Hamburg State Prosecutor Chastity Riley becomes involved in the horrifying, chilling search for a violent serial killer targeting dancers from a club … the first book in an award-winning, wildly original, addictive series…

‘ Such a revelation’ Laura Lippman

‘ Gruesome and assured, Buchholz’ s work remains as persuasive as ever’ Barry Forshaw, Financial Times

‘ Reading Buchholz is like walking on firecrackers … a truly unique voice in crime fiction’ Graeme Macrae Burnet

‘ Unpredictable, shocking and funny … Simone Buchholz is my favourite German crime writer’ Mark Sanderson, The Times

**WINNER of the CWA Crime in Translation Dagger**

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A serial killer is on the loose in Hamburg, targeting dancers from The Acapulco, a club in the city’ s red-light district, taking their scalps as gruesome trophies and replacing them with plastic wigs.

Chastity Riley is the state prosecutor responsible for crimes in the district, and she’ s working alongside the police as they investigate. Can she get inside the mind of the killer?

Her strength is thinking like a criminal; her weaknesses are pubs, bars and destructive relationships, but as Chastity searches for love and a flamboyant killer – battling her demons and the dark, foggy Hamburg weather – she hits dead end after dead end.

As panic sets in and the death toll rises, it becomes increasingly clear that it may already be too late. For everyone…

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‘ Caustic, incisive prose. A street-smart, gutsy heroine. A timely and staggeringly stylish thriller’ Will Carver

‘ The coolest character in crime fiction … Darkly funny and written with a huge heart’ Doug Johnstone, Big Issue

‘ Modern noir, with taut storytelling, a hard-bitten heroine, and underlying melancholy peppered with wry humour’ New Zealand Listener

‘ Dark, atmospheric, and complex, with often surprisingly emotional … a classy piece of fiction from an author who never disappoints’ Jen Med’ s Book Reviews

Praise for the Chastity Riley series:

''Combines nail-biting tension with off-beat humor ... Elmore Leonard fans will be enthralled'' Publishers Weekly

''Buchholz doles out delicious black humor ... interwoven in a manner that ramps up the intrigue and tension'' Foreword Reviews

’ Lyrical and pithy'' Sunday Times

''Fierce enough to stab the heart'' Spectator

''A real blast of adrenaline'' Big Issue

''Simone Buchholz writes with real authority and a pungent, noir-ish sense of time and space'' Financial Times

''A stylish, whip-smart thriller'' Russel McLean