Depths

A tense and gripping psychological thriller: Mankell's best book yet October 1914: the destroyer Svea emerged from the Stockholm archipelago bearing south-south-east. On board was Lars Tobiasson-Svartman, a naval engineer charged with making depth soundings to find a navigable channel for the Swedish navy. As a child Tobiasson-Svartman was fascinated by measurement; nothing is as magical as exact knowledge. His instinct for his profession is reflected in the comfortable domesticity he enjoys with his wife - herself meticulous in every detail. Close to the waters where soundings are taken Tobiasson-Svartman alights on a barren skerry, presumed uninhabited, and is surprised to discover there a young woman, Sara Fredrika. Despite her almost feral appearance, something about her strikes him to the core. The mission is a success and the Svea returns to Gothenburg. Tobiasson-Svartman, however, remains haunted by this chance encounter; his equilibrium has been... Internationally bestselling author Henning Mankell delivers a lyrical and evocative novel about a Swedish naval engineer during World War I and his devastating plunge into obsession.In 1914 Lars Tobiasson-Svartman is covertly measuring the depths of Swedish coastal waters. A man of discipline and obsessed with exactitude, he is more comfortable on naval vessels than he is in his loveless marriage back in Stockholm. On one of his missions, Lars discovers a feral but beautiful woman living alone on a remote island. Passion, suspicion, and violence are awakened in him and soon he is living a double life-lying to his wife and his superiors and submerging himself in a pool of deception that has devastating consequences. October 1914: the destroyer Svea emerged from the Stockholm archipelago bearing south-south-east. On board was Lars Tobiasson-Svartman, a naval engineer charged with making depth soundings for the Swedish navy. He is obsessed with measurement and precision, instincts reflected in his comfortable but cold relationship with his wife. Close to where soundings are taken, Lars rows out to a barren reef, presumed uninhabited, and discovers a young woman there. Despite her almost feral appearance, Sara stirs something in him. The mission is a success and the Svea returns to Gothenburg. Lars, however, remains haunted by this chance encounter, and feels compelled to return... October 1914: the destroyer Svea emerged from the Stockholm archipelago bearing south-south-east. On board was Lars Tobiasson-Svartman, a naval engineer charged with making depth soundings for the Swedish navy. He is obsessed with measyrement and precision, instincts reflected in his comfortable but cold relationship with his wife. Sent on a mission to take covert depth readings around the Stockholm archipelago, World War I Swedish naval officer Lars Tobiasson-Svartman finds himself attracted to a young widow whose wild nature is in total contrast to his wife's reserved personality.