Cold Breath An Icelandic thriller that will grip you until the final page

How do you protect a man with a price on his head? And if he's not innocent, is he even worth protecting?

Gunnhildur has been taken off police duties to act as bodyguard to a high-profile stranger. Hidden away in a secure house outside Reykjavík, the pair are thrown together - too close for comfort. But they soon find they are neither as safe nor as carefully hidden as Gunna had thought. As conflicting glimpses of the man's past start to emerge, the press sniff him out - and they're not the only ones interested in finding him . . .

As they move from safehouse to safehouse, Gunna struggles to come to terms with protecting the life of a man who may have the lives of many on his conscience. And as the friction grows between her and the visitor, Gunna realises they are increasingly out of their depth as the trails lead from the house outside Reykjavík to Brussels, Russia and the Middle East.

Praise for Quentin Bates

'Superior crime fiction set in Iceland... well constructed, well written and satisfying police procedural' The Times

'A meticulously constructed thriller, peopled with exceptionally convincing characters and shot through with black humour . . . as chilling as an Icelandic winter' S. J. Bolton

'Superior crime fiction set in Iceland' The Times

'As chilling as an Icelandic winter' S. J. Bolton

Hidden away in a secure house outside Reykjavík, Detective Gunna and a high-profile stranger, a guest of the interiors minister, are thrown together - too close for comfort.

They soon find they are neither as safe nor as carefully hidden as Gunna and her boss had thought. Conflicting glimpses of the man's past start to emerge as the press begin to sniff him out, as does another group with their own reasons for locating him.

Gunna struggles to come to terms with protecting the life of a man who may have the lives of many on his conscience - or indeed may be the philanthropist he claims to be.

Isolated together, the friction grows between Gunna and the foreign visitor, and she realises they are out of their depth as the trails lead from the house outside Reykjavík to Brussels, Russia and the Middle East.

The sixth dark and atmospheric thriller in Quentin Bates's Icelandic crime series. A chilling page-turner perfect for fans of Jo Nesbo, Henning Mankell and Søren Sveistrup's The Chestnut Man.

Praise for Quentin Bates:

'A great read - leaves you craving the next installment' Yrsa Sigurðardóttir

'A perfect book to curl up with in front of the fire' The Bookbag

'Well written and absorbing' Woman's Way

'Captures the chilly spirit of Nordic crime fiction . . . Fans of Arnaldur Indridason's Reykjavík mysteries will want to add Bates to their reading lists' Booklist

'[A] crackling fiction debut ... palpable authenticity' Publishers Weekly

'A superb new series' Eurocrime