X Ways to Die: The addictive fourth Fabian Risk thriller from the number 1 international bestseller

By Stefan Ahnhem

A murderous game. The killer makes the rules. Death hangs on the roll of the dice.

In murder investigations, it pays to keep things simple: motive, method, opportunity. But the case in front of Detective Fabian Risk is a nightmare. A killer who strikes out of nowhere. No apparent motive. No consistent method. Victims are tortured, strangled, burned, dismembered – each grisly killing carried out with savage precision, as if following the rules of a hellish game.

Fear and chaos have spread through the seaside town of Helsingborg. While Fabian Risk hunts the killer, his life is falling apart: a son on the run from the law; a daughter gravely injured; a colleague with dark secrets of his own. But there's no turning back now. The game of death is on, and Fabian Risk must play to win.

After all, there are many ways to die...

This explosive thriller from Scandinavia's most inventive storyteller concludes the epic events of Motive X.

Reviews for Stefan Ahnhem:

'Atmospheric and complicated... with great cop characters and some imaginatively grisly perps' Sunday Times (star pick)

'More gripping than Jo Nesbo, blacker than Stieg Larsson and more bleakly human than Henning Mankell' Tony Parsons

'Epic in scale and ambition' Daily Mail

'An intense journey, with an intricate plot... Ahnhem has mastered atmosphere, pacing and intrigue' Crime Review

'Masterly plotting, grisly murders and chilling suspense: Stefan Ahnhem keeps the threads of this complex, two-country narrative pulled tense' Better Reading

• Language: English
• Publisher: Head of Zeus
• Release date: May 7, 2020
• ISBN: 9781786694638

Stefan Ahnhem

Stefan Ahnhem grew up in Helsingborg, Sweden, and now lives in Denmark. He began his career as a screenwriter, and among his credits is the adaptation of Henning Mankell's Wallander series for TV. His first novel, Victim Without a Face, won Crimetime's Novel of the Year, and became a top-ten bestseller in Germany, Sweden and Ireland. The series went on to become a top-three bestseller in Germany and Sweden, and a number one bestseller in Norway. Stefan Ahnhem has been named Swedish Crime Writer of the Year, and has been published in thirty countries. The Fabian Risk novels have sold more than 2.3 million copies worldwide. Follow him @StefanAhnhem

Reviews for X Ways to Die

[miss.mesmerized · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Detective Fabian Risk actually could do with some free time to get his family together after the awful events that nearly killed his wife and daughter. Yet, he and his colleagues still have a serial killer on the loose and the killing of people does not stop. Even though the cases could hardly be more different, he senses that there must be some connection. They are finally getting closer to him, but while the Swedish seaside town of Helsingborg is gripped in fear, Fabian also has to complete his very own mission: His former colleague Elvin did not die from suicide, it was forensic scientist Ingvar Molander and obviously, Elvin had put the clues together correctly. Yet, there are still some missing pieces that Fabian needs to uncover before he can finally arrest him, knowing that he has not only a very clever nemesis who knows the rules of the game, but also one who is totally reckless and ready to do everything to get away with much more than one murder.Stefan Ahnhem continues the story exactly where it ended in “Motive X” and does not waste any time but plunges directly into the plot. Just as in the novel before, “X Ways to Dies” moves at an extremely high pace and cleverly combines the different plot lines that finally tie the knot together. For me, Ahnhem is a worthy successor and heir of Stieg Larsson who set new milestones with his Millennium series; Ahnhem follows his footsteps in many respects by delivering a demanding plot full of suspense.The latest instalment answers many questions which remained open in the one before thus completing the story and bringing it to a convincing end. What I totally adored was the fight between Risk and Molander, both very clever and certainly belonging to the best in their jobs thus fighting at eye level and giving a lot of insight into police work. Several setbacks make Risk an authentic and credible protagonist who also shows his weak and vulnerable sides.The only question left to be answered: does and if so how can the story go on?