The following version of the novel was used to create this study guide: Nesbø, Jo. The Thirst. Knopf, May 9, 2017.

The novel The Thirst by Jo Nesbø is a study of ambition and the morally questionable things people will do in order to fulfill their desire for success presented in the form of a detective novel. Wanting respect in his field, psychologist Hallstein Smith created a vampirist in order to prove his own theory. Mona Daa, a journalist hoping for the respect of her peers, bought information from a questionable cop. In his desire to be chosen for a political position, chief of police Mikael Bellman almost did not allow the vampirist case to be solved properly. Retired detective Harry Hole was called in to help catch the killer whom he soon recognized as the only murderer who had gotten away from him. Even as he dealt with his own questions about his motivations for helping in the case, Harry struggled to find the truth about the murders even though the chief of police wanted the case shelved.

Harry had just come to a place where he felt content in his life when he was called to help solve the murder of a woman who appeared to have been bitten by what Smith described as a vampirist. He had bitten his victim with a set of iron dentures and apparently drunk some of her blood. When the third victim was left alive and was able to describe her attacker to Harry, Harry was certain that the man with whom they were dealing was the only murderer who had gotten away from him. The murderer continued to taunt Harry by kidnapping a waitress from a restaurant where he ate frequently and then writing a “V” on the table at which Harry usually sat with the woman’s lipstick.

Harry was torn by questions about his own motivation for working on the case when his wife became ill and had to be put into a coma. His stepson became angry with him for dedicating his time to the police department. He perceived his stepfather was neglecting his mother and did not understand Harry’s need to be doing something productive.

When Valentin, the prime suspect, was killed it was believed the case was solved but Harry felt uneasy about the resolution. He got an unexpected break when Truls Berntsen, the same policeman who leaked information to the media, brought him a file of Facebook information linking the murders to Lenny Hall, a suspect who had been questioned. but then cleared. Searching Lenny’s house, Harry and others found the bodies of Lenny Hall and the waitress from Harry’s restaurant as well as the files Smith claimed had been stolen from his house. Harry set up a trap for Smith, whom he suspected was the driving force in the murders.

In a dramatic ending, Smith realized that Harry knew the truth about him, that he had been the one directing Valentin so that he would have evidence to back up his dissertation. Smith grabbed Ulla as a hostage and shot Truls when he approached Smith with the intention of saving Ulla. Harry offered himself as a hostage and Smith drove the two to a boathouse where Harry used the set of iron dentures he had slipped into his mouth from Smith’s display to kill Smith.