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Dark Iceland #4
Päevavalgus
Aasta 1955. Kaks noorukest paari kolib muust maailmast ära lõigatud Héðinsfjörðuri fjordi kaldale. Nende elu eraldatuses saab järsu lõpu, kui üks naistest salapärastel asjaoludel oma otsa leiab. Juhtum jääbki lahendamata. Viiskümmend aastat hiljem tuleb päevavalgele vana foto, mis tekitab küsimusi ja annab lootust, et saladus võib lõpuks lahendatud saada.
Lähedal asuvas Siglufjörðuris püüab nooruke politseinik Ari Thór selgust saada, mis tol saatuslikul päeval tegelikult juhtus, kuid möödunud on rohkem kui pool sajandit ja mäletajaid on vähe alles. Lisaks on niigi klaustrofoobseks kippuv Siglufjörður turisti toodud viiruse tõttu karantiinis.
Paralleelselt kulgeb teinegi lugu: Reykjavíkis tegutseb uudistereporter Ísrún, kes uurib omaenda järjest kõhedamaks muutuvat juhtumit. Lein, auahnus, soov mineviku ees silmad sulgeda – kõik see tekitab paraja sasipuntra.
Kas need juhtumid, üks vana ja teine uus, leiavad lahenduse? Kas inimloomus on poole sajandi jooksul muutunud või juhivad meid endiselt tumedad tungid, mis on meile omased olnud aegade hämarusest saati?
Lähedal asuvas Siglufjörðuris püüab nooruke politseinik Ari Thór selgust saada, mis tol saatuslikul päeval tegelikult juhtus, kuid möödunud on rohkem kui pool sajandit ja mäletajaid on vähe alles. Lisaks on niigi klaustrofoobseks kippuv Siglufjörður turisti toodud viiruse tõttu karantiinis.
Paralleelselt kulgeb teinegi lugu: Reykjavíkis tegutseb uudistereporter Ísrún, kes uurib omaenda järjest kõhedamaks muutuvat juhtumit. Lein, auahnus, soov mineviku ees silmad sulgeda – kõik see tekitab paraja sasipuntra.
Kas need juhtumid, üks vana ja teine uus, leiavad lahenduse? Kas inimloomus on poole sajandi jooksul muutunud või juhivad meid endiselt tumedad tungid, mis on meile omased olnud aegade hämarusest saati?
276 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
About the author
Ragnar Jónasson
44 books3,336 followersRagnar Jonasson is author of the award winning and international bestselling Dark Iceland series.
His debut Snowblind, first in the Dark Iceland series, went to number one in the Amazon Kindle charts shortly after publication. The book was also a no. 1 Amazon Kindle bestseller in Australia. Snowblind has been a paperback bestseller in France.
Nightblind won the Dead Good Reader Award 2016 for Most Captivating Crime in Translation.
Snowblind was called a "classically crafted whodunit" by THE NEW YORK TIMES, and it was selected by The Independent as one of the best crime novels of 2015 in the UK.
Rights to the Dark Iceland series have been sold to UK, USA, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Australia, Poland, Turkey, South Korea, Japan, Morocco, Portugal, Croatia, Armenia and Iceland.
Ragnar was born in Reykjavik, Iceland, where he works as a writer and a lawyer. He also teaches copyright law at Reykjavik University and has previously worked on radio and television, including as a TV-news reporter for the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service.
He is also the co-founder of the Reykjavik international crime writing festival Iceland Noir.
From the age of 17, Ragnar translated 14 Agatha Christie novels into Icelandic.
Ragnar has also had short stories published internationally, including in the distinguished Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the US, the first stories by an Icelandic author in that magazine.
He has appeared on festival panels worldwide, and lives in Reykjavik.
His debut Snowblind, first in the Dark Iceland series, went to number one in the Amazon Kindle charts shortly after publication. The book was also a no. 1 Amazon Kindle bestseller in Australia. Snowblind has been a paperback bestseller in France.
Nightblind won the Dead Good Reader Award 2016 for Most Captivating Crime in Translation.
Snowblind was called a "classically crafted whodunit" by THE NEW YORK TIMES, and it was selected by The Independent as one of the best crime novels of 2015 in the UK.
Rights to the Dark Iceland series have been sold to UK, USA, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Australia, Poland, Turkey, South Korea, Japan, Morocco, Portugal, Croatia, Armenia and Iceland.
Ragnar was born in Reykjavik, Iceland, where he works as a writer and a lawyer. He also teaches copyright law at Reykjavik University and has previously worked on radio and television, including as a TV-news reporter for the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service.
He is also the co-founder of the Reykjavik international crime writing festival Iceland Noir.
From the age of 17, Ragnar translated 14 Agatha Christie novels into Icelandic.
Ragnar has also had short stories published internationally, including in the distinguished Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the US, the first stories by an Icelandic author in that magazine.
He has appeared on festival panels worldwide, and lives in Reykjavik.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 572 reviews
October 23, 2017
Before going into my official review, I feel it necessary to rehash the importance of the order you read these books in IF you care about spoilers featuring the reoccurring characters. While these were translated in a certain order into english, now that four (almost five) of the series are out, you have the ability to avoid unwelcome spoiling. As best I can tell, the order you should read these is as follows (for chronological consumption):
Snowblind
Blackout
Rupture
Nightblind
Now that I got that out of the way, let's move on to the review.
" 'You think someone may have murdered her?' Ari Thor asked straight out, having long ago given up packaging awkward questions in tactful ways. He had never been particularly considerate in that regard, anyway."
^ Well said Ari, well said. I have always felt my book boyfriend from Iceland expresses the things we introverts wish we could on a daily basis. Maybe it's his lack of filter, his dry sense of humor, and his general sense of unawareness to many a situation we would find to contain common sense, but Ari is a wholly engaging protagonist who is heavily flawed, yet you still love him to pieces. I always try to keep sequel reviews brief and free of spoilers past and present, but I will say that this fits nicely between Blackout and Nightblind, not because of the individual case load, but due to the fact it again features Isrun the reporter from B.O. and also comes chronologically before the events of N.B. I did already know what would happen with a few of the ongoing storyline reveals, as I had already read N.B. which continues from the outcome in Rupture. This was fine; I felt like it wasn't anything major and it gave me a greater appreciation for what I had read before. I also really enjoyed the storyline limited to just this novel, as it was equal parts historical and contemporary fiction and had the feel of solving a cold case that has been haunting you for years. Highly recommended to fans of the series!!
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my copy.
Snowblind
Blackout
Rupture
Nightblind
Now that I got that out of the way, let's move on to the review.
" 'You think someone may have murdered her?' Ari Thor asked straight out, having long ago given up packaging awkward questions in tactful ways. He had never been particularly considerate in that regard, anyway."
^ Well said Ari, well said. I have always felt my book boyfriend from Iceland expresses the things we introverts wish we could on a daily basis. Maybe it's his lack of filter, his dry sense of humor, and his general sense of unawareness to many a situation we would find to contain common sense, but Ari is a wholly engaging protagonist who is heavily flawed, yet you still love him to pieces. I always try to keep sequel reviews brief and free of spoilers past and present, but I will say that this fits nicely between Blackout and Nightblind, not because of the individual case load, but due to the fact it again features Isrun the reporter from B.O. and also comes chronologically before the events of N.B. I did already know what would happen with a few of the ongoing storyline reveals, as I had already read N.B. which continues from the outcome in Rupture. This was fine; I felt like it wasn't anything major and it gave me a greater appreciation for what I had read before. I also really enjoyed the storyline limited to just this novel, as it was equal parts historical and contemporary fiction and had the feel of solving a cold case that has been haunting you for years. Highly recommended to fans of the series!!
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my copy.
March 10, 2019
I've given the other books I this series four stars, but this barely garnered a three. Why? Yes, I still love the atmosphere, the darkness, the coldness, so pervasive. Such an enclosing air. Yes, I also still like Ari Thor, though I this one he shares star billing with Isrun, a journalist who has her own issues. My problem was with the many different stories, threads, happening at the same time, made it hard to concentrate on any one. Broke up the narrative with the constant changing of focus. There were also a few subplots that were resolved with nary a blink. One, the quarantine, I couldn't even feel like it was a necessary inclusion, it served imo, little purpose.
I did like the past story that was being looked into, and that brought my rating up to a three. Mostly though, I felt this was too rushed and too many items were put into the pot. Didn't stir up well.
I did like the past story that was being looked into, and that brought my rating up to a three. Mostly though, I felt this was too rushed and too many items were put into the pot. Didn't stir up well.
February 9, 2017
I’m sure I’ve said this before, but you know when you’ve been waiting for the next book by an author whose work you love? Well that was me, until yesterday evening. I had been waiting patiently, biding my time until Rupture’s release on Christmas Eve. Imagine my utter joy and excitement when I got an email last night and Rupture was attached. Needless to say, I dropped EVERYTHING to start reading, and I finished it this afternoon.
There’s always that’s tiny bit of fear when reading a book by an author you enjoy, will it be good? Will it be as good as their last book? Well it’s safe to say I was in no way disappointed upon reading the final page of Rupture, it made me smile.
Rupture is a chillingly beautiful book. Atmospheric, subtle and utterly enthralling. Opening the book felt like coming home, catching up with friends and seeing what’s been going on in their lives. A gentle and easy prose lends itself perfectly to the story, creating tension at the right times, while keeping the reader completely gripped.
There is more than one thread running through Rupture in terms of stories, yet they all weave together seamlessly as you progress through the pages. With Siglufjörður in the grips of a deadly virus, Ari Thor is tasked with rehashing an old case to see if anything can be gleaned in relation to a suspicious death from many years ago. Running parallel to his investigation, news reporter Ísrún is investigating a case of her own. We have met Ísrún before, and it was great to see her in Rupture as well. She’s a very interesting character and I really enjoyed reading more about her.
I don’t want to get too much into the plot for fear of giving anything away. What I will say though, is I wasn’t expecting Rupture to go in the direction that it did. The past is a funny thing, and it can resurface at any time and in some very unexpected ways. Rupture is testament to that fact, the past can definitely return to haunt people.
Honestly, I think these books just keep getting better. With every new book, I find that Ragnar Jónasson is tackling some very interesting and hard-hitting issues, and always with sensitivity. There is nothing gratuitous in these books, every word serves a purpose. Like flakes of snow falling from the sky, his words fall gently on the reader and have the ability to chill.
Rupture was everything I had been hoping for, and so much more. Stunning. Gripping. So completely worth the wait.
All the stars. Always.
There’s always that’s tiny bit of fear when reading a book by an author you enjoy, will it be good? Will it be as good as their last book? Well it’s safe to say I was in no way disappointed upon reading the final page of Rupture, it made me smile.
Rupture is a chillingly beautiful book. Atmospheric, subtle and utterly enthralling. Opening the book felt like coming home, catching up with friends and seeing what’s been going on in their lives. A gentle and easy prose lends itself perfectly to the story, creating tension at the right times, while keeping the reader completely gripped.
There is more than one thread running through Rupture in terms of stories, yet they all weave together seamlessly as you progress through the pages. With Siglufjörður in the grips of a deadly virus, Ari Thor is tasked with rehashing an old case to see if anything can be gleaned in relation to a suspicious death from many years ago. Running parallel to his investigation, news reporter Ísrún is investigating a case of her own. We have met Ísrún before, and it was great to see her in Rupture as well. She’s a very interesting character and I really enjoyed reading more about her.
I don’t want to get too much into the plot for fear of giving anything away. What I will say though, is I wasn’t expecting Rupture to go in the direction that it did. The past is a funny thing, and it can resurface at any time and in some very unexpected ways. Rupture is testament to that fact, the past can definitely return to haunt people.
Honestly, I think these books just keep getting better. With every new book, I find that Ragnar Jónasson is tackling some very interesting and hard-hitting issues, and always with sensitivity. There is nothing gratuitous in these books, every word serves a purpose. Like flakes of snow falling from the sky, his words fall gently on the reader and have the ability to chill.
Rupture was everything I had been hoping for, and so much more. Stunning. Gripping. So completely worth the wait.
All the stars. Always.
March 19, 2017
4.5 stars
Another gorgeous cover, another great read. A couple of years ago, I was browsing in the bookstore at Keflavik airport when “Snowblind” from Orenda Books caught my eye (and wallet). I hadn’t heard of it, the author or the publisher. How times have changed.
Most of the series is now translated so I recently spent a few days back in Iceland (from my sofa) by binge reading the next 3 instalments. This is book #4 & I think it just might be my favourite.
Ari Thór is having trouble finding something to do. After a tourist died from a highly infectious bug, Siglufjördur was put under quarantine. No one is allowed in or out & the streets are empty as residents hunker down inside. So it’s the perfect time to dig into an old mystery.
Ari is contacted by an elderly gent named Hédinn with a photo that recently came into his possession. It was taken on an isolated farm where the man was born. In 1955, 2 couples from Reykjavik moved to the remote area. Less than 2 years later, one was dead & the others fled back to the city with a newborn in tow. Hédinn wants to know if Ari can find the answer to one question: who is the stranger in the photo?
Ari soon finds connections In Reykjavik but can’t travel due to the quarantine. He enlists the help of Isrún, a reporter he met on a previous case. She agrees if he’ll give her the scoop on the situation in Siglufjördur which is gaining national attention.
There are several additional side stories that develop as the book progresses. The fun part is watching as the characters pick away at their investigations & uncover a few surprising twists along the way.
If you’ve read any of these books, you know you’re in for intricate mysteries & great characters you become attached to. Their personal stories continue to develop & Ari in particular is a young man still struggling to finding his feet (if you’re keeping score, he & Kristin are back together). He’s more accepted by the town’s residents but will always be an outsider & his feelings of isolation are perfectly mirrored by the stark setting. The quarantine serves to heighten the claustrophobic atmosphere as Siglufjördur becomes a ghost town. The silence, chill winds, & looming mountains provide a backdrop for the rising tension as Ari gradually discovers what happened to Hédinn’s family .
There are no car chases or shoot-outs here, just a smart, character driven mystery that gives your brain a workout. It’s one of those books that leaves you a bit disoriented when you eventually look up & find yourself on the sofa, reaching for a sweater.
Well, the binge-fest is over. I’m left waiting for “Whiteout” & plotting a return trip to Iceland that just might include dropping by a certain town up north.
Another gorgeous cover, another great read. A couple of years ago, I was browsing in the bookstore at Keflavik airport when “Snowblind” from Orenda Books caught my eye (and wallet). I hadn’t heard of it, the author or the publisher. How times have changed.
Most of the series is now translated so I recently spent a few days back in Iceland (from my sofa) by binge reading the next 3 instalments. This is book #4 & I think it just might be my favourite.
Ari Thór is having trouble finding something to do. After a tourist died from a highly infectious bug, Siglufjördur was put under quarantine. No one is allowed in or out & the streets are empty as residents hunker down inside. So it’s the perfect time to dig into an old mystery.
Ari is contacted by an elderly gent named Hédinn with a photo that recently came into his possession. It was taken on an isolated farm where the man was born. In 1955, 2 couples from Reykjavik moved to the remote area. Less than 2 years later, one was dead & the others fled back to the city with a newborn in tow. Hédinn wants to know if Ari can find the answer to one question: who is the stranger in the photo?
Ari soon finds connections In Reykjavik but can’t travel due to the quarantine. He enlists the help of Isrún, a reporter he met on a previous case. She agrees if he’ll give her the scoop on the situation in Siglufjördur which is gaining national attention.
There are several additional side stories that develop as the book progresses. The fun part is watching as the characters pick away at their investigations & uncover a few surprising twists along the way.
If you’ve read any of these books, you know you’re in for intricate mysteries & great characters you become attached to. Their personal stories continue to develop & Ari in particular is a young man still struggling to finding his feet (if you’re keeping score, he & Kristin are back together). He’s more accepted by the town’s residents but will always be an outsider & his feelings of isolation are perfectly mirrored by the stark setting. The quarantine serves to heighten the claustrophobic atmosphere as Siglufjördur becomes a ghost town. The silence, chill winds, & looming mountains provide a backdrop for the rising tension as Ari gradually discovers what happened to Hédinn’s family .
There are no car chases or shoot-outs here, just a smart, character driven mystery that gives your brain a workout. It’s one of those books that leaves you a bit disoriented when you eventually look up & find yourself on the sofa, reaching for a sweater.
Well, the binge-fest is over. I’m left waiting for “Whiteout” & plotting a return trip to Iceland that just might include dropping by a certain town up north.
September 14, 2024
Starting the Dark Iceland series by Ragnar Jonasson in January 2024 when I was needing a Nordic Noir for a reading challenge, I wasn’t prepared how hooked that I would become to the series and the characters, particularly Ari Thor and his girlfriend Kristin, and the ace reporter Isrun. I have now completed the fourth in the series, Rupture, and have committed to read the remaining two books in the series, Whiteout and Winterkill. This particular book is dedicated by the author to his grandparents, Ragnar Jonasson and Guorun Reykdal who have now passed away but lived for decades in the house that is the inspiration behind Ari Thor’s house. His grandfather was the town treasurer of Siglufjordur but he was always writing, publishing five books on the history of Siglufjordur after his retirement. It was this wealth of information and memories of summers spent with his grandparents that give the historical support to the book as well as its warmth.
At the crux of the story is how in 1955 two young couples move to the uninhabited, isolated fjord of Hedinsfjorour when one of the women mysteriously dies, the question looming was it accidental, suicide or murder? And then fifty years later, a photograph surfaces showing another person, immediately arousing suspicion about others that may have been present in the isolated town in northern Iceland. And while in Siglufjorour, young policeman Ari Thor tries to make some sense and order of the disparate pieces, all while the community was in quarantine from a questionable virus with a few people already succumbing to the disease. And the reporter from Reykjavik is investigating another chilling case of her own that threatens to reach all the way the Prime Minister. A lot of disparate threads that come to a stunning conclusion. This man can write, and having been able to be in Iceland recently, I have much respect for the land of fire and ice.
At the crux of the story is how in 1955 two young couples move to the uninhabited, isolated fjord of Hedinsfjorour when one of the women mysteriously dies, the question looming was it accidental, suicide or murder? And then fifty years later, a photograph surfaces showing another person, immediately arousing suspicion about others that may have been present in the isolated town in northern Iceland. And while in Siglufjorour, young policeman Ari Thor tries to make some sense and order of the disparate pieces, all while the community was in quarantine from a questionable virus with a few people already succumbing to the disease. And the reporter from Reykjavik is investigating another chilling case of her own that threatens to reach all the way the Prime Minister. A lot of disparate threads that come to a stunning conclusion. This man can write, and having been able to be in Iceland recently, I have much respect for the land of fire and ice.
February 28, 2019
Regrettably, this is simply not that good of a story. 1 of 10 stars
March 28, 2022
Another Ari Thor Nordic mystery by Jonasson which actually solves two mysteries, one in the past and one in the present. The long dark nights and an extremely remote Icelandic fiord called Hedinsfjordur made the area almost uninhabitable even in the 1950s. The secluded family of two married couples and one baby try unsuccessfully to make a life there. The mystery involves the baby.
A current series of murders in present day Siglufjordur, Iceland, is committed after a long-simmering anger and loss of loved ones. Murder, politics, a viral epidemic in a small town where Ari Thor is one of the two police officers, begins to unravel after a local newspaper person does some detective work as well.
Iceland in winter is a very dark place. The atmosphere and beauty of the country is so well described that, after reading several books from this series (Ari Thor Thrillers), I actually would like to travel the area.
Highly recommend this series and this author to anyone who enjoys a good mystery in an unfamiliar part of the world. The culture and atmosphere are superbly detailed as well as the stories, which are well told.
Find this book and other titles within our catalog.
A current series of murders in present day Siglufjordur, Iceland, is committed after a long-simmering anger and loss of loved ones. Murder, politics, a viral epidemic in a small town where Ari Thor is one of the two police officers, begins to unravel after a local newspaper person does some detective work as well.
Iceland in winter is a very dark place. The atmosphere and beauty of the country is so well described that, after reading several books from this series (Ari Thor Thrillers), I actually would like to travel the area.
Highly recommend this series and this author to anyone who enjoys a good mystery in an unfamiliar part of the world. The culture and atmosphere are superbly detailed as well as the stories, which are well told.
Find this book and other titles within our catalog.
June 19, 2020
In this fourth offering in Jónasson’s Icelandic noir series featuring policeman Ari Thór Arason, the far north town of Siglufiördur is in quarantine due to its exposure to a lethal virus. With time on his hands, Ari Thór takes up a cold case from 1957 where a woman drank rat poison in her coffee. Her nephew, Hédinn, has recently come across a picture throwing doubt on the verdict that it was accidental. Ari Thór calls on Isrun, the news reporter, to help with the legwork. However, Isrun has her hands full with an abducted child story and a hit-and-run accident that may have political implications.
Jónasson switches from one plot-line to another so frequently that becomes confusing at times. Although this is the fourth book in the series to be translated into English, it actually falls between Blackout and Nightblind. Enjoy.
Jónasson switches from one plot-line to another so frequently that becomes confusing at times. Although this is the fourth book in the series to be translated into English, it actually falls between Blackout and Nightblind. Enjoy.
February 5, 2017
So we are up to book 4 in the Dark Iceland series then and honestly I’m not sure what to say in this review that I haven’t said already – this is one of my favourite series in a quiet, contemplative kind of way and it speaks volumes really that I start reading them as soon as they arrive but take it slowly, the descriptive prose is to savour not to bang out in a sitting – at least for this reader
The characters have grown and developed so beautifully over the course of the novels but this one I think might be my favourite so far – I loved finding out more about Isrun and as for Ari well what is there left to say about him either? Gorgeous, insightful and brilliantly imagined, Ragnar Jonasson breathes life into his creations with every word.
In this instalment the tiny community of Siglufjorour is even more isolated due to a virus, Ari has a cold (in more sense than one) case to look into and as ever you are thrown into that claustrophobic yet utterly beautiful setting almost as if you are actually there – that is the sheer quality of the writing shining through.
One of the best things about this author is his ability to weave a web made of many strands yet at the end of the day bring them all together into a cohesive and wonderfully constructed whole – there are so many levels to the storytelling yet all are perfectly placed and utterly riveting. Rupture managed to both surprise and delight, engage and inform and there is nothing more really that you can ask for from a read.
Gorgeous. Icelandic Noir in a nutshell – that is Ragnar Jonasson and I really cannot recommend these highly enough.
The characters have grown and developed so beautifully over the course of the novels but this one I think might be my favourite so far – I loved finding out more about Isrun and as for Ari well what is there left to say about him either? Gorgeous, insightful and brilliantly imagined, Ragnar Jonasson breathes life into his creations with every word.
In this instalment the tiny community of Siglufjorour is even more isolated due to a virus, Ari has a cold (in more sense than one) case to look into and as ever you are thrown into that claustrophobic yet utterly beautiful setting almost as if you are actually there – that is the sheer quality of the writing shining through.
One of the best things about this author is his ability to weave a web made of many strands yet at the end of the day bring them all together into a cohesive and wonderfully constructed whole – there are so many levels to the storytelling yet all are perfectly placed and utterly riveting. Rupture managed to both surprise and delight, engage and inform and there is nothing more really that you can ask for from a read.
Gorgeous. Icelandic Noir in a nutshell – that is Ragnar Jonasson and I really cannot recommend these highly enough.
February 6, 2017
Another atmospheric and immersive mystery from Ragnar Jónasson! RUPTURE has another very classic mystery plot, which I always love while reading this series. But my favorite thing about this series is the way Ragnar's writing can transport you to Iceland with its vivid descriptions and beautiful language, and this book absolutely had that quality. I'll be sharing my full review soon!!
June 8, 2021
This book and one former Dark Iceland by Jonasson- I just do not get the ratings. I'd give it 2.5 stars at the very most.
This was my last Icelandic by this author. Too much switching of time periods and "eyes" of narrators. Always a mistaken blame identity or some severe and obtuse reactions to common enough life happenings to make each of them bizarre odd too. But in this one, this novel Rupture, in particular- the "mystery" itself was not a mystery. It was clearly obvious from the first half alone what the issue was for which a murder had occurred. It was to me. Despite how many dozens of ways that Jonasson repeated the exact same posit for the 5 persons "all alone" scenario in that singular fjord Northern (now abandoned) village. The one with 4, 5 or 6 people and one of them just a baby- at any one time. With no electricity or gas for lighting or heating through an Icelandic all night winter in the 1950's. Sounds like a party, huh?
But it wasn't only the plotting. The translation is terrible here. Oftentimes there are pronouns and you have no idea for whom they might refer. Pick anyone of two or three present "hims" while you are at it. Or use the exact same phrasing to an additional "new" inquiry on numerous occasions.
The short sentences and obscure context messages make a combination that is stark at best. And the continuity of section partial to section partial. That was down to a one star level. Too short, too dire without logic or data knowledge included, too unconnected to the former main characters, too displaced in geographic location. Structure chaos! Just too many characters for "prime" inclusion too. At least 5 or 6 too many.
Even the stupendous glow of the all day/ all night summer sun is "beauty" (or some English form of that very word- like beauteous) framed within common phrasing segments repeatedly. UGH!
Some of the Nordic genre are creepy and have depth of character study. This series does not. It just doesn't for me at all. Ari himself is pretty much a twerp that does the easiest path of life choices. Be they in work direction or in the pairings department of human attachments. And Isrun, our supposedly intrepid journalist? Tell your folks about the possible genetic disease already, woman. One you are sure NOT to have regardless of you fretting yourself to death about it internally for years. At least in time enough to own a mental breakdown, massive hives attack or just in desperate sighing to trigger the plain old-fashioned fatal heart attack. Are these people emotional cretins!
For sure I'm done with this series. Is there an opposite phrase to spell-binding? If there is- then this book was it. I started and stopped it at least 4 times amid other much better reads. A lesson to myself that I must abandon far more when that is the reading situation.
This was my last Icelandic by this author. Too much switching of time periods and "eyes" of narrators. Always a mistaken blame identity or some severe and obtuse reactions to common enough life happenings to make each of them bizarre odd too. But in this one, this novel Rupture, in particular- the "mystery" itself was not a mystery. It was clearly obvious from the first half alone what the issue was for which a murder had occurred. It was to me. Despite how many dozens of ways that Jonasson repeated the exact same posit for the 5 persons "all alone" scenario in that singular fjord Northern (now abandoned) village. The one with 4, 5 or 6 people and one of them just a baby- at any one time. With no electricity or gas for lighting or heating through an Icelandic all night winter in the 1950's. Sounds like a party, huh?
But it wasn't only the plotting. The translation is terrible here. Oftentimes there are pronouns and you have no idea for whom they might refer. Pick anyone of two or three present "hims" while you are at it. Or use the exact same phrasing to an additional "new" inquiry on numerous occasions.
The short sentences and obscure context messages make a combination that is stark at best. And the continuity of section partial to section partial. That was down to a one star level. Too short, too dire without logic or data knowledge included, too unconnected to the former main characters, too displaced in geographic location. Structure chaos! Just too many characters for "prime" inclusion too. At least 5 or 6 too many.
Even the stupendous glow of the all day/ all night summer sun is "beauty" (or some English form of that very word- like beauteous) framed within common phrasing segments repeatedly. UGH!
Some of the Nordic genre are creepy and have depth of character study. This series does not. It just doesn't for me at all. Ari himself is pretty much a twerp that does the easiest path of life choices. Be they in work direction or in the pairings department of human attachments. And Isrun, our supposedly intrepid journalist? Tell your folks about the possible genetic disease already, woman. One you are sure NOT to have regardless of you fretting yourself to death about it internally for years. At least in time enough to own a mental breakdown, massive hives attack or just in desperate sighing to trigger the plain old-fashioned fatal heart attack. Are these people emotional cretins!
For sure I'm done with this series. Is there an opposite phrase to spell-binding? If there is- then this book was it. I started and stopped it at least 4 times amid other much better reads. A lesson to myself that I must abandon far more when that is the reading situation.
December 6, 2021
Tras "La sombra del miedo" que es la 1 de la serie, luego "La muerte blanca" que es la 2, ahora me he leído la que hace la 3 de la serie. A las dos anteriores les di 3 estrellas y esta me ha parecido la más trabajada y mejor hecha de las 3. Aunque en un principio también le iba a dar 3 estrellas, al final he decidido darle 4 por ese plus que observo en esta respecto a las anteriores. A pesar del clima opresor que transmiten se leen con agrado.
February 7, 2017
All of my reviews can be found on www.novelgossip.com
I read Snowblind just a few days ago then immediately had to start Rupture to read more of Jonasson’s gorgeous writing and to find out more about the intriguing Ari Thor. There’s just something about him that’s captivating and leaves you wanting more.
The residents of Siglufjörður are in a panic because a serious illness was brought to their community by an out of towner. When the man dies then someone else falls ill, they are quarantined and a bit of hysteria ensues. Ari Thor is one of the few people that still leaves his house as he has to work even though there isn’t much keeping him busy at the moment. When he’s approached by Hedinn, a man with some questions about an old and mysterious family photograph, he welcomes the distraction. He enlists the help of Isrun, a news reporter who is juggling multiple stories. What they uncover is a dark family secret which some serious implications for the future.
There are a few storylines running alongside each other here. First, Ari Thor is digging into the old photo from the fifties that’s linked to a cold case that was apparently solved, but he’s not so sure, then Isrun is covering the kidnapping of a child, and finally a politicians son is run over and killed. When links are discovered it’s very clear that someone is hell bent on revenge, but who? And why?
No one does atmospheric more beautifully than Jonasson, and one of my favorite scenes in Rupture was when Ari Thor and the local priest visit Hedinsfjörður to follow a lead about the photograph taken there. It’s completely uninhabited now and is totally dark and deserted when they visit. I’m not one to be afraid of the dark yet I found myself a bit panicky and anxious for them to hurry up and get out of there, it was very chilling and creepy.
Jonasson’s writing style is very purposeful and totally unmatched by anyone else. Every single word has a meaning deeper than its literal definition, yet there is a simplicity and a quiet gentleness about it. Despite this elegant approach, he is still able to convey a quiet intensity that is more powerful than an in your face approach. He’s very cautious about what he reveals to the reader only letting you in on secrets when the timing is absolutely perfect.
This is another classic murder mystery with an icy Icelandic twist, so very perfect for a winter read. As always, the characterization is deep, rich and complex which adds another layer to the story. I can’t say enough good things about this book or the author, just go ahead and read this series already.
I read Snowblind just a few days ago then immediately had to start Rupture to read more of Jonasson’s gorgeous writing and to find out more about the intriguing Ari Thor. There’s just something about him that’s captivating and leaves you wanting more.
The residents of Siglufjörður are in a panic because a serious illness was brought to their community by an out of towner. When the man dies then someone else falls ill, they are quarantined and a bit of hysteria ensues. Ari Thor is one of the few people that still leaves his house as he has to work even though there isn’t much keeping him busy at the moment. When he’s approached by Hedinn, a man with some questions about an old and mysterious family photograph, he welcomes the distraction. He enlists the help of Isrun, a news reporter who is juggling multiple stories. What they uncover is a dark family secret which some serious implications for the future.
There are a few storylines running alongside each other here. First, Ari Thor is digging into the old photo from the fifties that’s linked to a cold case that was apparently solved, but he’s not so sure, then Isrun is covering the kidnapping of a child, and finally a politicians son is run over and killed. When links are discovered it’s very clear that someone is hell bent on revenge, but who? And why?
No one does atmospheric more beautifully than Jonasson, and one of my favorite scenes in Rupture was when Ari Thor and the local priest visit Hedinsfjörður to follow a lead about the photograph taken there. It’s completely uninhabited now and is totally dark and deserted when they visit. I’m not one to be afraid of the dark yet I found myself a bit panicky and anxious for them to hurry up and get out of there, it was very chilling and creepy.
Jonasson’s writing style is very purposeful and totally unmatched by anyone else. Every single word has a meaning deeper than its literal definition, yet there is a simplicity and a quiet gentleness about it. Despite this elegant approach, he is still able to convey a quiet intensity that is more powerful than an in your face approach. He’s very cautious about what he reveals to the reader only letting you in on secrets when the timing is absolutely perfect.
This is another classic murder mystery with an icy Icelandic twist, so very perfect for a winter read. As always, the characterization is deep, rich and complex which adds another layer to the story. I can’t say enough good things about this book or the author, just go ahead and read this series already.
February 16, 2020
For me this was a disappointing end to the Dark Iceland series. I really enjoyed the first book, but none of the subsequent stories were even remotely as good. Part of the problem is that the books are numbered out of sequence to the timelines of the characters so while this book was numbered as though it was the final book, the events took place prior to events in an earlier book 🤦🏼♀️.
This book had two storylines: one involving Ari Thor and one involving a reporter in another town. The stories didn’t tie together in any way and neither was remotely compelling. I also found myself liking Ari Thor’s character less and less with each book. He comes across as being a bit of a spineless, arrogant jerk which was not how he was portrayed in the first book.
I’m still debating if I want to try this author’s other series. I’ll leave them on my TBR for now, but I don’t see myself turning to them anytime soon.
This book had two storylines: one involving Ari Thor and one involving a reporter in another town. The stories didn’t tie together in any way and neither was remotely compelling. I also found myself liking Ari Thor’s character less and less with each book. He comes across as being a bit of a spineless, arrogant jerk which was not how he was portrayed in the first book.
I’m still debating if I want to try this author’s other series. I’ll leave them on my TBR for now, but I don’t see myself turning to them anytime soon.
March 18, 2017
This series by Jonasson is like nothing I've ever read. The descriptions of Icelandic life, the stories he creates that are so wrapped up into others are unique. They're like an old fashioned mystery where everyone is brought into the library at the end & you find out who the culprit is. Loved every one of these books.
Thanks to Karen at Orenda for this copy in exchange for review!
Thanks to Karen at Orenda for this copy in exchange for review!
March 13, 2017
All my reviews can be found at http://thebookreviewcafe.com
Rupture is a crime thriller that feels like a breath of fresh air, it has much more to offer than the average crime thriller, for me this novel is beautifully written with a well crafted plot, this is Nordic crime noir at it’s best. I’m normally a reader who loves a crime read to be fast paced, which I don’t consider Rupture to be, but what I loved about this novel was the authors incredible gift of being able to pull the reader into his plot and build on the suspense and mystery leaving me eager to read more. Sometimes I struggle with novels that have been translated as the writing can feel stilted or the heart of the story gets lost in translation, but Rupture proves that it can be done successfully, in fact I found it difficult to believe this book was written in anything but English.
Ragnar Jónasson’s writing is beautifully descriptive, he describes the town of Siglufjöróur in great detail, so it’s easy to imagine the bleakness and claustrophobic atmosphere that surrounds the small Icelandic town, as the town is quarantined from a deadly virus, the sense of unease and isolation are palatable. Ari Thór is asked to investigate a suspected murder from the 1950’s, and with the town in quarantine he finds himself with plenty of time on his hands, and as he begins to investigate the case it soon becomes clear that not everything is as it seems. The author intricately adds various plots to the story, but in doing so he adds layer upon layer of mystery to the story which kept me captivated to the last page. Despite the numerous threads the author expertly weaves them into an absorbing and suspense filled plot.
The author even manages to make his characters multi dimensional and complex, so much so you can’t help but feel a connection to them, I especially liked Ari Thor whose life doesn’t appear to run to plan, but never the less he’s a very intriguing character. There are no shocking or fast paced scenes in Rupture, but the author expertly builds on the atmosphere with every sentence he writes whilst maintaining the suspense and mystery. Rupture reads like a classic who dunnit, but that’s a good thing in my opinion and one of the things that make Rupture standout from other crime thriller reads. For me Rupture is refreshingly different amid all the crime thrillers on the market, beautifully and eloquently written it conjures up breathtaking images of a stark landscape that beg to be visited. Chilling, complex and addictive I would highly recommend Rupture to anyone looking for a unique crime thriller.
Rupture is a crime thriller that feels like a breath of fresh air, it has much more to offer than the average crime thriller, for me this novel is beautifully written with a well crafted plot, this is Nordic crime noir at it’s best. I’m normally a reader who loves a crime read to be fast paced, which I don’t consider Rupture to be, but what I loved about this novel was the authors incredible gift of being able to pull the reader into his plot and build on the suspense and mystery leaving me eager to read more. Sometimes I struggle with novels that have been translated as the writing can feel stilted or the heart of the story gets lost in translation, but Rupture proves that it can be done successfully, in fact I found it difficult to believe this book was written in anything but English.
Ragnar Jónasson’s writing is beautifully descriptive, he describes the town of Siglufjöróur in great detail, so it’s easy to imagine the bleakness and claustrophobic atmosphere that surrounds the small Icelandic town, as the town is quarantined from a deadly virus, the sense of unease and isolation are palatable. Ari Thór is asked to investigate a suspected murder from the 1950’s, and with the town in quarantine he finds himself with plenty of time on his hands, and as he begins to investigate the case it soon becomes clear that not everything is as it seems. The author intricately adds various plots to the story, but in doing so he adds layer upon layer of mystery to the story which kept me captivated to the last page. Despite the numerous threads the author expertly weaves them into an absorbing and suspense filled plot.
The author even manages to make his characters multi dimensional and complex, so much so you can’t help but feel a connection to them, I especially liked Ari Thor whose life doesn’t appear to run to plan, but never the less he’s a very intriguing character. There are no shocking or fast paced scenes in Rupture, but the author expertly builds on the atmosphere with every sentence he writes whilst maintaining the suspense and mystery. Rupture reads like a classic who dunnit, but that’s a good thing in my opinion and one of the things that make Rupture standout from other crime thriller reads. For me Rupture is refreshingly different amid all the crime thrillers on the market, beautifully and eloquently written it conjures up breathtaking images of a stark landscape that beg to be visited. Chilling, complex and addictive I would highly recommend Rupture to anyone looking for a unique crime thriller.
January 3, 2017
Three years after his arrival in the unprepossessing fishing village of Siglufjörður precariously located at the northernmost tip of Iceland, life still feels like an arduous task for Ari Thór Arason, despite the much vaunted improvement in transportation links to the community. The isolation of the village and unremittingly morose winter weather has never been anything less than a tall order for city man, Ari Thór, to contend with. Encircled by a ring of mountains which throw an oppressive shadow over the village, he feels their suffocating effect weighing down his spirits, with the threat of an avalanche or landslide always imminent. Yet for Ari Thór the village has never exerted such an intolerable grip on him as it does in the events of Rupture, which sees the region seized by the spread of a highly contagious disease, namely haemorrhagic fever. With the village placed under quarantine and the residents thereby made rudely aware of their importance in the national scheme of things, the Siglufjörður police have an opportunity to take things easy. For Ari Thór, prone to brooding, the opportunity to appraise a centuries old case presents him with an enigma to keep his mind blessedly occupied.
The temporary sabbatical departure of Tómas earlier in the year provided an opportunity for fifty-five years old Hédinn to approach Ari Thór and seek a fresh opinion on a mystery that has always blighted his past, specifically the circumstances surrounding his aunt's suicide in 1957. With a skeleton staff juggling the shifts at Siglufjörður, the opportunity has evaded Ari Thór until the village is struck by sickness. Hédinn tells the story of his parents, Gudmundur and Gudfinna, striking out from the village in an attempt to inhabit the now isolated and inhospitable fjord of Hedinsfjörður. Soon after the couple were joined by both his aunt, Jórunn, the sister of his mother and her husband, Marius, only for Jórunn to tragically take her own life soon after Hédinn was born. Her death was never given more than a cursory look, with the family regarded as being the sole dwellers on the fjord, the conclusion always seemed in little doubt. Until, that is, Hédinn comes across a photo taken by his uncle and he must face the prospect that perhaps his family were not quite as alone as they thought.. As Ari Thór takes a closer look he is only too glad to be distracted from the paternity test that it hanging over his head and the stifling atmosphere overwhelming the village, but even he is unprepared for the ominous feeling that Hedinsfjörður embodies.
With Ísrún, the news reporter in Reykjavik who readers met in Blackout, covering the epidemic isolating Siglufjörður and tackling her own investigations the opportunity for some pooling of resources is thoroughly appreciated by Ari Thór. After gaining the upper hand in her battle with Ívar, the desk editor at the station, and chalking up an award for her own gritty reporting Ísrún is in prime position to monopolise the crime stories which arise. When she is alerted to a major political player's son being killed in a suspected hit and run, she senses that things might not be as cut and dried as they look. Ísrún, never able to forget her own mortality with a debilitating medical diagnosis hanging over her horizon, strikes while the iron is hot, managing to pose the awkward questions and never shy of bluffing her way to a scoop. Before the hit and run incident can even be digested, the harrowing kidnap of a child in broad daylight sends shockwaves through the entire country and forces a reprioritising of matters. Between juggling two investigations and also covering the Reykjavik end of the work on Ari Thór's cold case, could Ísrún be biting off more than she can chew?
Undoubtedly, the most precarious entanglement in the life of Ari Thór is his fractious and brittle romantic liaison, forever teetering on the precipice with the changeable Kristín, not helped by his sometimes surly nature. With Tómas breaking the news that he has instigated his eventual migration to accompany his wife to Reykjavík, making a decision as to his future in on the cards for Ari Thór, but with his tumultuous relationship and the threat of impending fatherhood from his one night stand looming, he feels wholly unprepared for taking a make or break decision. Ari Thór is a compelling lead character, a mix of an impulsive youth but already weighed down by his responsibilities and the loss of his parents at such an early age. He often struggles with his communication, appearing blunt, affronting villagers and bottling up his tensions as his failure to convey the depth of his feelings gets the better of him. His fallibility and evident realism provides an instant magnetism and along with Ísrún, herself not the most diplomatic, they display a admirable naivety.
Jónasson's crisply eloquent prose seamlessly travels across country and between the past and present, to flawlessly combine the separate cases into one fluid larger entity. With a growing number of reappearing characters filling the limelight, there is less onus on Ari Thór's personal dramas to plug the hole and as such he feels like he is finally maturing into a more stable figure. But as all followers of the Dark Iceland series know, life in Siglufjörður can turn on a knife edge and wherever the impetuous Ari Thór goes, drama will inevitably follow. Underneath the edifice of peace in the tiny fishing village, the worlds of the characters that surround Ari Thór feel every bit as implosive as the previous three novels. Despite the remorseless doom and gloom stifling the village itself, Iceland as a whole is no longer the safe haven it once was, happily insulated from so much of the nefarious activity that is rife further south and throughout Europe. Times are changing for both Ari Thór and Siglufjörður.
It is testament to Ragnar Jónasson's eloquence that after the character of Ari Thór Arason first set foot on the crisp snow of Siglufjörður three years ago, his still feels like ripe territory for exploration and my thirst for his tales of Dark Iceland are unquenched. Jónasson has crafted a character that straddles the shifting territory of an outsider tackling a sensitive job in an insular and remote village, and the necessary distance between Ari Thór and the families who have a centuries old historical connection to the village is critical. The resulting outcomes of both the historic case and the current day matter tackled in Rupture are breathtakingly audacious; combining the deceptively subtle slow reveal of Christie for one, and the depth and elegance of a Karin Fossum sting in the tail for the other.
Translated superbly by Quentin Bates with his familiarity for the characters and his invaluable understanding of the quintessentially English charm that Jónasson strives for, Rupture is once again an exquisite read.
The temporary sabbatical departure of Tómas earlier in the year provided an opportunity for fifty-five years old Hédinn to approach Ari Thór and seek a fresh opinion on a mystery that has always blighted his past, specifically the circumstances surrounding his aunt's suicide in 1957. With a skeleton staff juggling the shifts at Siglufjörður, the opportunity has evaded Ari Thór until the village is struck by sickness. Hédinn tells the story of his parents, Gudmundur and Gudfinna, striking out from the village in an attempt to inhabit the now isolated and inhospitable fjord of Hedinsfjörður. Soon after the couple were joined by both his aunt, Jórunn, the sister of his mother and her husband, Marius, only for Jórunn to tragically take her own life soon after Hédinn was born. Her death was never given more than a cursory look, with the family regarded as being the sole dwellers on the fjord, the conclusion always seemed in little doubt. Until, that is, Hédinn comes across a photo taken by his uncle and he must face the prospect that perhaps his family were not quite as alone as they thought.. As Ari Thór takes a closer look he is only too glad to be distracted from the paternity test that it hanging over his head and the stifling atmosphere overwhelming the village, but even he is unprepared for the ominous feeling that Hedinsfjörður embodies.
With Ísrún, the news reporter in Reykjavik who readers met in Blackout, covering the epidemic isolating Siglufjörður and tackling her own investigations the opportunity for some pooling of resources is thoroughly appreciated by Ari Thór. After gaining the upper hand in her battle with Ívar, the desk editor at the station, and chalking up an award for her own gritty reporting Ísrún is in prime position to monopolise the crime stories which arise. When she is alerted to a major political player's son being killed in a suspected hit and run, she senses that things might not be as cut and dried as they look. Ísrún, never able to forget her own mortality with a debilitating medical diagnosis hanging over her horizon, strikes while the iron is hot, managing to pose the awkward questions and never shy of bluffing her way to a scoop. Before the hit and run incident can even be digested, the harrowing kidnap of a child in broad daylight sends shockwaves through the entire country and forces a reprioritising of matters. Between juggling two investigations and also covering the Reykjavik end of the work on Ari Thór's cold case, could Ísrún be biting off more than she can chew?
Undoubtedly, the most precarious entanglement in the life of Ari Thór is his fractious and brittle romantic liaison, forever teetering on the precipice with the changeable Kristín, not helped by his sometimes surly nature. With Tómas breaking the news that he has instigated his eventual migration to accompany his wife to Reykjavík, making a decision as to his future in on the cards for Ari Thór, but with his tumultuous relationship and the threat of impending fatherhood from his one night stand looming, he feels wholly unprepared for taking a make or break decision. Ari Thór is a compelling lead character, a mix of an impulsive youth but already weighed down by his responsibilities and the loss of his parents at such an early age. He often struggles with his communication, appearing blunt, affronting villagers and bottling up his tensions as his failure to convey the depth of his feelings gets the better of him. His fallibility and evident realism provides an instant magnetism and along with Ísrún, herself not the most diplomatic, they display a admirable naivety.
Jónasson's crisply eloquent prose seamlessly travels across country and between the past and present, to flawlessly combine the separate cases into one fluid larger entity. With a growing number of reappearing characters filling the limelight, there is less onus on Ari Thór's personal dramas to plug the hole and as such he feels like he is finally maturing into a more stable figure. But as all followers of the Dark Iceland series know, life in Siglufjörður can turn on a knife edge and wherever the impetuous Ari Thór goes, drama will inevitably follow. Underneath the edifice of peace in the tiny fishing village, the worlds of the characters that surround Ari Thór feel every bit as implosive as the previous three novels. Despite the remorseless doom and gloom stifling the village itself, Iceland as a whole is no longer the safe haven it once was, happily insulated from so much of the nefarious activity that is rife further south and throughout Europe. Times are changing for both Ari Thór and Siglufjörður.
It is testament to Ragnar Jónasson's eloquence that after the character of Ari Thór Arason first set foot on the crisp snow of Siglufjörður three years ago, his still feels like ripe territory for exploration and my thirst for his tales of Dark Iceland are unquenched. Jónasson has crafted a character that straddles the shifting territory of an outsider tackling a sensitive job in an insular and remote village, and the necessary distance between Ari Thór and the families who have a centuries old historical connection to the village is critical. The resulting outcomes of both the historic case and the current day matter tackled in Rupture are breathtakingly audacious; combining the deceptively subtle slow reveal of Christie for one, and the depth and elegance of a Karin Fossum sting in the tail for the other.
Translated superbly by Quentin Bates with his familiarity for the characters and his invaluable understanding of the quintessentially English charm that Jónasson strives for, Rupture is once again an exquisite read.
February 7, 2017
'Haunting, frightening and complex. A dark and atmospheric thriller from one of Iceland’s foremost crime writers.’
Rupture is the latest in the Dark Iceland Series from crime writer Ragnar Jónasson, ublished by Orenda Books and excellently translated by Quentin Bates.
Rupture is rightfully categorized under the genre of Nordic Noir. There is a uniqueness to this style of writing, none of which is lost in the translation.
Read on for my full thoughts…
Ari Thor Arason, local Siglufjordur police officer, has a problem. The town is under quarantine, due to a possibly contagious haemorrhagic fever that arrived with a traveler to the area. Ari & his colleagues are restricted in their movements within the town, as are all the residents, in the hope of containing the spread of the infection.
Straight away, as a reader, you are brought into a world of bleakness and isolation, against the backdrop of the high dark mountains and surrounding snow and ice.
Ari Thor is approached by a local resident interested in unearthing a cold case involving his relatives that reaches back to 1955, to the very lonely and deserted fjord of Hedonsfjordur. As Ari focuses on unearthing the truth, he reconnects with Isrún, a reporter in Reykjavik.
Isrún is involved in solving a particularly brutal case that has raised it’s ugly head in Reykjavik, a case that has huge political implications for many. Isrún, sensitive to the nature of the case, does her best to work within fair parameters, but when a child is kidnapped, Isrún looks into every channel available to her, unearthing past histories and connections that may assist in solving this mystery.
In parallel to the case solving, Ragnar Jónasson, brings the reader into the personal lives of all his main characters, We are taken behind the scenes of the story, where the reasons and actions, both past and present, are portrayed in a very gentle style. All have secrets, all have pasts and all wish to move forward with their lives in the best way possible.
Up to this point, I had not read any novel in the Dark Iceland series.
Snowblind, Nightblind and Blackout are all previously translated works from Ragnar Jónasson, all achieving high acclaim with both readers and writers alike.
The genre Noir has always intrigued me, exposing me to a whole new world of writers that have a uniqueness in their perspective and technique.
Ragnar Jónasson’s writing, while rooted in crime fiction, is distinctly descriptive in every thought and image visualized by the characters.
Ari Thor is the Nordic Poirot.
As the story comes to a close, Ari ties up all the ends in an orderly fashion with a logical reasoning and methodology in every statement (a twirling mustache comes to mind!!!!)
Quentin Bates’ translation of these works by Ragnar Jónasson exposes Nordic Noir to a new audience, exploring a cold, dark, bleak almost intangible part of the world for many readers.
This is more that just crime fiction.
The pace of the story is neither fast nor particularly gritty, yet as a reader you find yourself sucked in as you turn the pages and wrap yourself up warm in a furry blanket to prevent the chill off the fjords getting into your bones.
I suspect it would be wise to read all three previous novels in the series but as a standalone novel Rupture works.
If you haven’t yet…go on….lose yourself in the pages of Ragnar Jónasson…I very much doubt you will regret it!!
Rupture is the latest in the Dark Iceland Series from crime writer Ragnar Jónasson, ublished by Orenda Books and excellently translated by Quentin Bates.
Rupture is rightfully categorized under the genre of Nordic Noir. There is a uniqueness to this style of writing, none of which is lost in the translation.
Read on for my full thoughts…
Ari Thor Arason, local Siglufjordur police officer, has a problem. The town is under quarantine, due to a possibly contagious haemorrhagic fever that arrived with a traveler to the area. Ari & his colleagues are restricted in their movements within the town, as are all the residents, in the hope of containing the spread of the infection.
Straight away, as a reader, you are brought into a world of bleakness and isolation, against the backdrop of the high dark mountains and surrounding snow and ice.
Ari Thor is approached by a local resident interested in unearthing a cold case involving his relatives that reaches back to 1955, to the very lonely and deserted fjord of Hedonsfjordur. As Ari focuses on unearthing the truth, he reconnects with Isrún, a reporter in Reykjavik.
Isrún is involved in solving a particularly brutal case that has raised it’s ugly head in Reykjavik, a case that has huge political implications for many. Isrún, sensitive to the nature of the case, does her best to work within fair parameters, but when a child is kidnapped, Isrún looks into every channel available to her, unearthing past histories and connections that may assist in solving this mystery.
In parallel to the case solving, Ragnar Jónasson, brings the reader into the personal lives of all his main characters, We are taken behind the scenes of the story, where the reasons and actions, both past and present, are portrayed in a very gentle style. All have secrets, all have pasts and all wish to move forward with their lives in the best way possible.
Up to this point, I had not read any novel in the Dark Iceland series.
Snowblind, Nightblind and Blackout are all previously translated works from Ragnar Jónasson, all achieving high acclaim with both readers and writers alike.
The genre Noir has always intrigued me, exposing me to a whole new world of writers that have a uniqueness in their perspective and technique.
Ragnar Jónasson’s writing, while rooted in crime fiction, is distinctly descriptive in every thought and image visualized by the characters.
Ari Thor is the Nordic Poirot.
As the story comes to a close, Ari ties up all the ends in an orderly fashion with a logical reasoning and methodology in every statement (a twirling mustache comes to mind!!!!)
Quentin Bates’ translation of these works by Ragnar Jónasson exposes Nordic Noir to a new audience, exploring a cold, dark, bleak almost intangible part of the world for many readers.
This is more that just crime fiction.
The pace of the story is neither fast nor particularly gritty, yet as a reader you find yourself sucked in as you turn the pages and wrap yourself up warm in a furry blanket to prevent the chill off the fjords getting into your bones.
I suspect it would be wise to read all three previous novels in the series but as a standalone novel Rupture works.
If you haven’t yet…go on….lose yourself in the pages of Ragnar Jónasson…I very much doubt you will regret it!!
February 23, 2019
Three interwoven stories from Iceland. In Siglufjörður, a man dies of hemorrhagic fever, causing a quarantine. Then, one of the residents Hédinn asks the local policeman Ari Thór to look at a cold case involving the supposed suicide of his aunt by rat poison in a previously remote area (Hedinsfjörður), now easily reached via tunnel. Ari has plenty of time on his hands since everyone is hiding in their own homes, and he systematically tracks down many parties to solve the mystery, facing some of his own fears along the way. There is also personal drama for Ari, as his tenuous relationship with Kristin is threatened when a former fling asks him to take a paternity test. Finally, we are introduced to some seemingly unrelated parties in Reykjavik, where a musician is killed in a hit-and-run, a young child is kidnapped from a divorcing mother, and a man is grieving the death of his wife, beaten to death in their home in a case of mistaken identity. As you can see, there is more darkness in Iceland than just its northern location. Atmospheric.
August 21, 2017
Trigger warnings: stalking, murder, child abduction.
This series is proving a little hit or miss for me. I mean, I've enjoyed all of the books I've read so far. But at the same time, they haven't been STAND OUTS.
This one primarily covers a cold case, featuring the unexplained death of a woman many years earlier which Ari Thor starts investigating following a request from her nephew. And frankly, that side of the story was...not particularly interesting.
The other side of the story covers a guy who realises that he and his family are being stalked. THAT side of things was very atmospheric and I really liked it. Perhaps a little unfortunately though, it reminded me a tad too much of Yrsa Sigurdardottir's Why Did You Lie? which I read back in June.
So this one had MOMENTS of being really really good. But the bulk of it was...pretty forgettable.
This series is proving a little hit or miss for me. I mean, I've enjoyed all of the books I've read so far. But at the same time, they haven't been STAND OUTS.
This one primarily covers a cold case, featuring the unexplained death of a woman many years earlier which Ari Thor starts investigating following a request from her nephew. And frankly, that side of the story was...not particularly interesting.
The other side of the story covers a guy who realises that he and his family are being stalked. THAT side of things was very atmospheric and I really liked it. Perhaps a little unfortunately though, it reminded me a tad too much of Yrsa Sigurdardottir's Why Did You Lie? which I read back in June.
So this one had MOMENTS of being really really good. But the bulk of it was...pretty forgettable.
January 15, 2022
Enamorada de esta saga.
Me gusta como en este tercer libro nos encontramos con tramas diferentes. Un juego entre el pasado, el presente y su corrupción; y una enfermedad que aisla el pueblo. Eso me encanta, que metan estas cosas para hacer más natural algo que ya no es ciencia ficción.
Amo Islandia (desde la comodidad del sofá xD)
Me gusta como en este tercer libro nos encontramos con tramas diferentes. Un juego entre el pasado, el presente y su corrupción; y una enfermedad que aisla el pueblo. Eso me encanta, que metan estas cosas para hacer más natural algo que ya no es ciencia ficción.
Amo Islandia (desde la comodidad del sofá xD)
June 28, 2022
Din recenzia apărută pe Biblioteca lui Liviu în cadrul blog tourului dedicat publicării în limba română a volumului „Sfâșiere”:
„Orășelul este în carantină, căci un călător se întoarce din Africa bolnav de febră hemoragică și moare taman în Siglufjörður, nu înainte însă să îmbolnăvească și o infirmieră, care în cele din urmă moare și ea. Orașul intră așadar în carantină, prilej perfect pentru ca Ari Thór să ancheteze un caz vechi de mai bine de cincizeci de ani la insistențele unui tip care îl roagă să afle ce s-a întâmplat în realitate cu mama sa tocmai în 1957. Femeia băuse otravă de șobolani și murise, însă atât ea, cât și martorii, adică soțul, cumnatul și cumnata, insistaseră că o băuse din greșeală, confundând-o cu borcanul cu zahăr (cine naiba ține borcanul cu otravă lipit de cel cu zahăr, în același dulap, în bucătărie?). Cazul din prezent pleacă însă de la misterul unei fotografii, în care Hedinn, bărbatul care i-a cerut ajutorul lui Ari Thór, e doar un bebeluș, ținut însă în brațe, alături de familie, de un băiat necunoscut. Cine este acel băiat și ce s-a întâmplat cu el? Dar mai ales, ce s-a întâmplat cu mama lui Heddin, cea care murise otrăvită?
În paralel cu ancheta ce pleacă doar de la o poză se desfășoară încă două povești, de data asta în capitala Reykjavík, unde o jurnalistă pe nume ĺsrún, cu care ne-am întâlnit deja în Negură, se află atât pe urmele unui șofer care l-a accidentat mortal pe fiul fost dependent de droguri al unui fost ministru, dar și pe cele ale unui tip care a răpit un bebeluș din căruciorul în care mama sa îl lăsase să doarmă, afară, în timp ce ea bea liniștită o cafea împreună cu sora sa. Cine a dorit moartea unui biet om pe o străduță întunecată, dar mai ales, cine a răpit un bebeluș nevinovat ziua în amiaza mare, din fața unei cafenele, în plină zi, pe o stradă extrem de circulată? Cine este misteriosul Robert, tatăl vitreg al bebelușului dispărut, și ce treabă are el cu presupusul răpitor? Cum de se împacă cele două, trei anchete, patru, căci Ragnar Jónasson nu se sfiește deloc să amestece mai multe cazuri, rezultând însă ceva fragmentat, care te pune la un moment dat pe gânduri.
De ce zic asta? Pentru că răpirea bebelușului apare din neant, nu izbutești să te dumirești ce-i cu Robert decât atunci când autorul îți trântește totul mură-n gură, spre finalul cărții. În opinia mea, ar mai fi fost necesare măcar vreo sută de pagini care să dezvolte intriga și să o facă să sune mai firesc. Dar din dorința de-a nu mări exagerat un volum al unei serii alcătuite doar din volume de până în trei sute de pagini s-a sărit peste un pas care i-ar fi oferit un plus de valoare acestei cărți. Salvate totuși de excelent pusa în scenă intrigă din nordul Islandei, unde Ari Thór e pe cai mari. Și se pregătește să fie promovat. Iar relația sa cu Kristín, iubita rămasă în capitală în primele volume, este din nou de actualitate. Dar despre asta, în recenzia volumului Negură, un volum de cinci stele, cât de curând.”
Mai multe: https://bibliotecaluiliviu.ro/2022/06...
„Orășelul este în carantină, căci un călător se întoarce din Africa bolnav de febră hemoragică și moare taman în Siglufjörður, nu înainte însă să îmbolnăvească și o infirmieră, care în cele din urmă moare și ea. Orașul intră așadar în carantină, prilej perfect pentru ca Ari Thór să ancheteze un caz vechi de mai bine de cincizeci de ani la insistențele unui tip care îl roagă să afle ce s-a întâmplat în realitate cu mama sa tocmai în 1957. Femeia băuse otravă de șobolani și murise, însă atât ea, cât și martorii, adică soțul, cumnatul și cumnata, insistaseră că o băuse din greșeală, confundând-o cu borcanul cu zahăr (cine naiba ține borcanul cu otravă lipit de cel cu zahăr, în același dulap, în bucătărie?). Cazul din prezent pleacă însă de la misterul unei fotografii, în care Hedinn, bărbatul care i-a cerut ajutorul lui Ari Thór, e doar un bebeluș, ținut însă în brațe, alături de familie, de un băiat necunoscut. Cine este acel băiat și ce s-a întâmplat cu el? Dar mai ales, ce s-a întâmplat cu mama lui Heddin, cea care murise otrăvită?
În paralel cu ancheta ce pleacă doar de la o poză se desfășoară încă două povești, de data asta în capitala Reykjavík, unde o jurnalistă pe nume ĺsrún, cu care ne-am întâlnit deja în Negură, se află atât pe urmele unui șofer care l-a accidentat mortal pe fiul fost dependent de droguri al unui fost ministru, dar și pe cele ale unui tip care a răpit un bebeluș din căruciorul în care mama sa îl lăsase să doarmă, afară, în timp ce ea bea liniștită o cafea împreună cu sora sa. Cine a dorit moartea unui biet om pe o străduță întunecată, dar mai ales, cine a răpit un bebeluș nevinovat ziua în amiaza mare, din fața unei cafenele, în plină zi, pe o stradă extrem de circulată? Cine este misteriosul Robert, tatăl vitreg al bebelușului dispărut, și ce treabă are el cu presupusul răpitor? Cum de se împacă cele două, trei anchete, patru, căci Ragnar Jónasson nu se sfiește deloc să amestece mai multe cazuri, rezultând însă ceva fragmentat, care te pune la un moment dat pe gânduri.
De ce zic asta? Pentru că răpirea bebelușului apare din neant, nu izbutești să te dumirești ce-i cu Robert decât atunci când autorul îți trântește totul mură-n gură, spre finalul cărții. În opinia mea, ar mai fi fost necesare măcar vreo sută de pagini care să dezvolte intriga și să o facă să sune mai firesc. Dar din dorința de-a nu mări exagerat un volum al unei serii alcătuite doar din volume de până în trei sute de pagini s-a sărit peste un pas care i-ar fi oferit un plus de valoare acestei cărți. Salvate totuși de excelent pusa în scenă intrigă din nordul Islandei, unde Ari Thór e pe cai mari. Și se pregătește să fie promovat. Iar relația sa cu Kristín, iubita rămasă în capitală în primele volume, este din nou de actualitate. Dar despre asta, în recenzia volumului Negură, un volum de cinci stele, cât de curând.”
Mai multe: https://bibliotecaluiliviu.ro/2022/06...
January 30, 2022
Onto book 4 of the series, as I recollect its been an amiable companion so far has this series….. my notes though say give it one more go….. so what’s it to be?
So, what have we got going on? An old murder/suicide to solve? Current stalker/intruder to find? Murder/accident in modern day? Not forgetting a deadly infectious disease to contain within the quiet fishing village of Siglufjordur which we find in quarantine, along with the day-to-day tribulations that local coppers Ari Thor & his boss Tomas have to contend with in their family life, we also have a reporter residing in Reykjavik who takes up more of a significant role…. it’s all kicking off then!
A busier start than normal to one of these novels & immediately all the separate stories are pulling the story forward a lot quicker, promising start, although some might find it fairly disjointing as we’re swapping a fair few POV’s around in quick order….. keep up!
The disjointed manner stays throughout if im honest, no sooner are you settled into one thread & we’re off, sometimes only for a coupla pages. The tension/pacing jus doesn’t sit right, its like famine or feast, a broody Icelandic noir following Ari Thor’s story in the sticks, whereas in the city it’s all hustle. It really is two separate stories compared to the rest of the series, not sure what the author was trying to achieve bar give a bigger role to Isrun (reporter), was she in the previous books?
Wrapped up pat in its own way, although all rather too easily in some cases (the city one) I would say after keeping us guessing right up until the end.
Middle of the road 3 & a series that I’ll be moving (maybe?) into the summer vibe mode going forward. Although I think this series has perhaps run it's course with me as it hasn't really developed.
So, what have we got going on? An old murder/suicide to solve? Current stalker/intruder to find? Murder/accident in modern day? Not forgetting a deadly infectious disease to contain within the quiet fishing village of Siglufjordur which we find in quarantine, along with the day-to-day tribulations that local coppers Ari Thor & his boss Tomas have to contend with in their family life, we also have a reporter residing in Reykjavik who takes up more of a significant role…. it’s all kicking off then!
A busier start than normal to one of these novels & immediately all the separate stories are pulling the story forward a lot quicker, promising start, although some might find it fairly disjointing as we’re swapping a fair few POV’s around in quick order….. keep up!
The disjointed manner stays throughout if im honest, no sooner are you settled into one thread & we’re off, sometimes only for a coupla pages. The tension/pacing jus doesn’t sit right, its like famine or feast, a broody Icelandic noir following Ari Thor’s story in the sticks, whereas in the city it’s all hustle. It really is two separate stories compared to the rest of the series, not sure what the author was trying to achieve bar give a bigger role to Isrun (reporter), was she in the previous books?
Wrapped up pat in its own way, although all rather too easily in some cases (the city one) I would say after keeping us guessing right up until the end.
Middle of the road 3 & a series that I’ll be moving (maybe?) into the summer vibe mode going forward. Although I think this series has perhaps run it's course with me as it hasn't really developed.
May 2, 2021
Another good instalment of the Dark Iceland series.
Half takes place in the remote northern town of Siglufjordur with our police officer Ari Thor and half takes place in Rekjavik with a reporter doing her own thing and also helping Ari Thor.
Interesting and engaging parallel crime mysteries. I'm looking forward to the next one.
Half takes place in the remote northern town of Siglufjordur with our police officer Ari Thor and half takes place in Rekjavik with a reporter doing her own thing and also helping Ari Thor.
Interesting and engaging parallel crime mysteries. I'm looking forward to the next one.
March 15, 2023
This Nordic Mystery was published in 2012. It is Book #4 featuring Siglufjordur Police Officer Ari Thor.
The backdrop of this story is the mysterious virus plaquing Iceland. The country is in lockdown.
Meanwhile a cold case from 50 years prior has resurfaced; a baby boy has gone missing; and a woman is a victim of a hit and run.
Mr. Jonasson's writing style has been compared to Agatha Christie. I fully understand the comparison. Both Writers create for entertainment that draws their readers into the plot.
The backdrop of this story is the mysterious virus plaquing Iceland. The country is in lockdown.
Meanwhile a cold case from 50 years prior has resurfaced; a baby boy has gone missing; and a woman is a victim of a hit and run.
Mr. Jonasson's writing style has been compared to Agatha Christie. I fully understand the comparison. Both Writers create for entertainment that draws their readers into the plot.
February 12, 2017
Rupture is the fourth book in the Dark Iceland series and probably best to have read the others prior to this one for full enjoyment.
It was great to catch back up with Ari Thor again and to be transported to the wonderful picturesque setting. For a small place, Ari sure is kept busy with murders and crimes. Not so good for him but it’s great for us readers.
I really enjoyed the different story lines that ran throughout the novel. I always enjoy having the mixture of the investigations as well as the main characters personal life and the author does this really well. Poor Ari though, things never seem to run to smoothly for him!
The Dark Iceland series is one that I think many crime lovers would devour quickly and enjoy. They are not your gritty fast paced crime thrillers but a wonderful atmospheric, who dunnit type of read. Having read all four books in the series I really can’t recommend them highly enough.
My thanks to Karen at Orenda Books for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own and not biased in anyway.
It was great to catch back up with Ari Thor again and to be transported to the wonderful picturesque setting. For a small place, Ari sure is kept busy with murders and crimes. Not so good for him but it’s great for us readers.
I really enjoyed the different story lines that ran throughout the novel. I always enjoy having the mixture of the investigations as well as the main characters personal life and the author does this really well. Poor Ari though, things never seem to run to smoothly for him!
The Dark Iceland series is one that I think many crime lovers would devour quickly and enjoy. They are not your gritty fast paced crime thrillers but a wonderful atmospheric, who dunnit type of read. Having read all four books in the series I really can’t recommend them highly enough.
My thanks to Karen at Orenda Books for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own and not biased in anyway.
February 6, 2017
On the tour for this fantastic book so a quick one here -
Brilliant brilliant. Best one yet. Go and buy. You won't regret
End of review ;)
And today I'm on the blog tour so here's the longer version:
AND the Literary Travel Agency Travel to Iceland
Maybe the strap line to this book should read ‘Just when you thought it was safe to go back to Siglufjörður..” as like in the jaws of that famous shark, this book has just as much bite and shock factor. This great white is a vast icy landscape which chills to the core and I have been looking forward to going back there and was not disappointed. It’s even more claustrophobic and eerie than the last time I was there. A cold case, a weird cold case with people disappearing from an isolated fjord, the crux this time is a local policeman and an outsider – a journalist no less – tackling sensitive issues amongst those who have lived there for years.
Very clever to merge an historical case with a modern day mystery – icy hard snowballs bombard you from each and every angle, icicles bomb down from above – that’s how reading this book feels to be. There is an underlying current of evil, of hardcore death and murder, of a mystery unfurling across the centuries, and of isolation putting up one ice wall after another to keep out anyone who dares enter.
Everything can turn on a knife edge in this Dark Iceland and it’s becoming an obsession of mine. So much depth and intrigue in a relatively short read – at 244 pages in the print copy, that is no easy feat. Chillingly brilliant.
Brilliant brilliant. Best one yet. Go and buy. You won't regret
End of review ;)
And today I'm on the blog tour so here's the longer version:
AND the Literary Travel Agency Travel to Iceland
Maybe the strap line to this book should read ‘Just when you thought it was safe to go back to Siglufjörður..” as like in the jaws of that famous shark, this book has just as much bite and shock factor. This great white is a vast icy landscape which chills to the core and I have been looking forward to going back there and was not disappointed. It’s even more claustrophobic and eerie than the last time I was there. A cold case, a weird cold case with people disappearing from an isolated fjord, the crux this time is a local policeman and an outsider – a journalist no less – tackling sensitive issues amongst those who have lived there for years.
Very clever to merge an historical case with a modern day mystery – icy hard snowballs bombard you from each and every angle, icicles bomb down from above – that’s how reading this book feels to be. There is an underlying current of evil, of hardcore death and murder, of a mystery unfurling across the centuries, and of isolation putting up one ice wall after another to keep out anyone who dares enter.
Everything can turn on a knife edge in this Dark Iceland and it’s becoming an obsession of mine. So much depth and intrigue in a relatively short read – at 244 pages in the print copy, that is no easy feat. Chillingly brilliant.
October 16, 2021
Esta serie tiene algo que te mantiene pegado leyéndola aunque no tenga una trama llena de acción. Será la ambientación, es imaginarse estar en Siglufjordour (si quieren saber cómo es el pueblo, vean la serie "Trapped", fue filmada ahí) y vivir el día a día con Ari Thor en ese pueblito al norte de Islandia. En este libro, el pueblo está en cuarentena por unos casos de una enfermadad infecciosa y Ari Thor decide investigar un caso antiguo, mientras en Reykjavík aparece nuevamente la reportera Isnur quien decide ayudar a Ari en su investigación mientras cubre un caso de un atropello y de un secuestro de un bebé. Entretenida lectura. 3,5 🌟
Este sería el que llaman en español "Niebla en el alma"y es el tercero de la serie, y aunque en inglés el orden está mal la versión en español no está bien catalogada aquí en goodreads.
Este sería el que llaman en español "Niebla en el alma"y es el tercero de la serie, y aunque en inglés el orden está mal la versión en español no está bien catalogada aquí en goodreads.
July 26, 2021
priča je dobra, ima sve uvjete da bi bio fantastičan krimić, čak i hororac, ali negdje nešto ne štima.
ili je ragnar jónasson izuzetno loš pisac ili ne bi trebao pisati na engleskom (rodom je islanđanin i živi u reykyaviku) ili je prijevod totalno promašen. mislim, "napuklina" se ne razlikuje bitnije od "snježnog sljepila" i "zamračenja", sve su pisane u nekom banalnom, neinspiriranom tonu, što je šteta jer priče su, same po sebi, dobro zamišljene. sjećam se da mi se ni prve dvije nisu baš dopale pa se pitam zašto sam posegnula i za ovom... znam zašto, zbog mjesta događaja (islandska zabit) koje mi djeluje obećavajuće i zbog fotografije na naslovnici koja odgovara mom fotografskom ukusu.
uglavnom... ako ti je do brzočitajućeg krimića s nespretno složenim rečenicama i ako tražiš dva-tri dana laganog čitanja, okej, da. ali ako od literature tražiš više, slobodno preskoči. ima ih i vještijih u tom žanru.
ili je ragnar jónasson izuzetno loš pisac ili ne bi trebao pisati na engleskom (rodom je islanđanin i živi u reykyaviku) ili je prijevod totalno promašen. mislim, "napuklina" se ne razlikuje bitnije od "snježnog sljepila" i "zamračenja", sve su pisane u nekom banalnom, neinspiriranom tonu, što je šteta jer priče su, same po sebi, dobro zamišljene. sjećam se da mi se ni prve dvije nisu baš dopale pa se pitam zašto sam posegnula i za ovom... znam zašto, zbog mjesta događaja (islandska zabit) koje mi djeluje obećavajuće i zbog fotografije na naslovnici koja odgovara mom fotografskom ukusu.
uglavnom... ako ti je do brzočitajućeg krimića s nespretno složenim rečenicama i ako tražiš dva-tri dana laganog čitanja, okej, da. ali ako od literature tražiš više, slobodno preskoči. ima ih i vještijih u tom žanru.
February 5, 2017
Oh what a story. Much like the preceding novels, there are no big whizz bang revelations, no high speed chases and no intense moments of jeopardy but then this is what I like about this series of books. It is so beautifully written, such an absorbing read that relies on the building of atmosphere to deliver chills that it does not need to be. The way in which Ragnar Jónasson establishes and delivers the picture of the remote Icelandic town of Siglufjörður is just perfect, and more so with the descriptions of Hédinsfjörður which seems incredibly bleak and isolated. The descriptions of the journey made by one of the residents of Siglufjörður in order to take pictures of the remote fjord are inspired, as is much of the series, by his own Grandfather and his writings on the town, but are perfectly captured and recounted on the page here that it feels new and undiscovered.
There are probably what seems, at first, to be three distinct threads throughout this book. The story of Jórunn and her unexplained death which Ari Thór is investigating; the story of the hit and run involving the politician’s son who thinks he is finally about to get his big break in the music industry, and the abduction of the small child by someone who may well have been stalking the family home. The story moves seamlessly between the three investigations with Ísrún providing the only true link between them. It means that a large portion of the book moves away from the traditional setting of Northern Iceland into the streets of Reykjavik and yet the atmosphere is no less taught.
We already know Ísrún from her appearance in Black Out and are aware of her struggles, both personally and professionally. It is nice to learn even more about her character throughout the book, seeing her in her family situation as well as her professional one. She is a journalist through and through, with an engaging and enquiring mind, a nose for a story and a need to find the truth, if only not to be scooped by another journalist. In many respects she is very similar to Ari Thór with his need to discover the answer to the puzzle and this certainly helps the story to flow back and forth between the two locations.
The mixture of cold case (no pun intended) and new is matched by the perfect pacing. There is more tension and a greater sense of jeopardy in the current cases, particularly that of the missing child, and Jónasson creates this with assured ease, tapping into the thoughts of the boys step-father, a man on the edge who is holding too many secrets of his own, and the utter despair and desolation of his mother as she weeps for her missing child. Even the urgency of Ísrún’s investigation, her frustration when she cannot get information from her police informant, is indicative of the flow of the story. It informs the pace.
When it comes to the cold case back in Siglufjörður, the story visibly slows, echoing the isolation and slow yet bitter winds of its location. The creeping and growing sense of foreboding that Ari Thór feels when visiting the ruined farmstead with the Priest is surely also felt by the reader and whilst drawn in by whispers of the past, you also feel the need to escape. To move away as fast as possible before you too fall fowl of the depression which must have affected the family who lived there.
Although not as dark as its predecessor, Black Out, it is still a story with a tainted and deepening shadow at its heart. All of the events are built upon a foundation of lies and deceit. Whatever the resolution, there can be no winners and the lives of all involved are clouded by indelible changes. Another superb read and a fine example of the way in which Jónasson uses atmosphere to create the ultimate sense of dread while not sacrificing the integrity and authenticity of the setting.
There are probably what seems, at first, to be three distinct threads throughout this book. The story of Jórunn and her unexplained death which Ari Thór is investigating; the story of the hit and run involving the politician’s son who thinks he is finally about to get his big break in the music industry, and the abduction of the small child by someone who may well have been stalking the family home. The story moves seamlessly between the three investigations with Ísrún providing the only true link between them. It means that a large portion of the book moves away from the traditional setting of Northern Iceland into the streets of Reykjavik and yet the atmosphere is no less taught.
We already know Ísrún from her appearance in Black Out and are aware of her struggles, both personally and professionally. It is nice to learn even more about her character throughout the book, seeing her in her family situation as well as her professional one. She is a journalist through and through, with an engaging and enquiring mind, a nose for a story and a need to find the truth, if only not to be scooped by another journalist. In many respects she is very similar to Ari Thór with his need to discover the answer to the puzzle and this certainly helps the story to flow back and forth between the two locations.
The mixture of cold case (no pun intended) and new is matched by the perfect pacing. There is more tension and a greater sense of jeopardy in the current cases, particularly that of the missing child, and Jónasson creates this with assured ease, tapping into the thoughts of the boys step-father, a man on the edge who is holding too many secrets of his own, and the utter despair and desolation of his mother as she weeps for her missing child. Even the urgency of Ísrún’s investigation, her frustration when she cannot get information from her police informant, is indicative of the flow of the story. It informs the pace.
When it comes to the cold case back in Siglufjörður, the story visibly slows, echoing the isolation and slow yet bitter winds of its location. The creeping and growing sense of foreboding that Ari Thór feels when visiting the ruined farmstead with the Priest is surely also felt by the reader and whilst drawn in by whispers of the past, you also feel the need to escape. To move away as fast as possible before you too fall fowl of the depression which must have affected the family who lived there.
Although not as dark as its predecessor, Black Out, it is still a story with a tainted and deepening shadow at its heart. All of the events are built upon a foundation of lies and deceit. Whatever the resolution, there can be no winners and the lives of all involved are clouded by indelible changes. Another superb read and a fine example of the way in which Jónasson uses atmosphere to create the ultimate sense of dread while not sacrificing the integrity and authenticity of the setting.
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