Un polar bien frais (et bien fais) [mais un peu trop fabriqué] ( )

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, not so much for the plot line which, to me, seemed a little rushed at the end, but because to was a great ground breaking introduction to the characters that are to be featured in the other books in this series.

The way the Author described the snowfall actually made me feel as if looking out my window, I would be met with snow drifts and big fat flakes falling from the sky; an impossibility as I now live in Florida. The oppressive nature of knowing you are truly cut off from the rest of the 'world' was also well written.

This book provoked a lot of emotions and reactions which is due to the magnificent translation done so this book could be enjoyed by those of us who do not speak or read Icelandic. Some translations cause the work to lose the intent of the original, but I feel that is not the case here.

I highly recommend this book, and will be continuing to read the series. ( )

(42) A random read from the shelves of a B&B when I unexpectedly finished my vacation reading. This was pretty good. The author had previously translated Agatha Christie into Icelandic and one could sense her influence. A limited number of suspects - everyone has a story that could be linked to the deed. This just happened to be Book 1 set in an isolated northern village in Iceland where it snows, and snows, and snows. And like in many a mystery - the setting is almost a character, lending a feeling of being trapped to the atmosphere.

The protagonist is a young policeman with a sad past who takes a job far from everything he knows, Ari Thor. He is smart but impulsive and almost as soon as he arrives several suspicious deaths take place. There is also something else going on in italics - a woman is brutally attacked in her home. How is this related? It is hard to piece everything together and I did not puzzle out all the reveals though the clues were there as they should be in any good mystery. And this was a pretty good mystery. I would definitely consider reading more of the series. The translation was a bit clunky. Someone needs to tell the translator that "tumble" is not necessarily a great synonym for deadly fall. And I think the claustrophobia from the snow piece was very overdone - I did not feel it, but just had to read it repeatedly. But empirically the story and the clues and the sussing out kept me reading and guessing. An excellent airport/vacation read.

I am glad I happened upon this and will likely seek out the next book. A promising series. ( )

Yep, these are good candy. ( )

A very enjoyable Nordic detective mystery and well translated..... ( )