From Per Wahlöö—co-author with his wife, Maj Sjöwall, of the internationally bestselling Martin Beck series of mysteries—comes a novel about a political assassination in South America, and unassuming diplomat is chosen to take his place. The Provincial Resident of a desolate province in a South America has been assassinated. When Manuel Ortega, a minor diplomat, accepts the appointment as the dead man's successor, it seems a foolhardy decision. From the day he assumes his post he is plunged into a violent, corrupt world, where two extremist political factions are at odds. Ortega is caught in the middle, surrounded by people he's not sure he can trust--his alluring secretary, the cynical chief of police, and the sullen bodyguards who try to keep the Resident alive. As the tension rises, Ortega must take action, but the question remains: what will he do?