodded by way of response, and I confirmed to Signe
Moland that we would be here, both of us.
After I had rung off, there was something of a strange atmosphere. It was as though the camper van below was drawing us
down, and we both automatically took a few steps back along
the pier. Neither of us said anything for a while. It was a bit like
Edvard Aga and I had both applied for the same job and now we
had met each other in the waiting room before our interviews.
In the end, he gestured towards the fjord. ‘Was … Jonas
Kleiva driving the van?’
‘It’s registered in his name, at least. He’s been missing for
almost two weeks, since they were here for the demonstration.’
He looked at me, downcast, then he nodded vaguely, almost
imperceptibly. ‘Hm.’
One of the fathers of Nordic Noir, Gunnar Staalesen was born in Bergen, Norway, in
1947. He made his debut at the age of twenty-two with Seasons of Innocence and in 1977 he published the first book in the Varg Veum series.
He is the author of over twenty titles, which have been published in twenty-four countries and sold over four million copies.
Twelve film adaptations of his Varg Veum crime novels have appeared since 2007, starring the popular Norwegian actor Trond Espen Seim. Staalesen has won three Golden Pistols (including the Prize of Honour).
Where Roses Never Die won the 2017 Petrona Award for Nordic Crime Fiction, and Big Sister was shortlisted for the award in 2019.
He lives with his wife in Bergen.
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