Harry Hole

The reader first meets Norwegian police officer Harry Hole who is a member of the Crime Squad of the Norwegian Police Department. He is a veteran officer and is the training officer for his young partner, Ellen. Harry has had struggled for many years with alcoholism but has been on the wagon over a year and wants to stay there. Part of Harry’s problem is that he, at times, is consumed with self-doubt and a fear of failure or perhaps he even a fear of success.

Harry likes being a police officer in the Crime Squad because that’s where all the action is. The action distracts him from his problems and keeps him too busy to think about drinking. He and Ellen are on a special security detail when the US President and other global dignitaries visit Oslo. They were trained by the US Secret...