Chief Inspector Erik Winter was approached by a former girlfriend, Johanna Osvald, with a request to find her father who went to Scotland in search of his own missing father. Axel Osvald’s father John had disappeared during World War II and was presumed dead.

Now, many years later, his son Axel sought to find out the truth of his father’s disappearance. Axel also disappeared and Johanna and her brother Erik Osvald wanted answers.

Erik Winter contacted an old friend from Scotland Yard by the name of Steve MacDonald, and asked him to begin looking into the case while Erik made his way from Sweden to Scotland. The two men embark on a search that took them into unknown, challenging, and dangerous territory.

In the meantime, Erik’s colleague, Detective Aneta Djanali was working on a reported domestic abuse situation. Unfortunately, the victim refused to open the door or even speak to the detective.

After the victim disappeared, Aneta and her partner Fredrik Halders began to search for her even though her family refused to cooperate. During their investigation the two uncovered far more than they anticipated including a string of burglaries and smuggling ring in a shady part of town.

Sail of Stone by Ake Edwardson is a superb police procedural featuring Chief Inspector Erik Winters. It is the sixth book in the series, but the first novel of the series to be translated into English - ten years after it was originally published in Sweden.

This sweeping tale has all the elements of mystery and intrigue including an unknown, unnamed man’s ruminations threaded throughout the narrative. Two stories run concurrently as events unfold in the lives of the two detectives and colleagues, Erik Winter and Aneta Djanali. Not only are they conducting their individual investigations, the author also ties in what is happening in their personal lives as well.

As the author moves back and forth between timelines and protagonists, the story can get a little confusing. Similar names of some of the characters can add to the confusion if readers aren’t careful. However, this novel is an intriguing look at solitude and family relationships, and how decisions made many years ago can affect present day dynamics.

Of interest to readers who want to understand more about the story and the characters will be the reading group guide and the conversation with the author located at the end of the novel. The latter will especially help explain elements of the story that may have confused the reader. This area is well worth reading.

While Sail of Stone is not an easy read, it is definitely well worth the time and effort. It is a fascinating character study wrapped up in a nifty police procedural. Hopefully, more of Ake Edwardson’s novels will be translated into English for our reading pleasure.

A special thank you goes to Simon and Schuster for providing us with a complimentary copy of this novel for our review. If you are interested in purchasing a copy of your own, Sail of Stone is available through Amazon.com.