Christian Thydell has been receiving anonymous threats since he began writing his novel THE MERMAID. When one message, secreted within a bouquet of flowers, causes Christian to collapse at the launch party, crime writer Erica Falck is compelled to investigate.

Erica′s husband detective Patrik Hedström, meanwhile, is puzzled by the disappearance of Christian′s friend Magnus Kjellner four months previously. When a body is found frozen in the sea near Fjallbacka, he finds he has a murder enquiry on his hands.

Someone carries an intense hatred for Christian and his circle, and they won′t hesitate to turn their threats into a reality. Clues in Christian′s debut novel THE MERMAID point to a horrific secret buried deep in his past - one that someone will go to any lengths to keep hidden.