Two patrolling cops stumble on to three criminals who have just stolen large amounts of explosives, and are killed in cold blood. Martin Beck and his team must now work day and night to find out who the killers are and what they are planning to do with the explosives before it's too late. Meanwhile, Gunvald Larsson who was a close friend of one of the murdered cops is ignoring all rules in his quest for revenge.

Koiraansa ulkoiluttanut mies tapetaan. Hänet on skalpeerattu kasvojen osalta. Beck kollegoineen alkaa tutkia tapausta. Vaimo väittää avioliittoa onnelliseksi, mutta silti miehellä oli suhde ulkomaalaiseen, naimisissa olevaan naiseen. Ruotsalainen ja pakistanilainen kulttuuri törmäävät: ennakkoluulot, erilaiset käsitykset perheen ja naisen kunniasta sekä äärimmäinen mustasukkaisuus hidastavat tutkimusten etenemistä.

A Greek restaurant owner is brutally tortured and killed. Beck and his team investigate, and are drawn into a world of smuggling, threats, and violence.

Martin Beck, Gunvald Larsson and Alice Levander investigate the mysterious murder of an accountant that was found shot to death at the airport parking. At the same time a reporter receives a package from an anonymous source, with information regarding the embezzling of funds that should have been used for fixing up nuclear reactors. When the reporter contacts Beck, his home gets blown up by a bomb.

A man is raping women after having met them through ads on public noticeboards. At first this seems like an easy crime to solve for Martin Beck and his colleagues but they soon discover that somebody's motivations are far more complex.

Mother of an autistic boy is found murdered in her home. The boy holds the murder weapon, covered in blood.

A series of grisly murders where the victims faces have been removed by acid starts to turn up around Stockholm. Detective Martin Beck and Gunvald Larsson are once again drawn into the darkness.