Category Archives: Iceland

Review: SNOWBLIND by Ragnar Jonasson

Posted on September 23, 2017 by bernadetteinoz

I was not surprised to learn, after I’d finished reading SNOWBLIND, that its author has previously translated some of Agatha Christie’s works into his native Icelandic. Because there’s much more of a ‘Golden Age’ or classic whodunnit sensibility to the … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Ragnar Jonasson | 8 Comments

Review: THE LEGACY by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Posted on July 31, 2017 by bernadetteinoz

Although I very much enjoy her best-known series featuring lawyer-turned-amateur-sleuth Thora Gudmundsdottir, I love the fact that Yrsa Sigurdardottir (and her publishers) have regularly taken the risky step of publishing books outside this popular series. Even if the books haven’t all … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Yrsa Sigurdardottir | 5 Comments

Review: WHY DID YOU LIE? by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Posted on April 12, 2017 by bernadetteinoz

The multiple-threads-without-obvious-connection novels are coming thick and fast these days but few are as skillfully realised as Yrsa Sigurdardottir’s standalone novel WHY DID YOU LIE? There are three strands which all, on the face of it, sound a little dull. Or … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Yrsa Sigurdardottir | 7 Comments

Review: THE SILENCE OF THE SEA by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Posted on April 20, 2015 by bernadetteinoz

A luxury yacht crashes into Rekyavik Harbour one night without a soul on board and no immediate signs of foul play; the three-man crew and family of four who were travelling home from Portugal are just…gone. Lawyer Thóra Gudmundsdóttir is … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Yrsa Sigurdardottir | 9 Comments

Review: SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Posted on March 20, 2014 by bernadetteinoz

I know it’s not the normal way of doing things but I feel the need to talk first about a couple of things SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME isn’t. For a few days now I’ve been staring at the bright red balloon on … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Yrsa Sigurdardottir | 13 Comments

Review: BURIAL RITES by Hannah Kent

Posted on August 16, 2013 by bernadetteinoz

Hannah Kent was a teenage exchange student from Australia when she first heard about Agnes Magnusdottir, the last person to be executed in Iceland (in 1829). A decade long obsession with the woman has resulted in a fictionalised account of … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Hannah Kent (Aus), Iceland | 6 Comments

Review: BLACK SKIES by Arnaldur Indriðason

Posted on March 2, 2013 by bernadetteinoz

Having complained at length about authors who persist in producing the same book over and over again I applaud Arnaldur Indriðason’s willingness to experiment by allowing different protagonists to drive his novels. The fact that he has pulled it off … Continue reading →

Posted in Arnaldur Indriðason, book review, Iceland | 10 Comments

Review: 66° NORTH by Michael Ridpath

Posted on November 1, 2012 by bernadetteinoz

In early 2009 many of Iceland’s residents took to the Reykjavik streets to protest their government’s response to the country’s deep financial crisis and this real-world event forms the backdrop for the start of this fictional, though highly credible, story. At one protest … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Michael Ridpath | 4 Comments

Review: Where the Shadows Lie by Michael Ridpath

Posted on February 6, 2011 by bernadetteinoz

I have my reading fairy godmother to thank for my copy of this book and even though Ridpath is not a native Iclelander I am counting the book towards the Nordic Reading challenge as it takes place in Iceland and … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Michael Ridpath, Nordic Challenge 2011 | 7 Comments

Review: My Soul to Take by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Posted on November 29, 2010 by bernadetteinoz

The second novel to feature Icelandic lawyer Thóra Gudmundsdóttir opens with a chilling prologue from 1945 in which a young child appears is locked in some kind of cellar. The story proper takes place in contemporary times when Thóra is asked … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Iceland, Yrsa Sigurdardottir | 7 Comments