The Summer of Dead Toys

By: Antonio Hill

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

A riveting crime thriller set during a sultry Barcelona summer, introducing Inspector Hector Salgado.

Inspector Hector Salgado is a transplanted Argentine living in Barcelona. While working on human trafficking case, Salgado’s violent temper got the best of him and he beat a suspect within an inch of his life. Ordered on probation, he fled to Argentina to cool off for a few months.

Now he’s back in Barcelona and is eager for another big case. But his boss has other plans. He assigns Salgado to a routine accidental death: A college student fell from a balcony in one of Barcelona’s ritzier neighborhoods. As Salgado begins to piece together the life and world of the victim, he realizes that his death was not all that simple: His teenage friends are either overly paranoid or deceptively calm, and drugs might be involved. Hector begins to follow a trail that will lead him deep into the underbelly of Barcelona’s high society where he’ll come face-to-face with dangerous criminals, long-buried secrets, and, of course, his own past. But Hector thrives on pressure, and he lives for this kind of case - dark, violent, and seemingly unsolvable.

Gripping, sophisticated, and wickedly entertaining, The Summer of Dead Toys introduces a charismatic new detective and announces Antonio Hill as a new master of the crime thriller.

©2013 Antonio Hill (P)2013 Random House Audio

Critic Reviews

"This dark thriller is an amazing debut - acutely observed and meticulously crafted. Long live Hector Salgado - a thoroughly human detective-protagonist. I look forward to meeting him again." (John Verdon, best-selling author of Let the Devil Sleep)

"Penetrating, atmospheric... The plot is first-rate, with plausible twists and revelations [and] the book transcends the mystery genre with its focus on the dark secrets families keep.... Thoroughly compelling." ( Kirkus)

"Reminiscent of Ian Rankin's John Rebus or Jo Nesbø's Harry Hole, Héctor Salgado is an intriguing new sleuth that crime fiction fans will want to follow as they explore the gritty side of another European city." ( Library Journal)