Keeper

by Johana Gustawsson, Maxim Jakubowski (Translator)

Overview

An abduction in London and the discovery of a body on the west coast of Sweden lead criminal profiler Emily Roys and true-crime writer Alexis Castells back to Jack the Ripper’s Whitechapel, as they hunt a serial killer. Book two in the explosive, award-winning Roy & Castells series.

‘A terrific, original duo’ Marcel Berlins, The Times

‘Gritty, bone-chilling, and harrowing – it’s not for the faint of heart, and not to be missed’ Crime by the Book

‘A relentless heart-stopping masterpiece, filled with nightmarish situations that will keep you awake long into the dark nights of winter’ New York Journal of Books

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Whitechapel, 1888: London is bowed under Jack the Ripper’s reign of terror.

London 2015: Actress Julianne Bell is abducted in a case similar to the terrible Tower Hamlets murders of some ten years earlier, and harking back to the Ripper killings of a century before.

Falkenberg, Sweden, 2015: A woman’s body is found mutilated in a forest, her wounds identical to those of the Tower Hamlets victims.

With the man arrested for the Tower Hamlets crimes already locked up, do the new killings mean he has a dangerous accomplice, or is a copy-cat serial killer on the loose?

Profiler Emily Roy and true-crime writer Alexis Castells again find themselves drawn into an intriguing case, with personal links that turn their world upside down.

Following the highly acclaimed Block 46 and guaranteed to disturb and enthral, Keeper is a breathless thriller from the new queen of French Noir.

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‘A bold and intelligent read’ Guardian

‘A satisfying, full-fat mystery’ The Times

‘Assured telling of a complex story’ Sunday Times 

‘Dark, oppressive and bloody but also thought-provoking, compelling and very moving’ Metro

‘A real page-turner, I loved it’ Martina Cole

‘Cleverly plotted, simply excellent’ Ragnar Jónasson

‘A must-read’ Daily Express

‘Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying. Utterly compelling’ Peter James

‘Bold and audacious’ R. J. Ellory

‘A great serial-killer thriller with a nice twist … first rate’ James Oswald

‘Thought-provoking, challenging, and an absolute knock-out … I’m still in shock’ LoveReading

‘A great addition to the world of noir novels, and lives alongside the best...’ TripFiction

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781912374052
Publisher:	Orenda Books
Publication date:	11/01/2018
Series:	Roy & Castells Series , #2
Pages:	300
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.70(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Born in Marseille, France, and with a degree in Political Science, Johana Gustawsson has worked as a journalist for the French and Spanish press and television. Her critically acclaimed Roy & Castells series, including Block 46, Keeper and, soon to be published, Blood Song, has won the Plume d’Argent, Balai de la découverte, Balai d’Or and Prix Marseillais du Polar awards, and is now published in nineteen countries. A TV adaptation is currently underway in a French, Swedish and UK co-production. Johana lives in London with her Swedish husband and their three sons.

Editorial Reviews

09/17/2018
More is decidedly less in Gustawsson’s overly busy second pairing of Behavioural Investigative Advisor Emily Roy and author Alexis Castells (after 2017’s Block 46). Emily, an expat Canadian who works with the British police, met Alexis during the writer’s research for a true crime book. Alexis’s romantic partner, a French police officer, was killed by suspect Richard Hemfield a decade earlier, and Hemfield was later convicted of abducting, mutilating, and murdering six women, leaving their corpses near Tower Hamlets in London. But while Hemfield remains incarcerated in Broadmoor psychiatric hospital, the abduction of actress Julianna Bell suggests his innocence, a shocking development that reunites Emily and Alexis. Whoever kidnapped Julianna left a freezer bag behind containing her shoes, just as the Tower Hamlets killer did with his victims. Meanwhile, the mutilation murder of a woman in Sweden matches the Tower Hamlets killer’s m.o. Flashbacks make the story line needlessly convoluted and do nothing to make the ultimate reveal more plausible. It’s altogether underwhelming. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

"A bold and audacious debut from a very talented writer. Heralds the beginning of a thrilling new series." —R. J. Ellory, author, A Quiet Belief in Angels



"Keeper is a relentless heart-stopping masterpiece, filled with nightmarish situations that will keep you awake long into the dark nights of winter."  —-New York Journal of Books.


"A bold and intelligent read." —Guardian


"The grim detection is carried out by two strong women. Emily Roy is a profiler, lent to Scotland Yard by the Canadian Mounties; her friend Alexis Castells is a French writer of true-crime. They make a terrific, original duo. They have a future." —Times


"Dark, oppressive and bloody but it.'s also thought-provoking, compelling and very moving." —Metro


"The pacing is exquisitely crafted. Gustawsson strings tension all the way through, with the story moving at breakneck speed. There are enough twists and turns to make even the most die-hard thriller fan happy . . . Pick up Keeper to enjoy a fast-paced, well-constructed thriller that will be impossible to put down once you start." —The Crime Review


"Compelling." —Women's Own


"Gustawsson's writing is so vivid, it's electrifying. Utterly compelling." —Peter James, author, Need You Dead


"Gritty, bone-chilling, and harrowing - it's not for the faint of heart, and not to be missed." —Crime by the Book

From the Publisher