Denmark's foremost literary author turns crime fiction on its head.

Bess and Halland live in a small town, where everyone knows everyone else. When Halland is found murdered in the main square the police encounter only riddles. For Bess bereavement marks the start of a journey that leads her to a reassessment of first friends, then family.

Why Peirene chose to publish this book: 'If you like crime you won't be disappointed. The book has all the right ingredients. A murder, a gun, an inspector, suspense. But the story strays far beyond the whodunit norm. In beautifully stark language Pia Juul manages to chart the phases of bereavement. PS Don't skip the quotes.' Meike Ziervogel

'Bess sticks in the mind as a brilliantly drawn character.' Christina Petrie, Times Literary Supplement

'Anything but a standard crime novel. The mystery at its heart is the mystery we are to each other; it is written in succinct, sometimes surreal prose.' Economist

'A disturbing and painful account of a woman whose world has been knocked off its axis.' Laura Wilson, Guardian

'A masterclass in literary sleight of hand.' Pam Norfolk, Lancashire Evening Post

'Just as Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose made crime fiction appear intellectual, so Pia Juul's The Murder of Halland dismantles the rules of an entire genre.' Dagens Nyheter

'Pia Juul is a dazzling writer with natural, biting dialogue. And the descriptions of the sun's play on the fiord are so beautiful that they could have been lifted from Albert Camus' The Stranger.' Extra Bladet

LONGLISTED FOR THE INDEPENDENT FOREIGN FICTION PRIZE 2013

LONGLISTED FOR THE INTERNATIONAL IMPAC DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD 2014