Book nr 5 in the Konrád Series
A sharp and unsparing crime story about crushing silence, deep emotions and forbidden longing.
A widow finds among her husband’s belongings an old revolver that she has never seen before, and takes it to the police. A check shows that this is a murder weapon. Many years before, it was used when a man was shot and killed in a poor neighbourhood in Reykjavik, and the crime was never solved. This sparks the curiosity of retired detective Konrad, as his own father had a similar revolver, and he delves into long forgotten events to uncover links of which few people had been aware.
FIVE STARS OF FIVE POSSIBLE
“Arnaldur Indridason is by far Iceland’s most outstanding author, and even beyond Iceland … His latest novel is truly a masterpiece. …
He masters every strand of the plot … creates a credible story, and the writing is so enthralling that one nearly feels spellbound while reading. All descriptions, characters, and interpersonal exchanges, not least the dialogues, are such that the reader feels he is in the centre of it all. …
Arnaldur describes the everyday life of those who were marginalized and not recognized. Those who were feeble, small, and defenceless were trudged upon; those who were violent got away with their misdeeds, civil servants abused of their position, and the omerta was general. Konrad deserves all the bad names he is given, yet one cannot help to feel compassion for him, he is endearing, one overlooks his misdeeds; instead, one wants to help him and stand by him. Arnaldur describes Konrad as a villain and yet a hero. Can anyone ask for more?”
STEINTHOR GUDBJARTSSON, MORGUNBLADID DAILY
“There is much going on in this book. … Arnaldur is our best writer among this genre. His text is awesome, he efficiently conveys the atmosphere and the characters one can relate to. This is a very good Arnaldur we get this year. He never lets his readers down.”
KOLBRUN BERGTHORSDOTTIR, KILJAN/NATIONAL TV
“He’s good at describing ambiance and the spirit of the times. Konrad’s story is the story of a man who wants to become a better man … In this book, Konrad reveals his dark side.”
THORGEIR TRYGGVASON, KILJAN/NATIONAL TV
“As ever, Arnaldur’s characteristics are there, the spirit of the times, descriptions of places are present, and the book is written in a beautiful and strong Icelandic language. …
Arnaldur Indridason is a remarkable writer … ”
BRYNHILDUR BJORNSDOTTIR, FRETTABLADID DAILY
4 STARS OF 5 POSSIBLE
“We get to know the harshness of winter and the blizzards, the inflationist society of old, a curse upon many a family strughting poverty. In the background, we glimpse grave offenses from times past, such as child abuse, among others in Konrad‘s family. The offenses are surrounded by a chilling omerta, and the toxic consequences appear in several guises in the lives of the characters ever since.
… Arnaldur‘s works are many-layered and the character descriptions are deep. This enables us to see things from several angles and allows for differences in the interpretation of facts. Different periods are cleverly intertwined, showing us credible pictures from the everyday life. The text is fluid and the dialogues, a feature of his work, are natural and convincing. Yet again, Arnaldur does not deceive his readers in this novel, Indifference.”
HELGI GUNNLAUGSSON, STUNDIN
