At the opening of Five, the psychologically disturbing debut thriller from Ursula Archer, Austrian detective Beatrice Kaspary is flustered by her belligerent ex-husband's attempts to gain additional time with their kids, but quickly puts her personal matters aside when she's called to the scene of a murder. Beatrice and her partner Florin Wenninger discover strange numbers and letters tattooed on the bottom of the dead woman's feet and soon realize that they are geographic coordinates. They follow the coordinates and find a human hand in a box, accompanied by a cryptic note they struggle to decipher.
The dead bodies pile up as the detectives follow the murderer's gruesome trail of clues across Austria. Beatrice and Florin are drawn into the world of geocaching as they find hints that lead to stashed horrors--including severed ears and, eventually, a human head. Before the body count can rise further, Beatrice and Florin must outwit the killer and save his intended victims.
For the uninitiated, Archer's explanation of this usually innocuous GPS-based game is clear, and her detectives are believably frustrated as they struggle to figure out the murderer's creepy scheme. When the killer begins texting Beatrice, it's clear that this case has suddenly become very personal. Florin and Beatrice's likeability and the vivid Austrian setting are a pleasant contrast to the grisly crimes and ultimately shocking denouement. This unusual case is bound to inspire more than a few mystery fans to try geocaching in the hopes of finding less-disturbing treasure. --Jessica Howard, blogger at Quirky Bookworm