'A breath of fresh cold air . . . a dangerous edge to gladden fans of Lisbeth Salander' Boyd Tonkin From the million-book bestselling author comes another nail-biting thriller, for fans of Stieg Larsson, The Bridge and The Killing TV series. The murder of a female priest sends shockwaves through the isolated community of Kiruna. A crime that has terrifying echoes of another. Lawyer Rebecka Martinsson returns to Kiruna to help the police, and is soon drawn into the dead woman's world. A world of hurt and healing, sin and sexuality, and above all, of lethal sacrifice. Can Rebecka find the truth before she is consumed by it? 'Among the current batch of Nordic writers, Larsson is one to be followed with the most minute attention' Barry Forshaw, Independent 'A superior example of Scandinavian noir' Julia Handford, Sunday Telegraph 'Larsson's laid-back style makes her unflinching probing of the icy depths of the human heart all the more chilling' Jake Kerridge, Telegraph Asa Larsson has sold over a million and a half books worldwide. Her first novel, The Savage Altar, won the award for Sweden's best first crime novel. This is her second novel starring Rebecka Martinsson. %%%Before Stieg Larsson, there was Asa Larsson . . . the follow up to The Savage Altar, The Blood Spiltis a truly absorbing, atmospheric and fast-paced thriller featuring lawyer Rebecka Martinsson, a fantastic character in the mould of The Silence of the Lambs'Clarice Starling. It is midsummer in Sweden - when the light lingers through dawn and the long winter comes to an end. Now, in this magical time, a brutal killer has chosen to strike, and the murder of a female priest sends shockwaves through the community. It has been almost two years since attorney Rebecka Martinsson returned to her birthplace, Kiruna, in order to stop an eerily similar murder spree. Now she is back in Kiruna, where a determined policewoman works on the case and the people who loved or loathed the victim mourn or revel in her demise. As Rebecka is drawn into a mystery that soon will claim another victim, the dead woman's world consumes her- a world of hurt and healing, sin and sexuality, and above all, of lethal sacrifice. 'Nail-biting . . . A suspense-filled mystery by yet another talented Swedish writer' Sunday Telegraphon The Savage Altar 'A labyrinthine conspiracy, superlative storytelling' Independenton The Savage Altar Asa Larsson was born in 1966 and lives in Sweden. Her first novel, The Savage Altar,was a Top 10 bestseller in Sweden, winning the Best First Crime Novel award, and is available from Penguin now.