The Game of Evil Series (Saga El juego del mal)

The Game of Evil | The Symphony of Fear

Álvaro de la Torre, a Madrid homicide inspector haunted by a crime that shattered his childhood, forms a specialized team with Inspector Elsa Bermejo and criminal profiler Iván Neveira to solve the city’s most complex cases. Disappearances, murders, and secrets buried for decades force them to follow the trail of evidence as they confront unpredictable killers, while each investigation leaves scars that remain long after the case is closed. 

THEMES: Serial Killer – Crime – Detective – Spain – Investigation – Justice – Death – Obsession – The Past – Psychological – Kidnapping – Violence – Whodunit 

GENRE: Drama – Thriller 

PITCH: Álvaro de la Torre and Elsa Bermejo are two investigators in Madrid’s Homicide Division dedicated to solving the city’s most complex crimes. Each new case confronts them with killers who have concealed their crimes for years, unexplained disappearances, and family secrets that seemed destined to remain buried forever.

As they pursue the truth, their own lives evolve as well. Álvaro struggles to overcome the trauma that marked his childhood; Elsa becomes his greatest source of support, both professionally and personally; and Iván Neveira, the team’s criminal profiler, brings an innovative perspective to understanding the minds of murderers. Together, they form a team united by the need to rely on one another in order to endure the emotional toll of confronting society’s darkest criminal mysteries day after day.

Forensic analysis, criminal profiling, interrogations, and unexpected twists come together in a crime series that contains all the ingredients needed to captivate fans of the genre.

In The Game of Evil, a woman is found murdered in an exclusive residential community in Madrid with a mysterious “M”-shaped mark carved behind her ear. For Inspector Álvaro de la Torre, the symbol carries a devastating significance: it is identical to the scar he bears from the time he and his sister were kidnapped as children. His sister was murdered a few weeks later in a crime that was never solved.

Together with Inspector Elsa Bermejo, Álvaro embarks on an investigation in which the boundary between the professional and the personal becomes increasingly blurred. Their inquiries lead them to a series of child disappearances that occurred decades earlier across different parts of Spain. As they analyze forensic evidence, review old case files, and close in on multiple suspects, they discover that the victim is actually a girl who disappeared in 1982 and had been held captive for more than thirty years.

The arrival of profiler Iván Neveira ultimately allows the team to connect all the cases and identify two seemingly ordinary men united by a deeply disturbing obsession: turning kidnapped girls into living dolls. When they discover that another child has recently been abducted and that an additional victim remains alive after decades of captivity, Álvaro realizes that the killer has been waiting for him for years and will accept no confrontation with anyone else.

Determined to end the nightmare once and for all, the inspector enters the kidnappers’ hideout to rescue both hostages and bring closure to the crime that destroyed his childhood. By solving the case, he finally begins to heal the wound left by his sister’s murder and starts rebuilding his relationship with his family.

The Symphony of Fear begins with the discovery of the body of Carolina Lago, a young woman who disappeared more than a year earlier. Her body bears the marks of a prolonged captivity and offers a single clue: fragments of ceramic she swallowed before her death in order to point investigators toward the place where she had been held.

As Inspectors Álvaro de la Torre and Elsa Bermejo investigate the case, they discover that Carolina’s death is intimately connected to the disappearance of her father, a respected psychiatrist who vanished just days after her abduction.

The investigation advances through police work, forensic analysis, Iván Neveira’s criminal profiling, and the collaboration of private detective Víctor Echevarría. Gradually, a meticulously planned scheme comes to light. The perpetrator, someone the family trusted completely, kidnapped Carolina, subjected her to prolonged torment, and manipulated her father into becoming an unwilling participant in what he believed was a therapy intended to save her. By the time he discovered the truth, it was too late: he was forced to take his own life in front of his daughter before the killer completed the final stage of his macabre plan. Ultimately, the clue Carolina concealed within her own body becomes the key to locating the place of captivity and solving the case.

At the same time, the novel delves into the story of Víctor Echevarría, who has long been haunted by the case of the Salamanca Executioner, a killer responsible for the death of his partner years earlier. While assisting in the Lago family investigation, the final pieces of that unsolved crime finally fall into place. However, when he discovers that one of those responsible has escaped justice, he decides to take matters into his own hands and executes a plan that allows him to eliminate the culprit without leaving a trace.

RELEVANT INFORMATION: Marcos Nieto Pallarés is a Spanish author of crime fiction and psychological thrillers. He began his career through self-publishing, where he established himself as a successful writer while also maintaining a presence in traditional publishing.

His work focuses on criminal suspense, featuring complex investigations, serial killers, and a strong psychological component, with protagonists shaped by trauma and moral conflict. His novels have reached the top of bestseller lists, establishing themselves as true bestsellers.

The The Game of Evil saga has enjoyed significant commercial success and stands among the author’s most celebrated works. It brings together many of the elements that perform best in contemporary audiovisual fiction: strong police investigations, protagonists with compelling character arcs, and self-contained cases that sustain tension through to the final resolution.

Each novel combines fast-paced storytelling, carefully constructed twists, and meticulous criminal investigation, while the personal development of Álvaro, Elsa, and Iván provides continuity and emotional depth. Its structure, reminiscent of major crime drama series, allows each novel to be adapted as a standalone season while building a recognizable universe populated by recurring characters and offering substantial long-term narrative potential.

WHAT CRITICS AND READERS SAY

“A gripping story that blends the crime thriller with noir fiction.” ABC

“A thriller that keeps readers on edge at all times, with an exceptionally well-crafted plot.” Libros por doquier

“A gripping and twisted thriller.” El Bosque de la Maga Colibrí

“An emotionally intense story that kept me hooked until the very end.” Amazon

AUDIOVISUAL POTENTIAL: TV Series, Limited Series, Feature Film, TV Film. 

AVAILABLE LANGUAGES: Spanish.