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Mutters to self: swap ban, swap ban, swap ban.

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Making the most of the winter sun again. Great story set in one of my happy places, Iceland. I think I‘ve read others of hers. This did not disappoint. A clever plot and very well written characters . In days gone by I would have had it as a plane read. Perfect for the long journeys we have to take to get anywhere. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5 Stars • REYKJAVIK is a crime novel co-written by Icelandic Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir and acclaimed author Ragnar Jónasson. Set in Iceland, the story follows the mysterious disappearance of a young girl named Lára Marteinsdóttir in 1956. Thirty years later, journalist Valur Robertsson begins investigating the case. This book is a slow-burning, spellbinding whodunit, with Agatha Christie's influence evident throughout.

Valur grabbed the telephone directory and started running through the A's for Arnfrídur .. . first in Reykjavík, then systematically around the country, by postcode.

After trawling through for some time, he established to his satisfaction that there were only two women called Arnfridur Leifsdóttir currently living in Iceland.

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Rather startling reminder of how small Iceland is!

The plot was quite captivating but the language was really simplistic. I wonder if it‘s the actual text or if this is a bad translation. Either way, I had no idea one of the authors is the Icelandic prime minister so that was fun.

This is a good Icelandic thriller from Arnaldur Indriðason and I love that we‘re given more information about Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson‘s back story. In this novel, a skeleton is discovered, and tracing its identity reveals a story of terrible domestic abuse, and ultimately how it taints and destroys the victims. In a parallel arc, Erlender‘s daughter is hovering near death due to a late stage miscarriage resulting from her drug abuse.

It‘s time for #JolabokaflodSwap! I love this swap by @MaleficentBookDragon because it‘s simple- just one book and some candy. This is my favorite swap of the year!

This was an OK story, a cold case that is not quite historical from where I sit in 2023, because the crime takes place in the 1950s and is solved in the 1980s. It doesn‘t do anything super tricksy or groundbreaking, but if you like mystery stories set in Iceland, it makes a good read.

Arnaldur Indriðason uses the term “jar city” to describe a collection of human organs kept for research purposes. The modern iteration is a genetic database. Both loom large in this great Icelandic novel that introduces us to Detective Erlendur Sveinsson. The plot: an aging rapist is murdered. Solving the crime involves tracing a genetic disease back to his victims. Beautifully translated. Erlendur, his colleagues and family are fascinating

I was intrigued that a prime minister would write a crime novel in homage to Agatha Christie. Starts well but then drags in the second half. Sonna interviewing suspects was all over the place. The original policeman Kristan would have made a more interesting main character. The crime sort of solved itself and was no great surprise. Not at twist in sight. Unless it was how the disappearance took 30 years to solve. Still I enjoyed visiting Iceland.