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Voices

(Inspector Erlendur #5)

Arnaldur Indriðason,

Bernard Scudder (Translator)

3.87 · Rating details · 12,095 ratings · 869 reviews

Mancano pochi giorni a Natale e nello squallido seminterrato di un grande albergo di Reykjavik viene ritrovato il cadavere di un uomo vestito da Babbo Natale e con i pantaloni abbassati. Si tratta del portiere dell'albergo, che sotto le feste si travestiva per divertire i piccoli ospiti. Nella sua misera stanzetta vengono rinvenuti alcuni vecchi dischi in vinile e un poste ...more

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Hardcover, 320 pages

Published September 26th 2006 by Harvill Secker (first published 2002)

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Jan 07, 2019 Jean rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Despite the holiday rush and the hustle and bustle in Reykjavik, police Inspector Erlendur is feeling anything but jolly in Arnaldur Indridason’s Voices , the fifth installment of the series featuring Iceland’s somber detective. Erlendur Sveinsson is called to a large, busy hotel at the peak of the Christmas season. A maid has discovered the body of the hotel doorman, who was dressed in a Santa suit in preparation for a children’s party. The victim, Gudlauger, known as “Gulli,” had been livin Despite the holiday rush and the hustle and bustle in Reykjavik, police Inspector Erlendur is feeling anything but jolly in Arnaldur Indridason’s Voices , the fifth installment of the series featuring Iceland’s somber detective. Erlendur Sveinsson is called to a large, busy hotel at the peak of the Christmas season. A maid has discovered the body of the hotel doorman, who was dressed in a Santa suit in preparation for a children’s party. The victim, Gudlauger, known as “Gulli,” had been living in a tiny room not much larger than a closet in the hotel’s basement for twenty years. Now, here he is, in his Santa costume sitting on his bed in a compromising position, stabbed to death. Sigurdur Oli, who has accompanied Erlendur to the scene, makes a number of inappropriate but funny remarks about the situation. The exchange between the two struck me as being more humorous than anything I’d read in previous Erlendur books. Maybe the image of Santa . . .

Most of the book, however, is quite typical of Indridason’s Scandinavian noir style. It is mostly dark, and the language is plain and understated, but the themes are complex. Without being able to explain his reasons, even to himself, Erlendur books a room in the hotel as he attempts to interview staff and guests. He meets with reluctance and resistance as he scrapes and claws for clues. Everyone he talks to claims not to have really known the man who was the doorman and unofficial handyman for so many years.

At the same time, Erlendur must cope with his daughter Eva Lind, from whom he has been estranged for most of her life. She is a recovering drug addict, and now they have formed some semblance of a relationship, but each is frustrated with the other as they try to come to terms with their different lifestyles. More importantly, they struggle with their own pasts and self-acceptance while trying to discover what they mean to one another.

Having read Jar City and Silence of the Grave , I had no doubt that Erlendur would eventually piece things together and solve the crime. The plot unfolds slowly. There is a lot of trial and error. We see pieces of Gulli’s past revealed and possible suspects emerge, but there is always doubt until the very end.

There are several subplots that may seem distracting or unimportant. Some may feel that they add unnecessarily to the length of the story. I feel, however, that they support Indridason’s central theme: Family. In the two books I mentioned previously, Erlendur broods about a traumatic event from his childhood. Now, perhaps with Christmas near and his daughter badgering him with questions about their relationship, he is haunted by what happened when he was a boy, and he begins to realize how it has affected his entire life. We also see another detective, Elinborg, updating Erlendur about a child abuse case she was involved in. Then there is a woman who piques Erlendur’s interest, and we see yet another case of family dysfunction. Finally, there is the maid Osp and her brother, whose family ties have disastrous ends. Is it a wonder Erlendur is depressed? Christmas, the season that so many associate with love, joy, and family togetherness, for him is lonely and difficult. Yet, Erlendur is a professional. He does his job, and he does it well.

I think this may have been my favorite of the three books so far. I liked the depth of the characters, the questioning of the past, and perhaps the mixture of fear and hope about what the future might bring.

5 stars ...more

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Aug 26, 2017 Rachel Hall rated it really liked it · review of another edition

In short: A poignant but rather far-fetched police procedural that offers more in the way of a credible psychological angle than a swift and particularly competent wrap-up. The upside is seeing Erlendur’s reflections on his own life and mistakes along the way, and appreciating how a person's childhood can influence their later life. Voices is an investigation that takes the reader closer to Erlendur and his troubled daughter, Eva Lind, than ever before and it is due to this clearer understanding In short: A poignant but rather far-fetched police procedural that offers more in the way of a credible psychological angle than a swift and particularly competent wrap-up. The upside is seeing Erlendur’s reflections on his own life and mistakes along the way, and appreciating how a person's childhood can influence their later life. Voices is an investigation that takes the reader closer to Erlendur and his troubled daughter, Eva Lind, than ever before and it is due to this clearer understanding of a father-daughter relationship that I am so keen to continue with the series.

After reading Jar City and meeting Inspector Erlendur and his sidekicks, Sigurdur Óli and Elínborg, I was keen to see them in action tackling another investigation. Jar City combined a fascinating and complex investigation with Erlendur providing the social conscience and overseeing a reflective treatment. First published in Icelandic in 2003, Voices was translated into English in 2006 by Bernard Scudder who has delivered a remarkably fluent and highly readable rendering. In the run-up to Christmas, Reykjavík is awash with visitors and festivities should be in full swing inside one of the cities largest and most illustrious hotels. Hotel doorman, pseudo caretaker and annual wearer of the Santa costume, forty-eight-year-old Gudlauger (“Gulli”) Egilsson, is however discovered stabbed in him grim basement accommodation within the hotel. Still clad in his Santa costume, with trousers hanging by his ankles and a condom hanging off his limp penis, the inappropriate jokes are two a penny from Sigurdur Óli! In the equivalent of a prison cell sized room, it appears that Gudlauger has spent to last twenty-years and the lack of character and paucity of possessions does not offer much in the way of leads. Naturally the call to the police asks for discretion for the guests, however that is the last concern of Erlendur when he assesses the strange circumstances of the victim and the potential suspects. With a scant lack of concern for the victim, and his inconvenient timing, sympathy from his colleagues is distinctly lacking. The sole possessions to be found in the room is a book relating to the history of the Vienna Boys’ Choir and a couple of vinyl records, which offers Erlendur limited opportunity to discover more about the man. It is therefore the presence of saliva on the condom which sees Erlendur taking his first steps and requesting samples, thus necessitating the presence of biotechnician and scene of crime officer Valgerdur, a lady of a similar vintage who also catches the eye of Erlendur.

Despite the obstacles in his path, the indefatigable Erlendur’s unwavering persistence to discover the who and the why at the heart of this matter reveal an unexpected and fascinating life history, with the victim’s shortlived spell as the most admired Icelandic boys soprano coming to an end when nature intervened at twelve-years-old and his voice broke on stage. Tracing the victims history back to Hafnarfjördur Children’s Choir and his former choirmaster, Gabríel Hermannson, Erlendur learns of a life forever blighted by a man's failure to live up to his father's expectations, and marked by crippling bullying and the pattern of self-destruction that such circumstances can set in motion. The most surprising reaction to Gudlauger’s murder comes from his remaining estranged family, a wheelchair bound father and sister, Stefanía Egilsdóttir. What lies behind the decades long estrangement of Gudlauger from his family home and why are his relatives so bitter?

Due to staff cutbacks and the lack of necessity for a full-time doorman the victim had been made redundant but subsequently failed to move out from his digs. The manager and staff are all keen to dissociate themselves from the matter and reveal how little they knew of the victim, despite his service and residence of over twenty-years. The slow stripping back of the goings on at the hotel are stymied by the stroppy chambermaid who found the body, Ösp, only telling a fraction of what she knows (in essence, itself a lie) and belatedly throwing accusations of theft, the subsequent reluctance of the reception manager to make himself available for questioning and the availability of prostitutes for guests. Of the guests, it is the rather shifty and eccentric British vinyl collector, Henry Wapshott, who professes to a specific passion for the music of boys’s choirs and tells of his journey to Iceland on the agreement of meeting the former household name soprano and purchasing any remaining records in his possession. However, when it turns out that it is not the first visit that Wapshott has made to Iceland, or indeed the hotel, his avoidance of providing a DNA sample and attempts to skip the country force Erlendur to get to probe just what Wapshott is so keen to keep hidden. With no sign of Wapshott’s down payment amongst the possession of the dead man, there is clearly much more to a never-ending unravelling.

As Erlendur, reluctant to return to his lonely flat over Christmas, checks into a room at the hotel he is overcome by a malaise as he sees parallels with his own life history and Gudlauger’s, in the death of his younger brother which marred his childhood and left him with survivors guilt. In a sense, Erlendur knows that part of him died that day with his brother freezing to death, and this has in turn impacted his own failure and resolve to be part of his children's lives. Opening up about the raw memory and finally facing the way in which it has affected his life, it feels like Erlendur is attempting to address effectively robbing both his offspring of their childhoods when he walked out of their lives in their early years.

Erlendur has much in common with the brooding and rather introspective detectives familiar to Nordic Noir. Middle-aged, divorced for twenty-years, he is a world-weary figure, with a dogged determination and a man who expects little from his remaining years. His failure to keep contact with either of his children at a young age still haunts him and he feels largely responsible for their addiction battles, with son, Sindri Snaer, having been through rehab for alcohol and daughter, Eva Lind, continually engaged in fighting her addiction to drugs and recovering from losing a stillborn daughter, all caused by her reliance on drugs. Whilst his son is a distant stranger, Erlendur and Eva Lind share an occasionally fiery relationship, marked by honesty and an acceptance of each other's faults. Erlendur’s unstinting support of Eva Lind with her withdrawal never turns into preaching and readers will be of the opinion that he has been through his own internal struggles. Erlendur is a determined and persistent detective with a compassionate and realistic approach to the failings of society and hence, tackling crime. The case itself is more fascinating for combining an intriguing back story of the victim, rather than particularly plausible and what Indridason lacks in terms of strict adherence to procedural rigour he more than makes up for with his his powerful psychological angle. The overriding tone of this affecting and poignant police procedural is rather reflective, with Elínborg simultaneously engaged in giving evidence and attending the trail of eight-year-old assault victim Addi, with his father on trial for causing his brutal injuries and Elínborg taking the case rather personally. Seeing another young life altered chimes with Gudlauger’s situation and evidences how instrumental childhood memories can be in affecting a person's future.

Voices is monumentally more fascinating not for pinning down the perpetrator which is rather loosely detailed, but for the human interest element of the plot and a chance to reflect on the fragility of family life. I wasn’t impressed or particularly convinced by the convoluted denouement, which stretches credibility but I do not think tying down the specifics was Indridason’s primary focus of a poignant novel. Voices comes highly recommended for its insightful and profound take on family life, and how the increasing dependence on drugs and the associated problems of addiction, such as prostitution, have changed modern society. All of this resonates with Eva Lind’s own situation and the stillborn child that threatens to derail her attempts at getting clean. I am keen to see how the future course of this chequered father-daughter relationship progresses after Erlendur’s recognition of how his own childhood has impacted his adult life and indeed, Eva Lind’s own journey. Voices is an emotive story with an excellent psychological commentary and can be read as a standalone without previous knowledge of the series and the timely use of flashbacks illustrates the situations of Gudlauger, Addi and Erlendur well.
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Mar 01, 2018 Roz rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018, mystery-thriller

It may seem like I’m skipping books in the series, but I just read the ones the Hungarian publisher deemed appropriate for our poor hearts.. this does not bother me at all.. really.. not. at. all.

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Apr 27, 2012 David Fuller rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery

ICELANDIC literature hasn't been known for its murders since the days of the sagas, but thanks to Arnaldur Indridason, that's about to change.

Indridason, a former journalist, has made his living with eight detective stories and two thrillers, all set in Iceland.

He won the Nordic Crime Novel Glass Key Award for Tainted Blood and for its sequel, Silence of the Grave, which also won the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger Award.

His Reykjavík mysteries feature blunt police detective Erlendur Svei ...more

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Sep 18, 2013 Carol rated it it was amazing

Shelves: five-star-rated

You don't pick up an Indridason book for its sunny faith in humankind; these books set in Iceland are as noire as Scandinavian Noire can possibly be. And Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson is as pathetic as he is brilliant.

This book has a particularly troubling cast of characters revolving around the death of a hotel Santa who was once a famous choirboy. Does this past have anything to do with his death and the horribly compromised position in which he is found? And what about the odd record collector You don't pick up an Indridason book for its sunny faith in humankind; these books set in Iceland are as noire as Scandinavian Noire can possibly be. And Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson is as pathetic as he is brilliant.

This book has a particularly troubling cast of characters revolving around the death of a hotel Santa who was once a famous choirboy. Does this past have anything to do with his death and the horribly compromised position in which he is found? And what about the odd record collector who is trying to find the rare recordings of the former choirboy? And what of the dead man's strange and dysfunctional family (not to mention Erlendur's strange and dysfunctional family)? Almost all of the action takes place in and around the hotel, which gives the book an almost claustrophobic air. And Erlendur's team is collectively and individually laboring under the stresses of the Christmas season as well as the investigation. So what's the attraction? Because Indridason is a master manipulator of prose and his translator, Bernard Scudder, captures every morsel.

Not being a true mystery fan, I find myself reading Indridason because his explorations of the inner worlds of his characters, and especially Erlendur, are sophisticated and insightful. He is, to use an outdated word, an existentialist novelist who tries to figure out what it means to be human in a world that frequently seems absurd. One of his favorite themes is the way in which our past enslaves us, and the struggle it takes to break free.

In Voices, that theme comes through loud and clear. Erlendur begins to come to terms with his ghost-haunted past; in hearing Erlendur's ghost story, Eva Lind understands her own demons a bit better; the murder victim, Gulli, had been running from his past his whole life; and a subsidiary case of child abuse that Elinborg is working on once more illustrates the theme. Good stuff; the kind of writing that invites the reader to explore his or her own ghosts.

Author Arnaldur Indridason is one of Iceland's great contemporary writers, and I'm so glad his work is available in English. He is a brilliant writer who goes deep below the surface to explore the dark corners of human nature. This, then, is far more than a murder mystery, though it's a good one. It is a story about lost innocence, ruined childhood and family secrets and it's brilliantly done.

The translator for the first three of Arnaldur's books was Bernard Scudder who died in late 2006. Scudder (who was English) had spent many years in Iceland (his wife and two daughters are Icelandic) and did a phenomenal job of translation. I hope the translators of the next Arnaldur books do as well.
...more

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Dec 18, 2011 Richard Derus rated it liked it

Rating: A frosty, grim, depressed 3* of five

Dear Goddess, can Iceland really be this bleak?! This is one of the grimmest, saddest, most joy-sapping books I've ever read. And I quite simply couldn't put it down. I was vacuumed into the book's slipstream as soon as I read the first page...who uses the word "fracas" to describe a murder investigation?...and it kept me flipping pages until 2:40a EST.

But no way in Hell do I want to make a trip to Reykjavik now! It would be too gruesome, seeing all th ...more

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Apr 21, 2013 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: iceland, mysteries

I find it curious that a small (300,000-some population) can produce so many good writers. There are at least that many people within a one-mile radius of where I live, and all we ever manage to produce falls neatly under the heading of jack-shit.

It is Christmas, and the doorman of a ritzy Reykjavik hotel is found dead in a sexually interesting position while wearing a Santa Claus outfit, or at least part of one. After playing Santa for an upcoming Christmas party, he was to have been fired and I find it curious that a small (300,000-some population) can produce so many good writers. There are at least that many people within a one-mile radius of where I live, and all we ever manage to produce falls neatly under the heading of jack-shit.

It is Christmas, and the doorman of a ritzy Reykjavik hotel is found dead in a sexually interesting position while wearing a Santa Claus outfit, or at least part of one. After playing Santa for an upcoming Christmas party, he was to have been fired and (since he occupied a basement room in the hotel) evicted. Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson and his associates try to track down the killer. Being a bit gloomy during this time of year, Erlendur decides to stay in an unheated room in the hotel until the case is solved.

Fortunately, the story is as much about Erlendur as it is about poor murdered Gulli. That is one of the more interesting things about the Arnaldur Indridason detective novels, and Voices is no exception. I feel for Erlendur, even when I am disgusted with the victim, his family and friends. One feels like offering him a drink and saying "There, there!" in sympathy:

Erlendur felt no excitement about it. None of the expectation or sense of triumph that accompanied solving a case. All he felt was fatigue and sadness because the case had stirred up all manner of associations with his own childhood, and he knew he had so much left to come to terms with in his own life that he had no idea where to begin. Most of all, he wanted to forget about work and go home. Be with Eva Lind [his druggie daughter]. Help her get over the troubles she was dealing with. He wanted to stop thinking about others and start thinking about himself and his own people.

One interesting development is the possibility of a relationship with a forensic technician named Valgerdur. As I am slated to read at least two more Indridason works this spring, I would interested in seeing whether anything comes of it.

Indridason's Erlendur Sveinsson detective novels are good reads. My only complaint is that I felt too sympathetic with Gulli's murderer. If it weren't for the fact that, at novel's end, the emphasis shifts to Erlendur, I would have been disappointed.

...more

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Jan 22, 2014 Eric rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: Fans of Icelandic crime fiction

Shelves: detective-mystery

I added this book to my to-read shelf after reading this article, 'The top 10 crime novels in translation.' And to that, after finishing it, I say good call, Guardian!

This was an intriguing tale of the murder of a hotel doorman who dressed as Santa Clause for hotel holiday events, and was found, in the basement room of the hotel where he squatted, wearing the top half of his Santa costume and nothing but a condom on his bottom half. It had a likable, if tortured, protagonist in Detective Erlund ...more

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Jan 14, 2009 Nancy Oakes rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: translated-crime-fiction, crime-fiction-scandinavia, crime-fiction

This may be Indridason's best yet...it is simply outstanding. I thought the last one (Silence of the Grave) was excellent, but I liked this one even more. It is one of the darkest mysteries I've ever encountered and the time flew by as I was reading. I couldn't put it down. Most highly recommended -- for serious mystery readers and those who enjoy Scandinavian mysteries and haven't yet discovered this author. You may wish to read them in order, however.

Voices begins with the discovery of a dead ...more

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Nov 22, 2008 Sarah rated it liked it

Recommends it for: Fans of noir mysteries and exotic locations

I am a big fan of Indridason. He's very noir and one gets the feeling that the sun never shines in Iceland. Maybe it doesn't. I've never been there but that's also why I read Indridason's books. I love reading books that are set in places I ahve never been to or time periods I haven't libed in.

Something that intrgues me about Indridason's books is that people I know who have been to Iceland tell me that the people are very nice and friendly but in Indridason's books, people are really pretty rud ...more

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Apr 26, 2010 Robert Intriago rated it really liked it

Shelves: p-i

This is the third of the Reykjavik series that I have read. The thing I like about Indridason is his willingness to deal with social issues such as child abuse, homosexuality, prostitution, spousal abuse, etc, without assigning fault. It lets the reader make up his own mind as to moral values. In this book there is a main plot that involves the murder of a doorman/Santa Claus at a hotel during the christmas season. The victim at one time was child star that had lost his talent and fallen into ha ...more

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Nov 02, 2015 Suzy rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mystery, winter, holidays

This is my first Inspector Erlendur read, part of my holiday reading for 2015. Not exactly sweetness and light type of Christmas book, but I liked it and will seek out others from this series. Voices is #5 and takes place during the week building up to Christmas. The spirit of Christmas sparkles for tourists and others staying in a classic downtown Reykjavík hotel. Meanwhile, the doorman who also plays Santa each year was murdered in the bowels of the hotel right before he was to go on. In addit ...more

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Aug 31, 2013 AC rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mystery

I suppose I should finish this ... or at least skim the end to see who done it.... it is a bit 'meh', though... not nearly as good as the first two. And even those had at least a slight scent of 'stretching for effect'.

One senses that the author is aware of not wanting to offend or make mistakes.

Obviously, the bitter fruits (from the reader's perspective) of financial and 'literary' success... from the author's perspective.

Having found the 'who', I've lowered my rating. The answer is....

BIG SPO ...more

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Mar 21, 2019 Janet rated it really liked it

Good as usual, this one got more into the characters which was very cool :). Some parts one could already figure out ahead of Erlander...

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Jun 17, 2017 Lew Watts rated it liked it

Maybe I'm being a bit harsh, but not a touch on "Jar City." Then again, I'm recovering from oral surgery, so perhaps 3.5 stars. ...more

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Feb 14, 2008 Jessica Howard rated it it was amazing

Shelves: mystery-scandinavian

Erlendur, typically morose and lonely, spends this book worrying about his daughter Eva Lind, contemplating the potential of a new relationship, avoiding the Christmas invitations of his co-workers, and trying to solve the brutal stabbing of a hotel Santa. Drugs, sex, abuse, and choirboys all play a part in the crime, and in the life of Erlendur. A solid, quick read, intriguing in its glimpse into the tiny-ness of Icelandic society, something which amazes me in all of Indridason's books. Erlendu ...more

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Nov 22, 2010 Sandi rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mystery-thriller-suspense, read-2010

During the run-up to Christmas, Erlendur and his team are called in to investigate the murder of a doorman, who was found in his Santa costume, at a large Rejkjavik hotel. This was another exceptional crime novel by Arnaldur Indriðason. Very dark and introspective, the plot focuses on family relationships and secrets. The characters were all memorable, the Icelandic setting fascinating, and there was even a tiny bit of the absurd to lighten the tone occasionally. ...more

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Jul 07, 2020 Géraldine rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020, islande, policier

A good story

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Mar 29, 2017 Bogdan rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime, nordic-shelf

A very good crime and mystery book. I loved the way the characters were built, how the writer showed their complex emotions and how they were described in a lot of details to the reader.

The mystery wasn`t such a big one in the end, a bit predictable on some levels, with the whole highlights and ideeas in our daily basis nowdays, but still a very energic and well made read.

It has a peculiar nordic flavour that has sticked very easy on me and I can say that I`ll try for sure some of the other book ...more

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Dec 21, 2014 Ann Sloan rated it really liked it

How timely! It is Christmas and here is a book set at Christmas. It is dark and dreary here, just the way Erlendur likes it. I myself don’t know how people north of the Red River stand long, cold, lonely winters. Erlendur is born to it; he may even take a step further. But even he cannot bear to spend the days up to Christmas in his own apartment, even if the hotel room is cold. He has this opportunity because someone has murdered the doorman/Santa Claus in a particularly unseasonal manner.

As I How timely! It is Christmas and here is a book set at Christmas. It is dark and dreary here, just the way Erlendur likes it. I myself don’t know how people north of the Red River stand long, cold, lonely winters. Erlendur is born to it; he may even take a step further. But even he cannot bear to spend the days up to Christmas in his own apartment, even if the hotel room is cold. He has this opportunity because someone has murdered the doorman/Santa Claus in a particularly unseasonal manner.

As I read more of the books from this series, more this author remind me of Ross Macdonald’s Lew Archer. The solution to contemporary crimes lies in old sins, in old betrayals. Erlendur has the imagination and the understanding to know this. As Faulkner, a man who knew a thing about it, said, “The past is never dead. It's not even past.”

The setting, a hotel, is a rich source for characters. For another quote, a character in Grand Hotel remarks, "People come and go. Nothing ever happens." (Note to self: Watch the DVD you’ve had for a year. It’s hard for me to watch movies when there are so many books to read.) In this case, the Reykjavik hotel is filled with Christmas tourists. The hotel manager wants to keep the murder under wraps, which makes it difficult for Erlendur and his detectives to conduct their investigator. It does make it possible for Erlendur to meet a fetching forensic lady DNA swabber. Their “date” is so well-written; Erlendur is like so many of us older folks – we have so much baggage that is difficult to unpack. How does someone let down the defenses? Not Erlendur who prefers to drink Chartreuse while reading about people lost in snowstorms. Do they have Match.com in Iceland?

Erlendur’s investigation reveals a picture of the dead man that, as is usual with this deeply disturbing writer, goes far beneath the surface to create a story of suffering and loss uncovered by the police investigation. And the murdered man has more in common with Erlendur than is readily apparent. If the relationship between siblings was a theme of Silence of the Grave, the theme in this book shifts to parent and child. We learn more and more about Erlendur with each book in the series.

The book is essentially about the abuses and their effects on childhood: the long-term damage suffered as a result of parental expectations and the recollections that distort and mar adult life. Indridason is particularly powerful on the connections of a case with the investigator's memories.

Indridason reaches profound psychological depths. Voices is a brutal, soulful noir from Nordic shores.

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Aug 23, 2016 Bonnie Brody rated it it was amazing

Looking for existential angst? Well, look no further. The protagonist of Arnaldur Indridason's Icelandic mystery series, Inspector Erlendur, is existentially bogged down with baggage galore. He lives alone in a self-described 'hole' that is littered with take-out boxes, books, and a room filled with nostalgic items from his dead parents' farm house. He looks everywhere for the vestiges of his dead brother whose death he feels responsible for when he was ten years old. He sees the depths of ruin Looking for existential angst? Well, look no further. The protagonist of Arnaldur Indridason's Icelandic mystery series, Inspector Erlendur, is existentially bogged down with baggage galore. He lives alone in a self-described 'hole' that is littered with take-out boxes, books, and a room filled with nostalgic items from his dead parents' farm house. He looks everywhere for the vestiges of his dead brother whose death he feels responsible for when he was ten years old. He sees the depths of ruin in the people he investigates and quite frequently they mirror his own demons. Unable to face Christmas alone, he is staying at a big hotel that has no heat in his room.

This book has several narrative lines. The main mystery is about a hotel Santa who is found murdered in his basement room with his pants down and a condom on, stabbed many times. As Erlendur investigates, no one admits knowing this man who has lived rent free in the hotel for over 20 years. He was once a child prodigy, singing soprano so well that his father hoped he'd make it into the Vienna Boy's Choir. Unfortunately, his voice changed prematurely and he became a laughing-stock at his supposedly break-out concert.

Another story line takes us to a hospital where a young boy, badly physically abused by, refuses to tell who the perpetrator was. Erlandur's colleague believes it is the boy's father despite the boy wanting to be returned to his father's custody.

Erlandur has been divorced for over 20 years. At the time of his divorce, he had two children who he never saw afterwards until recently. Eva Lind, his daughter, is a recovering drug addict and prostitute who is having trouble 'holding on' now. She was near death recently, having given birth to a still-born daughter near term. The infant died because Eva Lind's drugs toxified her system and Eva Lind can't forgive herself. She has looked up her father and is trying to develop a relationship with him.

Erlandur is living in self-hatred with survivor's guilt because of an incident that occurred in his childhood. When he was ten, he,his father and his younger brother went camping and were caught in a blizzard. Erlandur had been holding on to his brother's hand but unintentionally let it go. His brother's body was never found and Erlandur is tormented about why he lived while his brother died. The event sent his father into a lifelong depression and has weighed Erlandur down ever since.

The mystery of the Santa is very interesting but what makes this book stand out is the quality of the writing and the humanity of the characters. I have already started another book in this series and can hardly put it down. ...more

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Nov 26, 2010 Jennifer (JC-S) rated it liked it

‘Who appointed you the conscience of the world?’

Just days before Christmas, Gudlauger Egilsson, Reykjavik hotel doorman, handyman and occasional Santa Claus is found stabbed to death in his room in the hotel basement. Detective Erlundur , and his team of Óli and Elínborg are called in to investigate.

It seems that Gudlauger , a long-term hotel employee, was largely invisible to his co-workers. And none of the staff seem very keen to assist the police. Erlendur takes a room at the hotel, partly to ...more

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Apr 06, 2009 dannymac rated it liked it

Recommends it for: mystery fans and people curious about Iceland

Read this after reading Silence of the Grave, a superior mystery. This one was good but I can't really say Arnaldur was at the top of his game here. It has all the elements pertinent to a good mystery but it just wasn't as complex as the previous book. However, I do find the protagonist Erlunder to be complex in the vein of Ian Rankin's Rebus. I get the impression that Erlunder physical appearance resembles that of the American TV character Columbo but their operating processes are completely di ...more

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Sep 25, 2014 Antonomasia rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2014, iceland, decade-2000s, nordic, christmas, crime

A short prologue in italics tells of a boy chorister at the beginning of a concert. Then the novel proper opens one 19th December, when a hotel doorman in a Santa suit is found dead with his trousers down. (An image which some decades ago would have been unusual and shocking, now merely sordid.) The only book in his room is 'A History of the Vienna Boys' Choir'. There's an obvious route for the story to take from here. Though Indriðason may not be the sort of author to follow it exactly.

Whilst ...more

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Nov 05, 2018 Berit Lundqvist rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2018

On the first day of Christmas
Erlendur sent to me
Dead Santa with his pants down

On the second day of Christmas
Erlendur sent to me
An angel’s voice
and Dead Santa with his pants down

On the third day of Christmas
Erlendur sent to me
An old cop
An angel’s voice
and Dead Santa with his pants down

On the fourth day of Christmas
Erlendur sent to me
A pedofile
An old cop
An angel’s voice
and Dead Santa with his pants down

On the fifth day of Christmas
Erlendur sent to me
A long lost child
A pedofile
An old cop
An angel’s ...more

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May 14, 2020 Andrew rated it really liked it · review of another edition

It's a few years since I picked up an Inspector Erlendur book and had forgotten what a joy it was to return to the world of this morose Rekjavik detective.
In this it is Christmas and a murder has occurred in a hotel gearing up for the festivities. Erlendur , lonely , troubled, not wanting to return home hetakes a room for a few days to investigate . If you like classic crime such as Christie the setting would be perfect for any reader as he solves the crime whilst dealing with his difficult daug ...more

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Dec 14, 2020 Chrystyna rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: christmas, crime-fiction

Voices by Arnaldur Indridson - OK

Another themed read for December.

It's the run up to Christmas and a hotel Santa Claus is found stabbed to death in his basement room...but it soon becomes much more than that. There's shady goings on in the hotel, lots of lies being told as people cover themselves, but are they lying because they are implicated in the murder or because they are involved in the other illegalities?

Detective Erlendur is back to investigate whilst still haunted by events in his own c ...more

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Feb 23, 2020 Heli rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, kirjasto, dekkari

It is amazing how a skilled writer can easily create a good story with seemingly little ingredients. There are so many nuances linked together in the making of this melancholy book that you can only read on with awe and respect. In this story Erlendur ends up living in a hotel while investigating the murder of a hotel doorman. Oncoming Christmas is creating it's own shadows in the mind of our gloomy detective. ...more

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May 03, 2020 Joan rated it liked it

If you are looking for a new detective series - go for this one. Very reliable stories and characters. It helps that I have been to Iceland. I'm able to picture the cities, countryside, mountains, glaciers and the water. ...more

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Feb 04, 2018 Lynn rated it really liked it

Excellent crime story from Iceland, a new series to read.

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Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Please add a cover for this book	1	1	Feb 10, 2021 07:01AM
wrong ISBN + add cover	1	1	Oct 21, 2020 12:37AM
English Translati...: Arnaldur Indridason - Voices	1	9	Jan 02, 2020 12:37PM
Question to Icelanders	5	82	Nov 30, 2019 01:38PM
جثة في الفندق	3	13	Dec 07, 2014 06:01AM

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About Arnaldur Indriðason

Arnaldur Indriðason

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Arnaldur Indriðason has the rare distinction of having won the Nordic Crime Novel Prize two years running. He is also the winner of the highly respected and world famous CWA Gold Dagger Award for the top crime novel of the year in the English language, Silence of the Grave.

Arnaldur’s novels have sold over 14 million copies worldwide, in 40 languages, and have won numerous well-respected prizes an ...more