Books reviewed in July

At Euro Crime last month I reviewed some books that were a real delight, including three with an Icelandic theme:

Outrage by Arnaldur Indridason set in Iceland, by an Icelandic author. “OUTRAGE is a classic crime novel, in the sense that it tells a story independent of modern technology and gimmicks. It’s also a traditional police procedural. Both these elements provide the reader with an excellent experience, and I think result in a book that is likely to stand the test of time.” Read on here.

66 Degrees North by Michael Ridpath, set in Iceland, by an English author. “The second in the Fire and Ice series is an intelligent, scorchingly paced, energetic thriller, relying for its effect on plot and character rather than explicit violence or trendy pyrotechnics.” Read on here.

The Day is Dark by Yrsa Sigurdardottir – set in Greenland (mainly) by an Icelandic author: “If you’ve enjoyed the previous three novels in this series, you’ll enjoy this one as it is very much par for this particular course. If you have not read any before, you can certainly start here and enjoy meeting Thora, an admirably brisk, intelligent, funny and warm person.” Read the full review here.

Finally on Euro Crime this month, a book that has nothing to do with Iceland, Blue Monday by Nicci French. “Nicci French novels are predictably good, exciting reads. Here, after many years of “standalones”, the authors (Nicci Gerrard and Sean French) break their own mould and start a series. BLUE MONDAY is, naturally, a page-turner, very hard to stop reading it once started.” More here.

At Petrona, I reviewed Guilt by Association, by Marcia Clark. Unknown to me, the author is a celebrity apparently, which has put a lot of people off reading the book. I thought it was a pretty good, brisk legal thriller, though (without courtroom scenes). For why, see my review.

I also reviewed Nowhere to Run, part of the Joe Pickett series – which I recommend very highly. Joe Pickett is a Wyoming fish and wildlife warden, family man with a mother-in-law from hell, and an honest guy in a world of operators, criminals and charlatans. I'm now almost up to date with these novels: Nowhere to Run is the tenth, and available in paperback. The latest, Cold Wind, is so far only in hardback but it is on my list! If you want to check out the whole series, my reviews are collected here.

Also this month at Petrona, I reviewed Sweet Money by Ernesto Mallo, the long-awaited follow-up to Needle in a Haystack, set in Argentina back in the 1970s and 1980s. Sweet Money fulfils the promise of the first novel, and is definitely a recommended read.

Although these are the only book reviews I published in July, I have one or two reviews submitted to Euro Crime waiting to go up, so soon you can know my opinions of The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler, The Terrorists by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo, The Quarry by Johan Theorin and The Hanging Wood by Martin Edwards. In addition, I read several novels on a recent short break, so hope to be writing up reviews of: The Caller by Karin Fossum, The Sacrificial Man by Ruth Dugdall, Fear Not by Anne Holt, The Hidden Child by Camilla Lackberg and Midwinter Sacrifice by Mons Kallentoft – note the strong Nordic accent in this selection!