Nordic suspense, with great character development

This was my first ever 'nordic' detective. I've heard great things about the crime novels from countries like Iceland, however I never thought myself a fan of the genre.
Eva Bjorg AEgisdóttir's debut, was a debut for me too and it opened my mind to this genre in a positive way.

The creak on the stairs started a bit slow for me, and I needed to push through at the beginning.
The Icelandic names didn't stick in my brain, which made me look them up again in previous chapters several times, and I really don't like this in general.

however, once I've gotten the basic relationship details figured out, the characters grew on me. Eva was able to provide depth to the characters and gradually revealed more details to their personalities. You got to understand their patterns, why they behaved in a certain way, some of them you mistrusted the whole time and people like Solla, will linger, long after you've finished the book.

I enjoyed the suspensebuilding, thinking that you have it figured out and then new information got thrown in the mix. I found myself looking forward to the flashbacks the most, as I started to relate so much with Elisabeth via those small sections. I also liked the main character (Elma), and I look forward to read more about her in future installments.

All in all, this was a great introduction to the genre and a recommended read for anyone looking for a gloomy, very realistic crime detective, set in a well crafted natural environment.

P.s. I took the time to read the names in the right pronunciation, and that wasn't easy - but a fun reminder next time I read something with an Icelandic ring to it !

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