Cornelia was 19 years old when she met and was dazzled by older Hans Goransson. Wealthy from his commercial real estate business, he wined and dined her and presented her with impressive gifts. After they married, he became mentally and physically abusive. Now she fears for her life and the life of their six year old daughter, Astrid. She has asked for a divorce. Their lovely home in very posh Bromma, a Stockholm suburb, is for sale. A second Open House is being staged and is in readiness by realtor Helena Sjoblom, who is confident of a sale. When the house is sold, Cornelia and Astrid can escape to a rental apartment and begin a new, safe life together and keep a distance from Hans. Hoping it will happen soon, Cornelia fears his next brutality will kill her. She must protect her beloved daughter, and escape Hans.

The day after the second Open House, Astrid discovers the bloody body of her father who has been murdered. The police arrive and discover a kitchen knife from their own collection is the weapon. There is no apparent break-in and when questioned Astrid tells the police an older man stroked her cheek the night of the murder when she was almost asleep in her bedroom. Did everyone leave after the Open House was over or did someone remain, hidden away until the moment was right to kill Hugo? Did Helena neglect to make sure all the doors and windows were locked?

Emma Skold is a police detective who loves her chosen career, following in the footsteps of her father. He is not pleased with her choice because he thinks police work is too risky for his daughter especially now that she is pregnant. Emma is happy with impending motherhood and her lover, Kristoffer, a hard working real estate agent. He has promised to find them an apartment so they can be together, happily after. Emma is struggling to decide if she will be able to juggle the work she loves and be a good mother too. Emma is convinced Cornelia is the killer and her reasons stem from a large insurance policy recently taken out that will leave Emma wealthy. She has no proof that her husband abused her as she has never reported him to the police. When she is arrested and sent to jail, Cornelia is only released when another pair of murders occur at another Open House.

The ending of KILLER DEAL is a cliffhanger I did not see coming. Ms. Sarenbrant is a sterling crime story teller, touching on meaningful topics such as domestic abuse, career/motherhood issues, friendships, revenge and betrayals. I did not like Cornelia and found her cold, distant and not capable of good decisions. It is no surprise that Sofie Sarenbrant is Queen of Scandinavian Crime novels. KILLER DEAL is her first novel translated into English. I look forward to her next offering. I enjoyed this riveting thriller that sneaked up on me at the final page. WOW!