Publication Date: Available Now from Sandstone
Translated by Anne Bruce
Source: Review Copy
Frank Mandt died after a fall down his basement steps, the same basement that holds a locked safe bolted to the floor. His granddaughter, Sofie Lund, inherits the house but wants nothing to do with his money. She believes the old man let her mother die in jail and is bitterly resentful. Line Wisting s journalist instinct leads her into friendship with Sofie, and is with her when the safe is opened. What they discover unlocks another case and leads Chief Inspector William Wisting on a trail of murder and narcotics to an ordeal that will eventually separate the innocent from the damned.
Nordic Noir is a thing at the moment – some brilliant books arriving on our doorstep and Ordeal was such a book – distinctly atmospheric, with its own peculiar vibe I enjoyed it very much.
A great mix of police procedural and intensley intriguing character study, Jorn Lier Horst weaves a clever and perfectly paced tale around his main protagonists and has a clear and descriptive eye for interpersonal relationships that allows the reader to fully absorb into their world.
The mystery element is expertly done, Ordeal is light on action, heavy on authenticity, a quietly addictive read that keeps you turning those pages. I have a fondness for crime fiction with real soul, coming from writers that know how to engage and hold attention as the author did here, Ordeal is very much its own thing and that was the draw for me.
It has been said that it has all been done before and that is probably true – but often with this type of novel it is not so much the basics of the story but how it is executed, how a particular writer brings his or her own particular creative spirit to the table – in the case of Ordeal I loved the sense of it and it was a darn good yarn to boot.
If you are a fan of all things Nordic Noir then you will love this. Sometimes it really is that simple.
Recommended.
You can purchase Ordeal HERE
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He’s one of my favourite ScandiNoir writers, Liz – I’m going to start this one shortly! I’d highly recommend him, and as he used to be a fairly high-up policeman, it has the authenticity.