Tom Egeland
The Devil's Mask

1708: On a freezing Christmas morning, the occultist Conrad Krämer is found dead near Juvdal Stave Church. Five black candles were placed around the deceased, and the snow was covered in split animal tracks.

1963: At the base of the newly constructed church tower lies a fallen chaplain, Pontius Fjeldberg. The sheriff explains that Fjeldberg was terrified and claimed to have seen the devil’s mask “floating under the church roof.”

2015: While working on a book about these deaths, journalist Daniel Lyche is himself killed. The police have no leads. Bjørn Beltø is called to Juvdal as a historical expert and begins to unravel the threads that connect the centuries.

Tom Egeland

Fredrik Arff

Tom Egeland (b. 1959) is the author of the bestselling series about archaeologist Bjørn Beltø and a number of standalone crime novels. He is translated into 25 languages and has received numerous Norwegian literary prizes, including Rivertonprisen for best crime novel (Gospel of Lucifer) and Riksmålsforbundets Literary Award (The Devil’s Mask). His novel Night of the Wolf became both a movie and a TV series. Egeland has been president of the Norwegian Crime Writers’ Association (Rivertonklubben) and a board member of the Norwegian Authors’ Union for ten years. He has also been a book critic for the Norwegian newspaper VG.