The English Speakers

A cold case unearths shocking secrets from the past in this gripping Nordic noir crime thriller, perfect for fans of Wallander and True Detective.

Detectives Charlie, James and Aijia bonded two years ago, brought together by their otherness as outsiders in their Helsinki precinct. When two cryptic cases come their way, their relationships with each other are thrown off balance.

The fifteen-year-old remains of a young woman are found buried in the woods. The crime scene hasn’t been preserved, her identity is unknown, and her killer is a couple of decades ahead of them – solving this case seems unlikely.

Months later, after the case has turned colder still, Charlie is disturbed when he is called out to another grisly crime – an apparent suicide. Charlie knows this should be James’ case, but from the evidence he is faced with, he starts to suspect that James may be more involved than he first believed. How far is Charlie willing to go to uncover the dark secrets surrounding him?

Set against the constant rain of a Finnish spring, The English Speakers is a noir procedural that tackles themes of identity, race, and belonging as it builds towards its devastating conclusion.Agatha Zaza is a writer living in Helsinki, Finland. She works in the international development sector specialising in communications, institutional giving and human rights. Born in Zambia, Agatha has worked and lived in several countries, among them New Zealand and the then Soviet Union. While in Ireland, she earned a Master’s in Equality Studies from University College Dublin and she completed her first novel, The Pretenders, in Singapore. Agatha’s work can be seen in the Johannesburg Review of Books. She has been nominated for a prize for short fiction. She can usually be found working in cafes in Helsinki’s historic centre and enjoys perusing its second hand clothing and furniture shops.