Behind God's Back

Praise for Harri Nykänen's Nights of Awe:

"The clever combination of classic Jewish themes with the traditions of Nordic crime makes for a refreshing tale with wide appeal. And the subtle humor makes it even better."—Booklist

"Professional responsibility and ethnic affiliation clash in Nykänen's intriguing first novel. The resolution will satisfy noir fans."—Publishers Weekly

"Ariel Kafka wins the award for most intriguing name for a fictional detective, and it suits this impressively labyrinthine mystery series."—Time Out

The second in the Ariel Kafka series.

There are two Jewish cops in all of Helsinki. One of them, Ariel Kafka, a lieutenant in the Violent Crime Unit, identifies himself as a policeman first, then a Finn, and lastly a Jew. Kafka is a religiously non-observant forty-something bachelor who is such a stubborn, dedicated policeman that he's willing to risk his career to get an answer. Murky circumstances surround his investigation of a Jewish businessman's murder. Neo-Nazi violence, intergenerational intrigue, shady loans—predictable lines of investigation lead to unpredictable culprits. But a second killing strikes closer to home, and the Finnish Security Police come knocking. The tentacles of Israeli politics and Mossad reach surprisingly far, once again wrapping Kafka in their sticky embrace.

Harri Nykänen, born in Helsinki in 1953, was a well-known crime journalist and is now dedicated to writing fiction. The first in the Ariel Kafka series was Nights of Awe. Nykänen's work exposes the local underworld through the eyes of the criminal, the terrorist, and now from the point of view of an eccentric Helsinki police inspector.