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dr2danielr's review against another edition
4.0
Very well written fast paced book. It kept me reading every day.
piedwarbler's review against another edition
3.0
An interesting WWII crime thriller. Not my usual thing, but I was interested in the setting of Iceland, and the incidental details which give background to the story of a dead travelling salesman. The background of Britain occupying Iceland for strategic reasons was called The Situation, and in this book the British are about to hand over to the Americans.
I’ve read two of Indridason’s books now - The Shadow District is my favourite, but I like the way he makes you follow each step in the investigation as the police try to solve the murder.
I’ve read two of Indridason’s books now - The Shadow District is my favourite, but I like the way he makes you follow each step in the investigation as the police try to solve the murder.
nekreader's review against another edition
3.0
I liked although I can't help thinking the translation is a bit rough. It seems to actually be set in time before the first book in the series, so I'm not sure what happened there.
johnnyforeign's review against another edition
3.0
While this book was sufficiently readable and entertaining to maintain my interest, I don't think it is as good as some of Arnaldur Indridason's earlier books, especially "Jar City," "The Silence of the Grave," and "Voices." I think Erlender, the detective in those books, has a much more interesting back story than those of Flovent and Thorson and that he is a much more nuanced character than either Flovent or Thorson. Moreover, the Erlandur books I mentioned have a sort of poignant appeal that transcends the genre. "The Shadow Killer" does not. Again, this is not to say that "The Shadow Killer" is a bad book. It works very well as a police procedural and gives one a very good sense of Iceland during war time (WW II).
saltycorpse's review against another edition
2.0
I have really enjoyed all of Indridason's books with the exception of this one. The dialogue was stuttering and went nowhere for pages on end, the plot dead-ending in many aspects, and the only really interesting part is the exploration of the role Iceland played in WWII, which Indridason clearly enjoys writing about, and usually does so in a far more engaging way than this. Hopefully his next instalment is better.
harparey's review against another edition
2.0
Dæmigerður Arnaldur.
Vel skrifuð bók en ekkert sérstaklega spennandi.
Vel skrifuð bók en ekkert sérstaklega spennandi.
fastasashark's review against another edition
3.0
3.75/5 stars
Conclusion wasn't quite as interesting as the rest of the book. Still a good read.
Conclusion wasn't quite as interesting as the rest of the book. Still a good read.
bookgardendc's review
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
latetotheparty's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
There are several villains/bad guys in this and two of them are women. That said, there's also an undercurrent of general misogyny here that is off-putting. British, then American (Canadian and US) soldiers in Iceland during WWII created "the Situation" where Icelandic women were attracted to these soldiers and their Icelandic parents and families and probably each other didn't approve. Women weren't the cause of WWII, weren't soldiers, still had to live/make a living while the war went on and try to put their lives back together at the end.