Hitman Anders and the Meaning of It All

From the author of the international bestseller The 100-Year-Old-Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared, a brilliant satirical novel set in modern Sweden—a story of idealism and fanaticism, gangsters and entrepreneurs, sensationalism and spirituality, that explores the values that matter in contemporary life.

In a former brothel turned low-rent hotel, the lives of three unusual strangers—a former female priest, recently fired from her church; the ruined grandson of an ex-millionaire working as a receptionist; and Killer-Anders, a murderer newly released from prison—accidently collide with darkly hilarious results.

Seeing a lucrative opportunity in Killer-Anders, the unlikely trio form an unusual new business. The Priest and The Receptionist will handle strategy and public relations, and coordinate Killer-Anders’ “missions.” Using the media’s obsessive need for sensational, headline-making stories to advertise their talent’s superb “skill,” they quickly build a clientele of rich Swedish gangsters. Suddenly, they’re making an altogether different kind of killing of their own.

But when Killer-Anders begins asking deeper questions about purpose and meaning, his curiosity leads him to an unexpected discovery: he finds Jesus. Desperate to save the money machine they’ve built, The Priest and The Receptionist devise an audacious plan utilizing Killer-Anders’ newfound and decidedly fervent faith.

Mischievous yet big-hearted, filled with Jonas Jonasson’s trenchant humor and delightful twists, Hitman Anders and the Meaning of It All is a delightful comic adventure that reminds us it’s never to late to start over—and to discover what truly matters.

A madcap new novel from Jonas Jonasson, author of the #1 internationally bestselling The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared and The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden

A gangster, a vicar, and a receptionist walk into a bar . . .

Killer-for-hire Anders is fresh out of prison and trying to keep his head down when he meets two unlikely new business partners at a 1-star hotel: one, an atheist former Protestant vicar fired from her church, and the other the hotel’s receptionist, the ruined grandson of an ex-millionaire. Together they cook up an idea for an enterprising venture involving Swedish gangsters that is set to make them all a fortune—until, all of a sudden and to everyone’s surprise, Anders finds Jesus. The perfect plan—if it weren’t for Hitman Anders’s curiosity about the meaning of it all. In conversations with the vicar, he turns to Jesus and, against all odds, Jesus answers him! Anders’s sudden interest in religion might be good for his soul, but it’s not good for business, and the vicar and the receptionist have to find a new plan, quick.

As wildly funny and unexpected as Jonasson’s previous bestselling novels, Hitman Anders and the Meaning of It All is a zany, feel-good adventure story, tenderly and hilariously exploring belief, redemption, and the fact that it’s never too late to start again.

“Scandi-crime’s signature darkness is here dispelled by Allan Karlsson, the eponymous centenarian, who with unlikely sprightliness hops out of the window of his old people’s home one afternoon . . . Fast-moving and relentlessly sunny . . . Like Allan, the plot is pleasingly nimble and the book’s endearing charm offers a happy alternative to the more familiar Nordic noir.” - The Guardian on The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared

“A funny and completely implausible farce about a woman, a bomb and a man’s frustrated ambition to overthrow the king of Sweden. . . . The rest of the world will chuckle all the way through it.” - Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden

“A funny and improbable tale with characters from South Africa to Sweden demonstrates how even the most seemingly insignificant people can change the fate of the world.” - Denver Post on The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden

“[A] witty caper. ***1/2” - People on The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared

“The anti Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. . . Jonasson’s lighthearted novel shows the softer side of Sweden. . . . hilarious.” - Marie Claire on The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared