Mark Schiffer
I was not expecting to like this one all that much. Oli is hardly my favorite character and I wasn't excited to follow him for a whole book. Little did I understand that he is the himbo supreme. Black Skies reads like a super raw American crime novel, like McBain, but it also has a thematic cohesiveness that adds a ton of power to it. Now, onto Strange Shores. Eastward!
Incredibly lean, pitch black riff on Misery and The Girl Next Door. Bleaaaaak crime novel which the detective wanders in and out of, providing only occasional reprieves from a real all time bummer of a series of events. Impeccably written, psychologically rich, read like a modern horror classic in the guise of a crime novel. Was able to be read in isolation of any of the other books in the series too, though I'm def gonna go back to the beginning and see what else Fossum has to offer.
The Man Who Died functions as a darkly comic riff on the DOA narrative. A guy has been poisoned, and before he dies he needs to find out who did it. Add in the intricate details of the mushroom industry, poor eating habits, infidelity, and a missing samurai sword, and you've got yourself a stew!
Be warned, this book is absolutely disgusting. Its vision of the human body is of a fleshy tube covered in fluid-spewing orifices. Fair enough I suppose.
The best comparison in terms of style and tone is Dave Barry's novels from the late 90s and early 00s, Big Trouble and Tricky Business. Spicy, gross, comic misadventures packed with authorial voice. Definitely not for everyone, but some will get a real kick out of this one.
I'm glad Arctic Chill didn't shake me off this series, because man this was a fantastic read. One of the things I really like about a well executed crime novel is that the geography, timeline, and character map will have a clear shape by the end. This one really stands out in that respect. Hypothermia had a clear, powerful narrative, with effectively utilized flashbacks and incredible character moments. Eva is such a wonderfully chaotic character who I love and hate in equal measure. Nice to finally see the ex-wife for the first time since Eva's miscarriage way back when, even if the meeting this time was equally blergh.
I read an interview with Arnaldur Indridason where he said that he tries to only have “one murder per novel.” Considering that these books as a whole are super powerful and resonant, despite their lack of on-page violence (for the most part), this says a lot about his sense of craft. I'm now at the point where I'll gladly read anything with his name on the cover.
I'm beginning to feel a sense of melancholy about this entire series because this apparently is the penultimate Erlendur installment chronologically. Still, it'll be good to learn more about his coworkers in the following two books. Just know I'll feel quite bleak when I start Strange Shores, though undoubtedly I will go into the prequels once I finish it. I didn't think I was going to find my new favorite series this year, and if I did I sure didn't think it was going to be an Icelandic crime series. Really, really glad I picked up Jar City a few short weeks ago. It's been a terrific journey, and it's not over yet.
Though not my favorite of the series - the fact that the flashbacks took place in Germany rather than Iceland BUMMED ME OUT - this is still quite an ambitious and engaging read. Indridason excels at these multilayered crime narratives with different timelines and rich characters. It's also possible that I was experiencing series fatigue when I read it, so I might have to give it another try sometime.
Some old college friends go to a shack in the north of Iceland for a hunting trip and turn on each other. Ragnar's writing is so accessible, I'm kind of obsessed. Oh, to be in a shack in the woods during a blizzard!
3 stars only because a day or two later and I'm already starting to forget this one. It was a nice way to pass a weekend though.
