The Pieter Van In Mysteries

The Pieter Van In Mysteries
Author: Pieter Aspe
Publisher: Open Road Media
Total Pages: 1059
Release: 2017-11-28
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1504046234

Four gripping police procedurals set in Bruges, starring “a brusque cop with every bad habit you can think of” (Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review). Featuring the bad-tempered, libidinous, alcoholic but skilled police investigator Deputy Commissioner Pieter Van In, these four gritty crime novels from a #1 international bestselling author reveal the darker side of the beautiful Belgian city of Bruges. The Square of Revenge: The perpetrators who broke into an elite jewelry store in Bruges stole nothing, but dissolved a fortune in priceless gems in jars of powerful acid—a perplexing crime that entangles Deputy Commissioner Pieter Van In and his beautiful colleague, assistant district attorney Hannelore Martens, in a wealthy family’s darkest, deadliest secrets. The Midas Murders: Two suspicious deaths and an explosion at a popular tourist site lead Van In and Martens into the heart of a terrorist nightmare that could leave their beloved Bruges in ruins. From Bruges with Love: The discovery of a thirty-year-old skeleton during the restoration of a farmhouse pits Van In against high-level Belgian officials determined to prevent the detective from digging too deeply into the house’s sordid and terrible past. The Fourth Figure: In this novel, nominated for a Hercule Poirot Award, Deputy Commissioner Van In’s investigation of a young woman’s bizarre death is a prelude to a massacre, and it places him in the rifle sights of a sinister satanic cult. In the vein of Georges Simenon’s Inspector Maigret, “Aspe’s writing is crisp and his characters memorable” (Booklist).

The Midas Murders

The Midas Murders
Author: Pieter Aspe
Publisher: Open Road Media
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2013-12-03
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1453239758

DIVIn the second novel by the international bestselling Pieter Aspe, Inspector Van In races against the clock to thwart a series of terrorist plots One quiet snow-covered Sunday morning in Bruges, a prominent business executive is found dead in the streets, apparently due to an alcoholic hemorrhage, but for Inspector Van In, there is something about the autopsy that does not add up. When he questions the businessman’s friend, a Dutchman, he too is found dead the next morning, burned to death in a house fire. When there is an explosion in the middle of a popular tourist area in downtown Bruges, Van In strives to find the connection between the three incidents, but no one is coming forward to claim responsibility for this terrorist attack. Just an anonymous letter to the police, threatening more bombings—unless they cooperate with a series of demands that would undermine the entire city government. Aided by the spunky and beautiful assistant DA, Hannelore Martens, Inspector Van In finds himself enmeshed in the case that threatens not just the lives of countless innocent people, but the heart of the city he loves. /div

The Square of Revenge

The Square of Revenge
Author: Pieter Aspe
Publisher: Open Road Media
Total Pages: 334
Release: 2013-06-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 145323974X

The #1 international bestselling crime thriller that introduces Belgian detective Pieter Van In, “a brusque cop with every bad habit you can think of” (The New York Times Book Review). The beautiful medieval architecture of Bruges belies the dark longings of her residents. When the wealthy and powerful Ludovic Degroof’s jewelry store is robbed, nothing is stolen, but the jewels have been dissolved in jars of aqua regia, an acid so strong that it can melt even gold. In the empty safe is a scrap of paper on which a strange square has been drawn. At first, Inspector Van In pays little attention to the paper, focusing on the bizarre nature of the burglary. But when Degroof’s children begin to receive letters with this same enigmatic square, Van In and the beautiful new District Attorney, Hannelore Martens, find themselves engaged in solving the mystery of a complex web of Latin phrases, a baroness’ fallen family, and Degroof’s unsettling relationship with a hostage grandchild, who is being ransomed for a priceless collection of art.

The Fourth Figure

The Fourth Figure
Author: Pieter Aspe
Publisher: Open Road Media
Total Pages: 254
Release: 2016-09-13
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1504032284

Nominated for the Hercule Poirot Award: Commissioner Pieter Van In must find the link between members of a satanic conspiracy and a young woman’s death A young woman is found dead in the canal outside her Bruges apartment building. But what seems like a clear-cut suicide evolves into something much more complex when Commissioner Pieter Van In uncovers the girl’s involvement in a satanic sect. Who is the mysterious Venex, and why does he inspire such devotion from his disciples? Complicating the investigation further, Van In’s boss allows beautiful journalist Saartje Maes to profile the case, sparking tension with the commissioner’s expectant wife, District Attorney Hannelore Martens. As a horrific tragedy shocks the city, Van In seems to be surrounded by secrets. And though exposing them will lead him to the truth, it will also pit him against the very police force to which he’s devoted his life. A Belgian national bestseller, The Fourth Figure has been reprinted in Dutch seventeen times. It is the 4th book in the Pieter Van In Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.

History And Science Of Knots

History And Science Of Knots
Author: John C Turner
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 463
Release: 1996-05-30
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 9814499641

This book brings together twenty essays on diverse topics in the history and science of knots. It is divided into five parts, which deal respectively with knots in prehistory and antiquity, non-European traditions, working knots, the developing science of knots, and decorative and other aspects of knots.Its authors include archaeologists who write on knots found in digs of ancient sites (one describes the knots used by the recently discovered Ice Man); practical knotters who have studied the history and uses of knots at sea, for fishing and for various life support activities; a historian of lace; a computer scientist writing on computer classification of doilies; and mathematicians who describe the history of knot theories from the eighteenth century to the present day.In view of the explosion of mathematical theories of knots in the past decade, with consequential new and important scientific applications, this book is timely in setting down a brief, fragmentary history of mankind's oldest and most useful technical and decorative device — the knot.

From Bruges with Love

From Bruges with Love
Author: Pieter Aspe
Publisher: Pieter Van in Mysteries
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2015-07-07
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9781497678897

Inspector Pieter Van In is begrudgingly finishing up a healthy lunch when he hears the news: While moving into a restored farmhouse, a family has found a skeleton in the backyard. Now married to the deputy public prosecutor, Hannelore Martens, Van In is determined to solve the case in double-quick time and squeeze in one last vacation before their first child is born. But this murder is trickier than it looks, and Van In soon finds himself in murky waters. The Vermasts' land previously belonged to Lodewijk Vandaele, the owner of what used to be one of the largest contractor companies in West Flanders before it was suddenly handed over to a right-wing charity. The heavily endowed foundation appears to have no expenditures or investments. So who's financing it--and why?Before he knows it, Van In finds himself in the middle of a complex web--one that involves high-level officials and law enforcement as much as common thugs. The more determined Van In becomes to unravel the thread, the harder it gets to discover the secret hidden by powerful benefactors. This time, Van In will risk lives to find out the truth.

A Traitor Among Us

A Traitor Among Us
Author: Elizabeth Van Steenwyk
Publisher: Eerdmans Young Readers
Total Pages: 148
Release: 1999
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9780802851574

In occupied Holland in 1944, thirteen-year-old Pieter becomes increasingly involved in the work of the Dutch Resistance even though he knows the risk of being discovered by the Nazi informer who lives in his village.

The Diamond Dakota Mystery

The Diamond Dakota Mystery
Author: Juliet Wills
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Total Pages: 252
Release: 2006-08-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781741158397

This extraordinary true tale follows the disappearance of more than 20 million dollars worth of precious diamonds during World War II. In 1942, as the Japanese army advanced on Java, two wealthy businessmen entrusted a Russian aviator, Captain Ivan Smirnoff, with a small, mysteriously-unmarked package, to be delivered to a businessman in Sydney. The plane was attacked during a Japanese air raid and under heavy fire, but Smirnoff miraculously landed the badly damaged plane on an isolated beach on Java's far northwest coast. A few weeks later, Jack Palmer stumbled across the lost package—containing precious diamonds—among the plane's wreckage. Nicknamed "Diamond Jack," Palmer and two others were charged with theft of the diamonds. This true adventure follows the diamonds as they are lost, found, and lost again.

The Flanders Panel

The Flanders Panel
Author: Arturo Pérez-Reverte
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Total Pages: 358
Release: 2004-06-07
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0547539584

“A sleek, sophisticated, madly clever chamber mystery” from the international bestselling author—the basis for the film Uncovered starring Kate Beckinsale (The New York Times Book Review). A fifteenth-century painting by a Flemish master is about to be auctioned when Julia, a young art restorer, discovers a peculiar inscription hidden in a corner: Who killed the knight? In the painting, the Duke of Flanders and his knight are locked in a game of chess, and a dark lady lurks mysteriously in the background. Julia is determined to solve the five-hundred-year-old murder, but as she begins to look for clues, several of her friends in the art world are brutally murdered in quick succession. Messages left with the bodies suggest a crucial connection between the chess game in the painting, the knight’s murder, the sordid underside of the contemporary art world, and the latest deaths. Just when all of the players in the mystery seem to be pawns themselves, events race toward a shocking conclusion. A thriller like no other, The Flanders Panel presents a tantalizing puzzle for any connoisseur of mystery, chess, art, and history. “A beguiling puzzle—a game within a game within a game—solved in perplexing but entertaining fashion.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer “For mystery fans who yearn for literate, intelligent, sophisticated whodunits, Spanish author Pérez-Reverte’s highly acclaimed story fills the bill perfectly . . . An inventive plot, gripping suspense, fascinatingly complex characters, and innovative incorporation of art, literature, and music will enthrall readers looking for something a little different.”—Booklist “This intelligent mystery . . . comes up with a satisfying twist at the end.”—Library Journal