6 year old Albin Landberg disappears without a trace from his kindergarten, and all of Ystad get involved in

the family's and the police's ever more desperate search for the boy. The clues lead Kurt Wallander and his colleagues to a convicted paedophile, newly released from prison after finishing serving his jail term. But also towards a series of revelations that turn out to be more horrible and complicated than any of them could ever imagine.