Reading: The Dark Iceland Series by Ragnar Jonasson. Mystery/Crime/Thriller
Normally I avoid Nordic Noir crime novels. Sorry but I just find the subgenre to bleak, to dark and to damn depressing. But I’ve been rewarded by giving these books a try. The difference here is that the author, Ragnar Jonasson, has translated 14 Agatha Christie novels into Icelandic and he has incorporated lessons learned from Christie about setting, and characters into his contemporary crime thrillers. So what we have is a sort of fussion of Nordic Noir with Agatha Christie set in contemporary Iceland. To me this keeps the Nordic penchant for darkness and loss at bay enough that I’m enjoying these novels.
I give them a solid 4 out of 5 stars. If you like Nordic Noir, you’ll like these. If you like Agatha Christie you might want to try “Snowblind” the first novel in the series, just don’t expect it to be cozy.
