Blackout by Ragnar Jonasson

Book Description:

On the shores of a tranquil fjord in Northern Iceland, a man is brutally beaten to death on a bright summer’s night. As the 24-hour light of the arctic summer is transformed into darkness by an ash cloud from a recent volcanic eruption, a young reporter leaves Reykajvik to investigate on her own, unaware that an innocent person’s life hangs in the balance. Ari Thór Arason and his colleagues on the tiny police force in Siglufjörður struggle with an increasingly perplexing case, while their own serious personal problems push them to the limit. What secrets does the dead man harbour, and what is the young reporter hiding? As silent, unspoken horrors from the past threaten them all, and the darkness deepens, it’s a race against time to find the killer before someone else dies… Dark, terrifying and complex, Blackout is an exceptional, atmospheric thriller from one of Iceland’s finest crime writers.

My Thoughts:

Ari Thor Arason is back!

What I absolutely love about this authors books is the memorising setting, it is actually quite breath taking. This time it’s the height of summer but it’s not like any summer that most of us are used to. The small town is shrouded underneath an ash cloud. This seems to make the story that little bit more eerie and adds to the mystery of it all.

The story itself jumps around quite a bit from past to present and to different characters. With quite short chapters, especially towards the end, it felt like it is set at a faster pace than the previous two novels.

The actual story line is yet another web of mystery and suspense. I think I’ve mentioned it in one of my other reviews but the authors books have a feel of the classic Agatha Christie novels, with the pretty scenic settings and the classic who dunnit feel. It certainly makes for an extremely intriguing read.

Blackout is another wonderfully atmospheric read that is very different from your usual crime books. It’s Icelandic Noir at it’s best.

My thanks to Karen at Orenda Books for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads rating 4/5 stars.

Blackout is available in paperback and kindle from Amazon.