Jussi Adler-Olsen was born in Copenhagen and studied medicine, sociology, politics and film. He worked as a magazine editor and publisher before starting to write fiction. He began his writing career with the international thrillers Alfabethuset (The Alphabet House), Og hun takkede guderne (The Company Basher) and Washington Dekretet (The Washington Decree), after which he set his sights on Denmark, where his first two crime thrillers in the series about Department Q - Kvinden i buret (The Woman in the Cage) and Fasandræberne (The Pheasant Killers) – made him a renowned author both in Denmark and abroad.
