“Well, do you think there really was a head in her suitcase?”

90. Ashes to Dust – Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Birds of prey, volcanoes, archaeological digs, old murders, one night of young people dancing and drinking alcohol that led to so much it shouldn’t have in the 1970s… Ashes to Dust is quite the story and quite the case for lawyer Thora and her unfortunate secretary that she keeps judging, Bella. I like Thora, but at the same time, I do not think harping on Bella is a good choice. Even if Bella is clearly not secretary material (and some of us just aren’t, I don’t like the phone either and I sure can’t make coffee), she does come through here – a bit of can’t be asked turns into some solid research.

Although there were parts of this where I was a little concerned that Thora didn’t realize a clue was being found, it was still a good story and involving mystery. I do always appreciate learning some Icelandic history from Sigurdardottir, and really a mystery is an excellent way to work with historical fact and keep it intriguing. The Midwest is volcano-less and fancy free and as a relative non-breather who pales whenever they smell fire outside, the possibility of the sky filling with ash is very scary. Even scarier than finding a head in a box. Maybe not. Maybe…not.

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The crack mystery solving team of Danger Crumples and Ozymandias would miss nothing. No clues would not be sniffed out.