A respected professor is dead - shot in a crowded Zurich restaurant, in front of dozens of witnesses. The murderer calmly turned himself in to the police. So why has he now hired a lawyer to clear his name? And why has he chosen the drink-soaked, disreputable Spat to defend him? As he investigates, Spat finds himself obsessed, drawn ever deeper into a case of baffling complexity until he reaches a deadly conclusion: justice can be restored only by a crime. This is a captivating neo-noir classic from the master of the genre. The Execution of Justice is a dark, wicked satire on the legal system and a disturbing, if ambivalent, allegory on guilt, justice, violence and morality.

About the Author
Friedrich Durrenmatt (1921-1990) was a Swiss author and dramatist, most famous for his plays The Visit and The Physicists, which earned him a reputation as one of the greatest playwrights in the German language. He also wrote four highly regarded crime novels - The Pledge, The Judge and His Hangman, Suspicion and The Execution of Justice, all of which will be published by Pushkin Vertigo.

Reviews
"The Swiss master of the astounding plot" - Sunday Times Crime Club

"It's not that Durrenmatt always took the road less chosen, more that he carved out an entirely different and perverse path through the literary undergrowth" - Crime Time

"A dark, wicked satire on the legal system and a disturbing, if ambivalent, allegory on guilt, justice, violence and morality" - Publishers Weekly

"Audacious... Durrenmatt's compelling handling of his favorite themes... makes Spat's funny, sad nightmare less like The Murder of Roger Ackroyd than like The Fall or The Crying of Lot 49" - Kirkus Reviews

"Durrenmatt has the gift to create unforgettable characters within a few lines" - Los Angeles Times





Book Information
ISBN 9781782273875
Author Friedrich Durrenmatt
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint Pushkin Vertigo
Publisher Pushkin Press