Cold as Hell by Lilja Sigurdardóttir translated by Quentin Bates

Áróra returns to Iceland when her estranged sister goes missing, and her search leads to places she could never have imagined. A chilling, tense thriller – FIRST in an addictive, nerve-shattering new series – from one of Iceland’s bestselling authors…

Icelandic sisters Áróra and Ísafold live in different countries and aren‘t on speaking terms, but when their mother loses contact with Ísafold, Áróra reluctantly returns to Iceland to find her sister. But she soon realizes that her sister isn’t avoiding her … she has disappeared, without trace.

As she confronts Ísafold’s abusive, drug-dealing boyfriend Björn, and begins to probe her sister’s reclusive neighbours – who have their own reasons for staying out of sight – Áróra is led into an ever-darker web of intrigue and manipulation.

Baffled by the conflicting details of her sister’s life, and blinded by the shiveringly bright midnight sun of the Icelandic summer, Áróra enlists the help of police officer Daníel, as she tries to track her sister’s movements, and begins to tail Björn – but she isn’t the only one watching…

Slick, tense, atmospheric and superbly plotted, Cold as Hell marks the start of a riveting, addictive new series from one of Iceland’s bestselling crime writers.

I read my purchased copy of Cold as Hell ahead of my review being shared as part of the blog tour. My thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Blog Tours for the opportunity to join the Cold as Hell tour.

Áróra and Ísafold are sisters but they do not get on. It’s been several years since the pair spoke, Áróra lives in England, while Ísafold prefers Iceland. But Ísafold has fallen off the grid – she has not been in contact with her mother who is worried about what may have happened. Áróra is called – get to Iceland, find your sister.

The fact Ísafold is missing does not immediately concern Áróra but she takes herself to Iceland and is soon at Ísafold’s house. Her partner is not remotely interested in helping Áróra and doesn’t even care where Ísafold may be – she is not there and that seems enough for him. His dismissive behaviour perplexes Áróra and when she speaks with her mother after this encounter she doesn’t appear to have much of an idea how to track her sister. But mum’s can be full of good ideas and she recommends Áróra seek out an investigator (Daniel) who may be able to lend his support and skills. Giving up is not an option.

So an investigation is unofficially launched with Áróra and Daniel digging deeper and uncovering secrets.

There is a second distraction for Áróra though. She has met a guy in Iceland and while the two are in his hotel room she discovers his father owns the hotel. Áróra also realises she is naked in bed with a man who has just left prison and she has no idea what crime may have been committed to put him there. She flees into the night fearing for her safety but it subsequently transpires her new acquiantance had been charged with financial crime. This is of deep interest to Áróra who wants to know more about this man and the crimes he committed.

I cannot get enough of Financial Crime stories and I love that Lilja Sigurdardóttir features some wickedly clever financial scams in each of her books. The crashing of the global economies in 2008, when financial markets took a hit around the world, was particularly hard on Iceland – seeing the continued manipulation of financial issues in stories set in Iceland does make each of the crimes Lilja Sigurdardóttir writes about seem more cruel than may otherwise have been the case. But I do still love reading them.

I am reading more translated fiction these days than I have ever done at any previous time in my life. This is only possible through the work of all the translators who have a command of language far beyond anything I could ever hope to achive. Their hard work and diligence brings stories like Cold as Hell to my bookshelves and I get to enjoy books which would otherwise be strangers to me. You may note that this review has been titled to include Quentin Bates as translator; going forward I plan to always show the translator when reading a text not originally written in English.

In the case of Cold as Hell I love how Quentin Bates conveys the tone and emotion of the story. Áróra’s initial frustration at her mother’s concern over her sister’s disappearance. Her own bemusement at the reaction she recieves in Iceland from Björn when he does not seem to have any interest in the whereabouts of the woman he lived with for three years. Then the more subtle fascination Áróra has with Daniel as she outlines why she is worred about Ísafold. With those subtle indicators of emotion and intrigue I become more drawn to all the players in this game, they are not binary “good guy, bad guy” characters, there are shades of emotions, subtle deceptions and telling tics and Quentin Bates brings them all through to give the story the nuance I seek.

Cold as Hell builds the layers of mystery and dead end investigations but you are drawn along with the story. Nothing is quite what it seems and Lilja Sigurdardóttir is masterly in her weaving of layers to everyone’s story. Add in the whole financial crime element and I was more than happy to be lost in this story.

Cold as Hell is published by Orenda Books and is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08WRJXYGY/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

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April 15

The Island – Ragnar Jónasson

Four friends visited the island. But only three returned . . .

Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir is sent to the isolated island of Elliðaey to investigate a disappearance.

But she finds haunting similarities to an old case – the murder of a young woman ten years ago.

Has a patient killer struck again?

What secrets is the island hiding?

And what price will she pay for uncovering the truth?

I received a copy of The Island through Netgalley

One of the issues with juggling work, family and then reading and blogging is actually finding the time to do them all. The one which slipped most over the last 18 months was the blogging as the day job changed and took time away from blogging. The reading was able to continue (albeit at a slower pace) but writing up reviews of everything I read didn’t happen. So I am spending some time catching up on reviews I wanted to write but did not have the chance at the time.

One book I particularly enjoyed was the second in Ragnar Jónasson’s Hidden Iceland series: The Island. Normally I would be explaining how events pick up from the action in the first book (The Darkness) but that isn’t how this trilogy is working. The Hidden Iceland series is a trilogy which is being written in reverse so The Darkness and its unexpected finale happen after The Island which is the book that was written after The Darkness. Simple.

Knowing what the future brings for the investigating detective Hulda Hermansdottir makes her past behaviours seem more significant. In this outing she is called to investigate a death on a remote Icelandic island. Readers know that a group of schoolfriends had stayed at the island some years earlier and that during their stay tragedy struck. Now one of their number has proposed a reunion of the surviving friends. It is a strange suggestion as after the tragic events of their first visit the friends drifted apart and are no longer close.

The reader is treated to a creepy opening and the utter remoteness of the island does give the story a stillness and an intensity which almost makes you feel you should be treading carefully around Hulda’s investigations and the reunited friends (who seem to be struggling to keep each other company).

As we have come to expect from this author, the plotting is meticulous and the cast are used wonderfully to maximise the uncertainty for the reader. You are always guaranteed entertainment from Ragnar Jónasson and The Island did not disappoint.

The Island is published by Penguin and is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Island-Hidden-Iceland-Book-Two/dp/1405930829/ref=sr_1_16?dchild=1&qid=1618428925&refinements=p_27%3ARagnar+J%C3%B3nasson&s=books&sr=1-16&text=Ragnar+J%C3%B3nasson

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October 27

Betrayal – Lilja Sigurdardóttir

When aid worker Úrsula returns to Iceland for a new job, she’s drawn into the dangerous worlds of politics, corruption and misogyny … a powerful, relevant, fast-paced standalone thriller.

Burned out and traumatised by her horrifying experiences around the world, aid worker Úrsula has returned to Iceland. Unable to settle, she accepts a high-profile government role in which she hopes to make a difference again.

But on her first day in the post, Úrsula promises to help a mother seeking justice for her daughter, who had been raped by a policeman, and life in high office soon becomes much more harrowing than Úrsula could ever have imagined. A homeless man is stalking her – but is he hounding her, or warning her of some danger? And why has the death of her father in police custody so many years earlier reared its head again?

As Úrsula is drawn into dirty politics, facing increasingly deadly threats, the lives of her stalker, her bodyguard and even a witch-like cleaning lady intertwine. Small betrayals become large ones, and the stakes are raised ever higher…

My thanks to Orenda Books for a review copy of Betrayal and to Anne Cater of Random Things Blog Tours for the opportunity to join the Betrayal blog tour.

When I first started this blog I had no expectation around where it may lead. I used to read quite a lot of books each week but would stick to familiar authors and got caught up in too many ongoing series but I didn’t really push myself into trying titles I would not normally have considered. To keep my blog fun for myself, I promised myself that I would try to bring myself out of my reading comfort zone and try new authors or consider reading books I would never likely have been aware of.

Why am I telling you this? Today’s review is the 800th post on Grab This Book – it is for an Icelandic political thriller and I am quite confident this is not a book which would have been on my radar had I not spent the last six years on the fringes of crime fiction’s blogging community. I would have missed out on this (and many other) great thrillers and it would mean I would not be encouraging more people to read Betrayal and enter the seemingly dark world of Icelandic politics.

Thanks for keeping me company over the last 800 blog posts. Regular readers will know that I have featured many books by the newly annointed winner of the Best Crime/Thriller Publisher Dagger Award – Orenda Books. When I am looking for stories which take me into new reading territories then the Orenda library is easily the best place to begin looking. “Mama Orenda”, Karen Sullivan has a phenomonal ability to find the most powerful authors and get incredible stories into the hands of readers.

To Betrayal: the story begins with Úrsula, who is being lined up to take a ministerial post in the Icelandic government. She is not affiliated with any party but both sides of the political divide agree she is a great neutral candidate to step into post. Always up for a challenge the former aid worker is putting warzones behind her to return home but is she stepping into a new type of conflict?

Úrsula has to find her feet quickly but her department seems well run and she can rely upon the support of her staff. On her first day a distressed mother appeals to Úrsula to assist with a rape case – her daughter was attacked by a police officer but her attempts for justice and a fair hearing for her daughter has gone nowhere.

Outside her office and without her knowledge a streetsleeper has recognised Úrsula and is determined to ensure she understands she has allied with “the Devil”. He will stalk her and find ways to leave messages for Úrsula and her initial decision to decline a ministerial car and bodyguard appear to be serious mistakes.

We also get to spend chapters in the company of some other interesting characters. First there is Úrsula’s bodyguard who is dealing with online attacks against his new boss and a jealous girlfriend at home. Then we have Úrsula’s smoking buddy; a cleaner at the ministry who may also be a witch but is certainly a party goer who winds up matchmaking for a TV newsreader. There is also Úrsula’s family, her colleagues and a journalist who is paying her lots of attention.

With so many plates spinning for Úrsula and story threads woven by Lilja Sigurdardóttir to keep her readers hooked you will find Betrayal spins along at a cracking pace. There’s always something to keep you wanting to read more and I was somewhat bereft when I reached the end of the book and realised my time with these engaging characters was over.

Betrayal is published by Orenda Books and is available in digital and paperback. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Betrayal-Lilja-Sigurdard%C3%B3ttir-ebook/dp/B088671XP2/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&qid=1603730427&refinements=p_27%3ALilja+Sigurdard%C3%B3ttir&s=digital-text&sr=1-5&text=Lilja+Sigurdard%C3%B3ttir

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March 3

Cage and Fatal Forgery – Listening to Financial Crime

A Double Whammy of Audiobook Reviews today. As I work in financial services I particularly enjoy financial crime stories so when I recently listened to two such tales back-to-back it seemed appropriate to review them together too.

Cage – Lilja Sigurdarottir

Drugs, smuggling, big money and political intrigue in Iceland rally with love, passion, murder and betrayal until the winner takes all…in the masterful, explosive conclusion to the award-winning Reykjavík Noir trilogy.

The prison doors slam shut behind Agla when her sentence ends, but her lover Sonja is not there to meet her.

As a group of foreign businessmen tries to draw Agla into an ingenious fraud that stretches from Iceland around the world, Agla and her former nemesis María find the stakes being raised at a terrifying speed.

Ruthless drug baron Ingimar will stop at nothing to protect his empire, but he has no idea about the powder keg he is sitting on in his own home.

At the same time, a deadly threat to Sonya and her family brings her from London back to Iceland, where she needs to settle scores with longstanding adversaries if she wants to stay alive.

With a shocking crescendo, the lives of these characters collide, as drugs, smuggling, big money and political intrigue rally with love, passion, murder and betrayal until the winner takes all…in the masterful, explosive conclusion to the award-winning Reykjavík Noir trilogy.

My thanks to Karen Sullivan of Orenda Books who kindly provided a copy of the audiobook for me to enjoy.

Cage completes a trilogy – Snare and Trap are the first two books. Reading Trap and Snare will provide character back-story and set a scene but Cage is very much a title which could be enjoyed as a stand-alone read.

Both Snare and Trap focus on Sonya, she is the mother of a young boy who will do anything to keep her son safe, however, she is also one of the most effective drug smugglers in Iceland and lives a dangerous life. Those books are both wonderfully tense, unexpectedly shocking and Sonya is a great lead character. Cage shifts focus from Sonya to her sometime partner Agla. I was not expecting Sonya to be moved out of the limelight to the extent she was, but Agla is such a fascinating character and I was fully on-board with the change.

As Cage opens Agla is in prison but her release date looms. It is a daunting prospect for her and returning readers see how different this once confident individual has been changed as a consequence of her incarceration. Agla had expected to leave prison and be met by Sonya, but their relationship changed suddenly when Sonya had fled – seemingly unable to commit to a life with Agla. The rejection hurt Agla badly and her recovery and new reality are explored through the story.

Prior to her release, Agla had been approached by a senior executive of a large firm who wanted to recruit Agla (off radar) for her talent at financial manipulation and her ability to devise solutions around tough regulations. The challenge? To investigate unusual market practices in the aluminium markets.

Agla recruits an old adversary – Maria – to assist. Maria had once poured her energies into exposing Agla as a criminal but now her life has also been turned upside down. She is making a living as a journalist exposing corruption and bad practices. She reluctantly helps Agla and soon finds herself alone and imprisoned at the mercy of unknown agents.

Can Agla and Maria uncover the elaborate financial market manipulations? Will Sonya finally get the respite she seeks? And how does a young teen with a crate of dynamite and a desire to change the world fit into the story?

An explosive and powerful book which I utterly adored. The audiobook is brilliantly narrated (best recording of the trilogy) and the hours flew by as I listened.

Highly recommended.

Cage is published by Orenda Books and is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07QW4C2SN/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

Fatal Forgery – Susan Grossey

It is 1824, and trust in the virtual money of the day – new paper financial instruments – is so fragile that anyone forging them is sent to the scaffold. So why would one of London’s most respected bankers start forging his clients’ signatures? Sent to arrest Henry Fauntleroy, Constable Samuel Plank is determined to find out why the banker has risked his reputation, his banking house and his neck – and why he is so determined to plead guilty. As the case makes its way through the Regency justice system, exercising the finest legal minds of their generation and dividing London society into the banker’s supporters and detractors, Plank races against time to find the answers that can save Fauntleroy’s life.

I put out a shout on Twitter for audiobook recommendations and got a lot of excellent recommendations. Although I only had scope to pick up one or two of the suggestions at the time I was drawn to Susan Grossey’s Fatal Forgery (as the day-job is in financial services). The premise of a banker pleading guilty to fraud when the penalty of his actions led to the hangman’s noose was ticking all the right buttons.

The story begins in 1824 and we are in the company of Constable Samuel Plank. These are the days before a London police force was fully established but Plank and colleagues do maintain law and order and work with magistrates to keep the streets safe. Well that’s a relative measure but they maintained a degree of discipline. It is clear Plank is well respected, he can apply reason and sound decision making and he is not one to have his head turned by the offer of a coin or two.

Indeed it is coins which are at the heart of this story as Plank is caught up in the disturbing case of a banker (Fauntleroy) who has failed to properly act in the true interests of his customers and traded stock and dividends without their knowledge. The semantics and methods used by Fauntleroy are nicely explained by the author and although I have an awareness of most of the terminology used I am quite sure those outside financial circles would have no trouble understanding how the crimes had been committed. Forgery is a phrase which carries over many generations!

The story follows the investigation. The social unrest and outcry (bankers were most trusted in 1824). We also get a court case and there is a great social history aspect to the story too. Susan Grossey does a marvelous job in depicting Regency London and gives the reader a splendid insight into how life may have been.

Narration duties are handled by Guy Hanson and he was very listenable. I repeat it often but the narrator can make or break the audiobook experience and Mr Hanson very much made Fatal Forgery a most entertaining addition to my listening library. There are further titles in the series and I fully intend to pick them up over the coming weeks.

Fatal Forgery is available in paperback, digital and audiobook formats and you can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fatal-Forgery/dp/B01LBBXQ2U/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=fatal+forgery&qid=1582408083&s=books&sr=1-1

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March 13

The Darkness (Hidden Iceland) – Ragnar Jonasson

A young woman is found dead on a remote Icelandic beach.

She came looking for safety, but instead she found a watery grave.

A hasty police investigation determines her death as suicide . . .

When Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavik police is forced into early retirement, she is told she can investigate one last cold case of her choice – and she knows which one.

What she discovers is far darker than suicide . . . And no one is telling Hulda the whole story.

When her own colleagues try to put the brakes on her investigation, Hulda has just days to discover the truth. A truth she will risk her own life to find.

My thanks to Laura at Michael Joseph for my review copy and the chance to join the blog tour

Hulda Hermannsdóttir is an experienced and respected investigator working for Reykjavik police. When we first meet Hulda she has identified a hit and run driver and coaxed a confession from the woman. The victim of the hit and run was a known pedophile and during the confession the driver admits that she knew the man she hit had targeted her son. Hulda returns to the her boss, ready to confirm the case can be closed only to find that her boss has recruited a replacement investigator who will be taking over Hulda’s job…her retirement has been brought forward and she is expected to leave within the next couple of weeks.

Hulda had known retirement was looming but it had always been on her own terms and she was looking at completing a few more months of work before accepting the inevitable fate and the lonely prospect of retirement. Hulda’s husband had died some years previous to events in the story (a massive heart attack) and with no other family and few friends Hulda almost seemed afraid of the prospect of retirement. So when she is given just a few days to wrap up her work she wrangles an assurance from her boss that she can work a cold case (of her choosing) to keep herself occupied during the last days of her employment.

Hulda begins to look into the drowning of a Russian immigrant who had been seeking approval to come to live in Iceland. It soon becomes apparent to Hulda that the original investigation has been very poorly handled and she starts to dig a little deeper into the last known activities of the dead girl. There is speculation that the girl may have been working as a prostitute and that the stress of waiting for approval (or not) to come and live in Iceland, may have been too much for her to cope with.

Hulda’s investigations soon ruffle the wrong feathers and unwittingly, while following up on a lead, she accidentally alerts a suspect in a different investigation to the fact the police may have him on their radar. Needless to say Hulda is not flavour of the month with her employers. They want to put a stop to Hulda’s interfering and time will be called on her career – retirement looms large. So begins a race against time for Hulda – can she find out what happened to the Russian girl before her boss calls time on her career?

As with previous Ragnar Jonasson novels which I have enjoyed, the investigation undertaken by the police is thorough and well plotted out. What differs in this outing is the time pressure placed upon Hulda and the lack of support she seems to receive from her colleagues. I should also point out the importance of the title: The Darkness. This is a dark novel and there is a bleakness for the characters too. Hulda is facing the prospect of a lonely retirement. In flashback scenes which pepper the story we read of a mother struggling to provide a level of care for her daughter. Hulda meets asylum seekers who are anxious to escape drama in their home countries and find a better life in Iceland – their plight and hope for a free life is both compelling and tragic. There are other equally dark moments which I cannot touch upon in a review but they really had an impact upon me as I read – some twists which were truly shocking and unexpected.

Seriously good storytelling from Ragnar Jonasson. Bring The Darkness into your day…much more enjoyable than it sounds!

The Darkness releases on 15 March and you can order your copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Darkness-Hidden-Iceland-Book-One/dp/0718187245/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1520900061&sr=1-1

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March 26

Thin Ice – Quentin Bates

Snowed in with a couple of psychopaths for the winter…

When two small-time crooks rob Reykjavik’s premier drugs dealer, hoping for a quick escape to the sun, their plans start to unravel after their getaway driver fails to show. Tensions mount between the pair and the two women they have grabbed as hostages when they find themselves holed upcountry in an isolated hotel that has been mothballed for the season.

Back in the capital, Gunnhildur, Eiríkur and Helgi find themselves at a dead end investigating what appear to be the unrelated disappearance of a mother, her daughter and their car during a day’s shopping, and the death of a thief in a house fire.

Gunna and her team are faced with a set of riddles but as more people are quizzed it begins to emerge that all these unrelated incidents are in fact linked. And at the same time, two increasingly desperate lowlifes have no choice but to make some big decisions on how to get rid of their accidental hostages…

Thin Ice is the fifth book from Quentin Bates featuring Icelandic police officer Gunnhildur – it is a series that I am new to and I can confirm that Thin Ice is easily accessible as a stand alone story. I can also confirm that I will be dipping back into the coffers to pick up the books I have missed as Thin Ice was great fun to read.

Although this is a Gunnhildur story the main focus of the first 2/3rds of the book are the crooks! Ossur and Magni have robbed a drug dealer of thousands of Euro’s and are on the run. Unfortunately their driver failed to turn up to whisk them off to safety and they have had to improvise. A mother and daughter out on a shopping trip find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. The robbers escalate their crime spree to include a double abduction and the four head off into the Icelandic wilds looking for a safe haven.

The interaction of the robbers and their unwilling companions is wonderfully entertaining to read. A small cast thrown together in a remote location and trying to keep one step ahead of the authorities (well Ossur and Magni are) made for an unusual scenario which Quentin Bates pitched perfectly.

As the book progresses the police come into the story more. We follow their investigations and see how they start to narrow down their search for the missing women. There are some unexpected twists along the way too which took Thin Ice in directions I had not anticipated, a sensation I never tire of.

A highly enjoyable story, the snowy Icelandic chill seemed to creep off the pages and when the story drew to a close I was disappointed it was over.

Thin Ice is published by Constable and is available in paperback and digital formats. You can order a copy here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Thin-Gunnhildur-Mystery-Quentin-Bates/dp/147212149X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458948336&sr=1-1&keywords=thin+ice

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January 8

Nightblind – Ragnar Jonasson

Siglufjörður: an idyllically quiet fishing village on the northernmost tip of Iceland, accessible only via a small mountain tunnel. Ari Thór Arason: a local policeman, whose tumultuous past and uneasy relationships with the villagers continue to haunt him. The peace of this close-knit community is shattered by the murder of a policeman – shot at point-blank range in the dead of night in a deserted house.

With a killer on the loose and the dark arctic winter closing in, it falls to Ari Thór to piece together a puzzle that involves tangled local politics, a compromised new mayor, and a psychiatric ward in Reykjavik, where someone is being held against their will.

Then a mysterious young woman moves to the area, on the run from something she dare not reveal, and it becomes all too clear that tragic events from the past are weaving a sinister spell that may threaten them all.

Thanks to Karen at Orenda for my review copy and also the opportunity to join the blog tour.

Last year we met Ari Thór Arason in Snowblind and followed his move to Siglufjörður. He struggled to adapt to being the new cop (and a stranger) in a small town while also dealing with the added distraction of conducting a murder investigation. Snowblind was one of the reading highlights of 2015 and you can read my review here: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=854

Nightblind picks up with Ari Thór some five years after the events of Snowblind. The book opens with an explanatory note for the reader outlining the significant events in Ari Thór’s life and explains that his colleague Tomás has moved to Reykjavík. Ari Thór now has a new boss, Herjólfur, but the two do not appear to have bonded – perhaps as Ari Thór applied for promotion but was unsuccessful.

Trouble is not far away for Ari Thór: the murder of his colleague brings tragedy too close to home. He knows not why his colleague visited a deserted house in the middle of the night, why he may have been targeted or even if the killer has remained in town. Ari Thór’s investigations will become political as the local mayor joins the suspect pool and small town grapevine speculation threatens to spill into scandal. A local drug dealer may hold some vital information but their co-operation may come at too high a price for Ari Thór.

Jonasson builds a brilliant narrative as Ari Thór’s investigation progresses. We have a small circle of characters who will play an important part in the story, red herrings, side plots and subtle clues – all the hallmarks we have already come to expect from Ragnar Jonasson. The frequent comparisons of a writing style that is similar to Dame Agatha’s are well merited.

Nightblind is a murder story so to reveal too much about the actual story would require massive spoilers – nothing should be allowed to spoil your enjoyment of Nightblind, it’s magnificent. I felt it pitched slightly darker than Snowblind with one plot thread (not to the detriment of the story) but it was a book I didn’t want to end. I could read about life in Siglufjörður for days, Jonasson makes the town come to life around me as I curl up with his books.

Ragnar Jonasson (courtesy of the beautiful translation by Quentin Bates) has delivered another literary delight – I cannot heap enough praise upon Nightblind.

Nightblind is published by Orenda Books and is available now in digital format and in paperback from 15th January 2016.

The blog tour continues and I urge you to check out as many of the hosts as you can – the full schedule is included below.

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