The Darkest Day is the first novel in the five part Inspector Barbarotti series from renowned Swedish crime author Håkan Nesser.

It’s December in the quiet Swedish town of Kymlinge, and the Hermansson family are gathering to celebrate a big family birthday. But beneath the guise of happy festivities, tensions are running high, and it’s not long before the night takes a dark and unexpected turn . . .

Before the weekend is over, two members of the Hermansson family are missing, and it’s up to Inspector Barbarotti to determine exactly what happened on that darkest day, and unravel a web of sinister family secrets in the process . . .

Continue the thrilling investigative series with The Root of Evil.

'One of the best Nordic Noir writers' – Guardian