In a novel based on the life of the author's grandfather, a German Jewish journalist escapes to Sweden with his family at the start of Word War II and begins working for a publisher that evades German censorship and ultimately works with British intelligence agents producing anti-Nazi propaganda.

"In the years leading up to World War II, two families who seemingly could't be more different find that they have more in common than they could have imagined. Simon is a bookish dreamer from a working-class family in rural Sweden; Isak is the son of wealthy Jewish immigrants fleeing religious persecution in Berlin. While Simon yearns for the music, literature and art that are part of Isak's daily life, Isak finds comfort and security in Simon's...

On a cold winter's day, a pre-school teacher is shot to death at the Jewish Congregation in Stockholm. Just hours later, two Jewish boys go missing on their way to tennis practice. Fredrika Bergman and Alex Recht hunt for a killer that seems as merciless as he is effective.