From a master of Scandinavian crime fiction--the first in a brilliant
series of novels centered around the investigations of one irascible,
obdurate, and very thirsty Swedish police officer: Detective
Superintendent Evert Bäckström of the National Murder Squad.
Detective Bäckström is Persson's persistently repulsive yet undeniably
brilliant comic creation--an unforgettable cop winding his way through
the black comedy of a crime scene, and managing to upset nearly everyone
in the process.When a newspaper delivery boy finds a 68 year-old
alcoholic lying dead in his apartment--beaten with a saucepan lid and
hammer, and then strangled--everyone expects an open-and-shut murder
case, everyone that is but Hawaiian-shirt clad Detective Bäckström who's
been assigned to lead the investigation team. Under strict orders from
his doctor to improve his health as quickly as possible, Bäckström has
begun stumbling to work on foot, and even eating vegetables. The police
force isn't what it used to be though, and now that it's crowded with
women and foreigners resisting a drink is harder than ever before. But
when the newspaper boy goes missing Bäckström's suspicions are proven
correct, giving his irrepressible mix of luck and laziness a chance to
save the day, while managing to upset nearly everyone in the process.