3 Compulsively Readable Thrillers
These
brand new novels will draw you in with their "gaspworthy" plots—and
endings that knock your winter socks off.
By Dawn Raffel
2 of 3
Nightblind
By Ragnar Jónasson
240 pages;
Minotaur Books
Set in the
tiny, remote Icelandic village of Siglufjördur, this spine-tingler is
a sequel to the best-selling Snowblind.
But you needn't have read a word of that first Nordic thriller to enjoy this
one. The story opens with the murder of the chief of police. The sole local
police inspector left alive is under tremendous pressure to find the shooter,
setting everyone in this peaceful backwater on edge. Previously, the biggest
news in Siglufjördur was the weather. Now, as the days turn dark and
winter arrives "as if autumn had been lost somewhere on the road north,"
there's also a national media storm to contend with. Soon, the unhappily
married mayor, his deputy (who is determined to be his next wife), a career
drug dealer and a quiet old woman are entangled in the investigation. The
ending is a satisfying surprise. But what really makes Nightblind stand out is its
vivid cast of characters, whose fears, ambitions, rivalries and longings are
movingly universal.
— Dawn Raffel
Published 01/09/2018