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First published by HarperCollinsPublishers 2015
Copyright © Dolores Redondo 2013
Translation copyright © Isabelle Kaufeler 2015
Dolores Redondo asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
Originally published in 2013 by Ediciones Destino, Spain, as El guardián invisible
Cover design by Holly Macdonald © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2018
Cover photographs © Shutterstock.com
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
This is entirely a work of fiction. Any references to real people, living or dead, real events, businesses, organizations and localities are intended only to give the fiction a sense of reality and authenticity. All names, characters and incidents are either the product of the authorâs imagination or are used fictitiously, and their resemblance, if any, to real-life counterparts is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
Source ISBN: 9780007525355
Ebook Edition © APRIL 2015 ISBN: 9780007525348
Version: 2018-03-16
âForceful and brutal. Donât miss itâ
El Periódico
âTerrifyingâ
Sydney Morning Herald
âUtterly compellingâ
Publishing Perspectives
âOne of the biggest literary surprises of recent timesâ
MÃa
âMan vs the bestiality of crime, ancestral legends vs modern investigation techniques, family traumas vs dark beliefsâ
LâExpress
âA landscape thriller. And what a landscape it isâ
Page des Libraires
âA novel about the fear of returning to fearâ
La Vanguardia
âSeductive Spanish magical realism ⦠solid and well-forged language, with surprising and impressive elements and formulations. With a richness and variety rare in its genreâ
VG, Norwayâs biggest newspaper
âI was very surprised by it, I really loved it. I strongly recommend itâ
MarÃa Dueñas, author of The Time in Between
âDolores Redondo has broken the traditional mould of the publishing industryâ
David Morán, ABC
For Eduardo, who asked me to write this book, and for Ricard Domingo, who saw it when it was invisible.
For Rubén and Esther, for making me cry with laughter.
âForgetting is an involuntary act. The more you want to leave something behind you, the more it follows you.â
William Jonas Barkley
âThis is no ordinary apple; itâs a magic wishing apple.â
Walt Disneyâs Snow White
Ainhoa Elizasu was the second victim of the basajaun, although the press were yet to coin that name for him. That came later, when it emerged that animal hairs, scraps of skin and unidentifiable tracks had been found around the bodies, along with evidence of some kind of macabre purification rite. With their torn clothes, their private parts shaved and their upturned hands, the bodies of those girls, almost still children, seemed to have been marked by a malign force, as old as the Earth.
Inspector Amaia Salazar always followed the same routine when she was called to a crime scene in the middle of the night. She would switch off the alarm clock so it wouldnât disturb James in the morning, pile up her clothes and, with her mobile balanced on top of them, go very slowly downstairs to the kitchen. She would drink a milky coffee while she dressed, leave a note for her husband and get in the car. Then she would drive, her mind blank except for the white noise that always filled her head when she woke up before dawn.
These remnants of an interrupted night of insomnia stayed with her all the way to the crime scene, even though it was over an hourâs drive from Pamplona. She took a curve in the road too sharply and the squealing of the tyres made her realise how distracted she was. After that she made herself pay attention to the motorway as it wound its way upwards, deep into the dense forest surrounding Elizondo. Five minutes later, she pulled over next to a police sign, where she recognised Dr Jorge San MartÃnâs sports car and Judge Estébanezâs off-roader. Amaia got out, walked round to the back of her car and fished out a pair of wellingtons. She sat on the edge of the boot to pull them on while Deputy Inspector Jonan Etxaide and Inspector Montes joined her.