7 Nov 2012

HYPOTHERMIA.

HYPOTHERMIA by ARNALDUR INDRIDASON.


One cold autumn night, a woman is found hanging from a beam at her holiday cottage. At first sight, it appears like a straightforward case of suicide; María had never recovered from the death of her mother two years previously and she had a history of depression. But then the friend who found her body approaches Detective Erlendur with a tape of a séance that María attended before her death and his curiosity is aroused...
Driven by a need to find answers, Erlendur begins an unofficial investigation into María's death. But he is also haunted by another unsolved mystery - the disappearance of two young people thirty years ago.
..... Amazon book description.

FIRST SENTENCE:

MEMORABLE MOMENT:

MY THOUGHTS: My apologies that there isn't any First Sentence or Memorable Moment, a reading group read I returned the book before realising that I hadn't made a note of either of these.

As I don't usually fare too well with 'Nordic novels' (I tend to find them too dark and, if I'm being totally honest, a little bit, well, odd) this wouldn't have been my first choice of reading material but given that it was a reading group read I   was happy to give it a go. Pleased that I did, not that I can say I was gripped from start to finish I was however slowly drawn in as the story unfolded layer by compelling layer.

Not to be put off by the fact that in the main character we have a fairly typical detective (male, middle aged, determined, a bit of a loner, somewhat doleful), unlike several others of his ilk I found myself well able to connect with the rather likable Erlandur.

Relatively slow but with enough psychological twists to keep it from ever being dull, Hypothermia, though concentrating mainly on what at first appears to be an open and shut case of suicide, also delves into several other older and seemingly unrelated cases, one of which was so moving that I found myself with tears in my eyes - not something that usually happens with books of this genre.

Book 6 in the Reykjavik Murder Mysteries series, though this read perfectly well as a stand alone novel I'm intrigued enough by the snippets of dialogue between Erlandur and his estranged wife in this book to want to read the previous ones.

KEEP IT OR NOT?: Though a very enjoyable read this is not a book I could see myself re-reading.



8 comments:

Mary (Bookfan) said...

Not a genre I tend to read but your review has me jotting down the title!

Arti said...

Seems like a very good book by the looks of it. But is it a whole series and there will be connections with previous books too?
Have a nice day Tracy :)

Suko said...

Thanks for your clear and concise review. This Nordic novel sounds like an exciting and surprisingly touching book.

Melissa (Books and Things) said...

I actually may be interested since it is set in Reykjavik. I have met a couple of people there on-line and so I'm always curious as to places I may never see. Might have to start with the first tho.

Golden Eagle said...

I've never heard of the term "Nordic novel" before, but I know what you mean by them. This sounds like an interesting book/series!

Bookingly Yours said...

from the synopsis, looks like an interesting book.

and wow - Nordic book . .. .Reykjavik is in Iceland right? Cool setting! I would love to read this then!

The Bookworm said...

I've never read a 'Nordic novel' myself, but this sounds interesting.

Yvonne @ Fiction Books Reviews said...

Hi Tracy,

I am hoping that this book works as a stand-alone, as it is right in the middle of series?

I have several Nordik crime thrillers on my shelves waiting to be read, but none by this author.

I have lent quite a few to my dad, who only reads the crime/thriller genre and I have to say that he was less than comlimentary about the Nordik style of writing, which he found far too complicated, so he has decided that he doesn't want to read any more of them.

His opinion hasn't put me of giving them a try, it's just finding the time to fit them in my reading schedule!!

Great post, thanks for sharing.

Yvonne