Hypothermia

Inspector Erlendur [English Translation Order] #6

by Arnaldur Indriðason, Victoria Cribb (Translator)

“Indridason fills the void that remains after you've read Stieg Larsson's novels.”- USA Today on Hypothermia
Inspector Erlunder has spent his entire career struggling to evade the ghosts of his past.  But ghosts are visiting him, both in the form of a séance attended by a dead woman and also in the reemerging puzzle of two young people who went missing 30 years ago. And there’s the ghost of the detective’s disastrous marriage, which, despite the pleas of his drug-addled daughter, he is unwilling to confront. In addition, he’s still obsessed with the disappearance of his brother, who vanished without a trace when they were boys.

He can only run from his ghosts for so long, and, when they finally catch up with him, Erlunder is forced to face the heart shattering truth of his past.

One of the most haunting crime novels readers are likely to encounter this year or any other, this is classic story that belongs on the shelf of every serious reader of suspense fiction. Hypothermia will chill you to the bone.

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Nordic Noir, Thriller, Scandinavian Literature, Audiobook

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

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 and received rave reviews all over the world.

Reviews

[Frances · Rating 3 out of 5]

Police Detective Erlendur arrived at a cottage by Lake Thingvallavatn after a frantic call to the emergency line for help from a woman identifying herself as Karen. She had arranged to rent the cottage for the weekend from her close friend Maria, who was now swinging from the beams by a cord in the living-room quite dead. Ruled a suicide as there was no doubt from the crime scene that Maria had taken her own life, Erlendur senses something is amiss. With time on his hands he visits many of her friends and soon discovers Maria was obsessed with the afterlife, the loss of her father, and quite recently her mother. Hypothermia is an easy read without any violence as Detective Erlendur eventually ties it all together rather neatly. Several things were quite interesting in this book, but other areas could have been elaborated on a bit more. Arnaldur Indriðason has received the Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger Award for his Reykjavik Murder Mystery series and perhaps the first book would be a good place to start.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I were Detective Erlendur Sveinsson's superior in the Reykjavik CID, I would have long ago had him fired. Here he spends 98% of Hypothermia nosing about a case of suicide when even he was convinced that it wasn't murder. Erlendur got obsessed, as he was wont to do, because the young woman who hanged herself was so vitally interested in finding out whether there was a life after death.

Arnaldur Indriðason is probably my favorite living mystery novel, and Hypothermia is one of his best novels. There is a very clever theme of literally and figuratively freezing to death: figuratively, in his relationship with his ex-wife Halldora, who loved him, only to find it was not reciprocated by the detective' and literally in the death of the suicide's father, the suicide herself, and of a young couple who drove off the road to their deaths in a frozen lake north of Reykjavik.

And most significant of all, years back, as a 10-year-old boy, he accidentally let go of his brother Bergur's hand in the middle of a fierce blizzard in the Eastfjords. Erlendur was found; Bergur disappeared as if from the face of the eart and has haunted the detective all his life. At the end, he takes time off to go to the Eastfjords and look for his long lost brother, or at least to confront himself in the shadow of Mount Hardskafi where it is suspected Bergur was driven by the blizzrd.

I feel a bit of a chill as I write these words, having just finished another fine novel by the Icelander.

[Repix Pix · Rating 2 out of 5]

Muy lento y bastante predecible.

[Cait · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am one of only 10 or so people - worldwide, it seems - who thought The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo sucked. I'm ok with that. The world would be a boringplaceifwealllikedthesameblah blah blah. But it did make me wonder, am I somehow missing the chromosome that is responsible for enjoyment of Scandinavian and Nordic crime fiction? Because people love this book. I entered the Good Reads giveaway for a copy of Hypothermia with the intent of answering that question. Plus, the description sounded pretty cool.

Guess what? Arnaldur came through! This book is actually the 8th in a series, but I didn't feel out of the loop by having not read the previous books (some of which I don't think are translated to english yet). The central mystery of this story is interesting: the victim is a suicide. Inspector Erlendur embarks on an unofficial investigation in the hopes of understanding just what drove this woman to such an end. Erlendur himself has a back story that's just as compelling, if not more.

I used to read a lot of crime fiction when I was younger. Not the hardboiled variety, more the CSI/Law & Order kind. I attribute that to the dream I had of one day becoming a criminal profiler for the FBI (until I realized I was to chickenshit to become a cop). John E. Douglas is still one of my personal heroes. My aspirations have since turned to medicine - primarily pathology - but it all boils down to the same interests. I like the puzzle. The helping people part is cool and all, and a really great bonus, but the assembling of clues and seemingly random bits of information into one coherent story is what really pumps my nads.

Arnaldur does this well in Hypothermia. Even when I knew where all of the puzzle pieces would go - and I fully believe it was not due to my stellar deductive reasoning, but because it was Arnaldur's intention all along - I was still just as interested in seeing them fall into place. I think what I liked most, though, was the atmosphere Arnuldur evoked. If I had synesthesia, I would probably describe this book as gray.

I began to gravitate away from genre fiction years ago*, but books like this remind me of how moronic it is to disregard entire classes of books rather than judge them individually on their own merit. Arnaldur has not only induced me to read more of his work, but he has also managed to renew my desire to read some of the other similar books on my shelves: Faceless Killers, Echoes from the Dead, The Unit, to name a few. So yeah, regarding Stieg Larsson? I guess I'm just weird like that.

*Embarrassing confession. I remember the moment this gravitation began. I was at the library in 1999, looking for a Patricia Cornwell book (shut up) when, due to the alphabetical vicinity, I came across Douglas Coupland's Girlfriend in a Coma. The rest is history.

[Nancy Oakes · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's a subtle elegance to this particular story, considering it's a novel of crime fiction. There are no raging maniacs with axes hanging about, no serial killers, and no serious threats to the people of Reykjavik. In fact, there seems to be a lull in crime as this story opens, and Erlendur has some time to go back to some very cold cases. While pondering the ones that got away unanswered, he becomes involved with a new case, that of a woman who was found hanging in her vacation home. There are no signs to indicate anything other than suicide, but her friend Karen isn't so sure. Karen brings Erlendur a cassette tape of the dead woman's previous session with a medium and gets his attention. Working on his own, with no official police involvement, Erlendur works to find out why this woman took her own life. In a brief phone chat with Sigurdur Oli, when Erlendur notes that he wants to know "why she committed suicide," Erlendur explains why:

[Sigurdur Oli asks:] " 'What's it to you?'
'Nothing,' Erlendur said. 'Absolutely nothing.'
'I thought you were only interested in missing-person cases.'
'Suicide is a missing-person case too,' Erlendur said and hung up on him."

Given Erlendur's background with the brother who was lost in a blinding snowstorm, his interest in the lost is no surprise. And it's no surprise that he identifies with the ones left behind, for example, the grieving father who has checked in with Erlendur every year since his son vanished. For this man, time is running out because he's dying, and Erlendur wants him to go with answers. There's another missing persons case Erlendur goes back to as well -- that of a young woman who vanished one day, car and all. But it's the suicide that takes most of his time, as he gets into the head of the dead woman, just trying to figure out why.

Hypothermia is an excellent novel, and will give you pause to consider the nature of grieving and loss as you follow Erlendur throughout. Probably more than any of the previous novels in the series, place is itself a character, especially the cold and lonely lakes of Iceland. I loved this book and cannot recommend it highly enough.

fyi: do NOT expect major action in this novel.

[Amos · Rating 5 out of 5]

MAN, what a book!! What a superior chapter in this fantastic series!! What wonderful gloom!! What heartbreaking happenings!! Oh to win and yet still lose!! Oh to know the truth devoid of proof!! Oh what beautiful catastrophes!!
I. LOVE. THIS. FRIGGIN'. AUTHOR!!

5 Gobsmacked Stars

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

With an upcoming trip to Iceland in the works, I wanted to tick off two boxes: a better understanding of the country and some crime thrillers to entertain me. I found this series by Arnaldur Indriðason, which has me even more excited. In the English translation’s sixth novel, Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson I had been chasing ghosts for many years. He has one troubling case of two teens who went missing three decades ago. A woman’s apparent suicide stirs up concerns, as she attended a séance before her death. The investigation will force Inspector Erlendur to face many of the things that have haunted him for all these years! Arnaldur Indriðason delves into his protagonist’s past to shake things up a bit.

Inspector Erlendur has spent many years dodging ghosts. After a woman’s apparent suicide, he meets with a medium who held a séance with the victim who had been trying to contact her mother. This forces Erlendur to explore many of the events that have haunted him.

One is a cold case that he handled as a new cop, where two young people went missing and have not been seen for three decades. It is one of the few cases that still surfaces in his thoughts. He is also forced to remember the disappearance of his brother in a snowstorm, another person who vanished into thin air.

He’s also forced to face the haunting of his deteriorated marriage, with two grown children who are pushing him to make amends. While he is able to run his investigations effectively, Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson struggles regularly with these ghosts from his closeted past. Arnaldur Indriðason has his readers stand to watch how fragile things can be for this stellar investigator.

Arnaldur Indriðason has been someone whose books I wanted to read, but it is only now, with tickets to Reykjavík purchased, that I chose to take the plunge. I love Scandinavian noir thrillers, in which I would label this book. The book explores the ever-evolving (and devolving) past of Inspector Erlendur, which is on full view in this novel. The narrative builds with the case at hand and the numerous past events that haunt Erlendur. Characters help solidify this tension, adding their own flavouring to the larger story. Plot points add some depth but also reveal the fragility that is on offer and keeps the reader hungering for more from this series. I cannot wait to see what else Arnaldur Indriðason and this series binge will reveal.

Kudos, Mr. Indriðason, for a great look into the darker sides of Inspector Erlendur.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

While reading this novel (#8 in the series) I told my wife "If you want to read something where there is hardly any action but the main character is interesting nonetheless, this is it."

Erlunder, our Icelandic detective, is looking at a couple of cold cases, missing persons who disappeared years ago. He's also picked up a suicide that rubs him the wrong way. Throw in a suspicious doctor, a couple of mediums who hold seances, and a group of people who actively investigate whether there is life after death, and it's a chilling good time.

[Linda Prieskorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have said several times " I am not a mystery fan". As I sit devouring this Icelandic series like it was a plate of Oreo cookies I've had to reflect on that statement. As I was growing up I was hooked on Nancy Drew, later it was Kay Scarpetta, Stephanie Plum and then Carl Hiaasen. What I have learned is I like a mystery that is a puzzle, not gory crime scene that leaves me terrified for weeks. I like a lead character who shares their personnel life, and I like a plot that teaches of enlightens me on some other topic.

I am hooked on this series because I like the lead character and his depressed life, I like that occasionally he will go somewhere, to solve a crime, that I have visited and I will have a strong image of place. I like that I close the book having gleaned a little of criminal science, geography, geology or cultural history. Yes the murders are cruel and gruesome but they do not dwell on the sadistic aspect. There are clues and red herring throughout that I must sift through to come to logical conclusion.

Bear with me, I have 4 more books to go. The last has not been published in the states but the rumor is it is the end of the series.

[Carlo Hublet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Erlendur en solo. Totalement hors piste. Il se ferait virer de n'importe quelle boîte par sa hiérarchie mais, pour le lecteur, un régal, ce flic solitaire, triste, hanté par son passé, souvent débordé par son présent, mais d'une humanité, une sensibilité extraordinaires. Jamais mièvre, jamais vulgaire, jamais ennuyeux même quand il n'y a pas de véritable action, comme dans ce roman-ci. Le flic de l'ombre, le flic chercheur des disparus du lointain passé, des fantômes, y compris les siens. J'adore cette série de Indridason et la lirai jusqu'à l'épuisement de cet auteur polaire bien à sa place dans cette grande et multiple "école" scandinave du roman policier dans son acception la plus noble....

[Ubik 2.0 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Coincidenze

Poiché in vita mia ne ho letti fin troppi, i romanzi polizieschi che ancora mi attraggono sono soprattutto quelli che si presentano con un approccio obliquo, indiretto, lontano dai ripetitivi cliché del genere.

Questo requisito è presente almeno per buona parte di “Un caso archiviato”: manca infatti una vera e propria indagine sostituita da ciò che sembra piuttosto il frutto della curiosità ostinata dell’investigatore Erlendur nei confronti delle “coincidenze”, ci sono personaggi sfuggenti, grigi, afflitti da vecchi e nuovi tormenti dell’anima, c’è un protagonista (Erlendur stesso) a sua volta depresso, perseguitato dai fantasmi del passato e dalle incomprensioni del presente e soprattutto c’è lo scenario islandese che da solo conferisce al racconto una patina fiabesca e quasi leggendaria.

Brani come questo [“Per secoli c'è stato un tracciato da Eskifjòrdur al distretto di Fljótsdalur, attraverso la brughiera di Eskifjardarheidi. Era una vecchia mulattiera che si stendeva a nord del fiume Eskifjarda-rà, sulla catena Langahrygg, lungo il fiume Innri-Steinsà, attraverso la valle Vinardalur e sui pendii Vinardalsbrekkur fino alla MiÒheiìfarendi, all'altipiano di UrÒarflòt e oltre le scogliere dell'Urìarklettur, fino ai confini del distretto dell'EskifjòrìJur”] sembrano proiettare il lettore nello sconosciuto Kadath di lovecraftiana memoria o nella Terra di Mezzo di Tolkien.

La coerenza di una plausibile trama poliziesca resta del tutto in secondo piano rispetto alla gelida e nebbiosa atmosfera che avvolge personaggi malinconici, solitari e inespressivi, accentuata dalla propensione che ossessiona molti di essi ad esplorare il diaframma che separa la vita dalla morte, l’esistenza di un al di là da cui sia possibile instaurare una forma di comunicazione col mondo dei vivi.

Purtroppo questo procedere della narrazione un po’ a tentoni, con inserti talora apparentemente fuori contesto ma non privi di un fascino intrigante, a un certo punto lascia bruscamente il posto alla volontà dell’autore di ricondurre il romanzo entro i binari di una convincente spiegazione logica, nei termini banali e monotoni di movente, ricostruzione di omicidio, prove, complicità, alibi e tutto l’armamentario di un giallo qualsiasi, verso un finale piuttosto opaco, astruso e farraginoso.

Questo (cioè la razionalità della soluzione) è forse ciò che ci si deve aspettare da un romanzo classificato come poliziesco e da parte di un autore specializzato nel genere ma, per quanto mi riguarda, rappresenta un’occasione mancata di sostenere fino all’ultima pagina un’opera che per almeno due terzi appare alquanto originale nella sua anomalia e inclassificabilità.

[Snotchocheez · Rating 3 out of 5]

The good news: Arnaldur Indridason's contribution to the "Nordic Crime Fiction" genre, Hypothermia, mercifully free of the out-of-check misogyny and torture porn that threatens to derail Stieg Larsson's "The Girl..." series (and to a lesser degree, Jo Nesbø's works), provides a very original premise and some very creepy machinations that pack quite a wallop, particularly at the end. It involves an Icelandic inspector (named Erlendur) and his sinuous investigation of a woman's suicide-by-hanging. The did-she-or didn't-she-kill-herself question is central to the plot, and the lengths that the inspector must go to to find the answers (including re-examining a couple of 30-year-old missing-persons cases that on the surface bear no relevance whatsoever to the suicide) are components of a very eerie and suspenseful thriller.

And the bad news: having to endure some really creaky segues, super-convoluted leaps of logic, and countless Icelandic travelogue descriptions like the paragraph below I culled at random (from page 229):

They began with a small circuit of the city. He had studied detailed maps of Reykjavik and its vicinity, and was surprised at the vast number of lakes that were to be found in a relatively small area. They were almost uncountable. He and Eva Lind started at Lake Ellidavatn where a new suburb had sprung up, then did a circuit of Raudavatn on a decent road, before continuing to Reynisvatn which had now disappeared behind the new suburb of Grafarholt. From there they drove past Langavatn and had a view of numerous little lakes on Middalsheidi Moor before slowly proceeding to Mosfellheidi. They inspected Leirvogsvatn beside the road to Thingvellir, followed by Stiflisdalvatn and Mjóavatn. It was late by the time they descended to Thingvellir, turned north and passed Sandkluftavatn which lay beside the road north of Hofmannaflöt on the route over the pass at Uxahryggir and down the Lundarreykjadalur valley. They picnicked beside Litla-Brunnavatn, just off the road to Biskupsbrekka.

Really.

[modhi m · Rating 3 out of 5]

علاج المطبات القرائية وحالات الملل والبطئ والتلكؤ في قراءة الكتب هو أن أقرأ لهذا الكاتب .. رواية جميلة مؤلمة مليئة بالتفاصيل الشيقة الفصول وتناوب تفاصيل الحكاية جميلة عانيت من بطء بسيط في بعض المواضع أحسبه بسبب لهفتي للتتمة. عمل بوليسي ممتاز ولكن مقارنة بأعمال الكاتب الأخرى لا زلت مفتونة بلغز البحيرة المتناقضة و صمت القبر ولازال حزن مخزن الأعضاء البشرية ومشاهد رواية جثة في الفندق الأخيرة تسكنني لذا مقارنة بكل ما سابق هي اقل روايات أندريداسون تشويقا لكن هذا لا يسلبها روعتها؛ الحبكة فيها غير مفاجئة والكاتب يوضح حل القضية منذ منتصف الكتاب لكن هناك مفاجآت أخرى وظف الكاتب الصدفة فيها بطريقة معقولة ولا يمكن الاعتراض عليها

3.5/5

[Viencienta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Otro más y como el resto, no soy objetiva.
Erlendur persiguiendo fantasmas, a fin de cuentas, es lo que ha hecho siempre. Lo veo dando más vueltas que un perro pa' echarse con respecto a su historia personal, pero me gusta, lo tengo leyendo sentado en el sofá y ni gute el tío.
Historias miserables de gente miserable... será eso.

[Kristine Brancolini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hypothermia unfolds with the classic Indridason pace and solemnity. Inspector Erlendur explores issues of life after death, as he "investigates" -- not there's anything to investigate -- an obvious suicide and the disappearance of two unrleated young people thirty years ago. Erlendur has become something of a "cold case" expert on missing persons. I was surprised to learn a couple of books ago that disappearances are somewhat common in Iceland and of course, Erlendur's own 8-year-old brother vanished in a blizzard that he and his father survived. Indridason's writing style is soothing and like other fans, I enjoy the lack of drama in Erlendur's life; the murders are never gruesome and there's always an interesting plot twist.

In Hypothermia Erlendur's colleagues are pretty much absent. He's working on cases that no one else cares about, but as the clues are slowly revealed, the mysteries come into focus and Erlendur's methodical procedures bring results. This book also features Erlendur's ex-wife Halldora and his two adult children. His daughter Eva Lind wants Erlendur and his ex-wife to meet and try to reconcile -- or at least reach some civil understanding. But it's clear to the reader that Halldora's anger and resentment will not permit this; for his part Erlendur has absolutely nothing in common with Halldora and wants nothing to do with her. I'm not much like Erlendur, but I confess that I identify with his desire to go home after work and read, read, read. Indridason is a compelling novelist; these books are "mysteries" but they are more character studies than police procedurals. I'm devouring this series and I will be sorry when I havr reached the end. Time to rent the film version of Jar City...

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read all in this series and this one stands out. The solitary Erlendur is on a personal quest outside the scope of his official duties. His usual sidekicks make fleeting appearances. He seeks answers on decades old cold cases of two missing persons while also making discrete inquiries on a cut and dry suicide case. He had reluctantly taken up the suicide case after listening to a tape of the deceased at a seance and his quest quickly escalates into a crusade. At the same time his personal life is being rocked by his daughter's attempt at effecting some sort of reconciliation with his ex-wife. He is also reliving the pain of losing his brother as a child in a blizzard. Life after death, not freezing to death is the theme of this book- although there is a connection between the two. Erlendur is compassionate, solitary, and quirky as always. It's too bad this series hasn't been able to do for Iceland what Mankell's Wallander has done for Skane, Sweden; however,I'm getting more and more interested in visiting Iceland especially after Googling some of the Icelandic place names that defy pronunciation and seeing their stark and surreal images on Icelandic Flikr accounts.

[Deb Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a series that is so well-written and the storyline and protagonist so compelling that I'm sure I will read it more than once. Don't think of compelling as an action-packed story as much as a character-driven story with people you want to learn more about.

It is easy to see why Arnaldur Indridason is an award-winning author with books that are sold worldwide. Inspector Erlendur's voice is a quiet one but with much authority behind it. He's an introspective and introverted man who cares deeply for the people in his life, even though he frequently doesn't know how to interact appropriately with them.

Erlendur and his team investigate serious crimes, including murder, but it is the missing persons cases that grab hold of and ensnare Erlandur in their grips. The Inspector has a personal reason for this special interest, but it's not a reason he has ever shared with his co-workers -- or even his adult children until just recently.

[Three · Rating 2 out of 5]

giù al nord

Ho già scritto da qualche parte che troverei bello se gli scandinavi tornassero ad occuparsi di curling.
Estendo l'auspicio agli islandesi.
p.s.: è possibile che ad un orecchio islandese suonino ostici ed impronunciabili nomi come Busto Arsizio, Genova o Salerno. Nel dubbio, nessuno scrittore italiano dedica intere pagine a copiare puntigliosamente l'itinerario che unisce queste amene località. Quindi perchè un islandese deve infliggerci le seguenti righe: "iniziarono dal lago Ellidavatn, poi fecero il giro del Raudavatn prima di proseguire per il Reynisvatn che era scomparso dietro il nuovo sobborgo di Grafarholt, da lì proseguirono lungo il Langavatn e la brughiera della Middalsheidi prima di procedere lentamente verso la Mosfellsheidi. Lì si fermarono sul Leirvogsvatn accanto alla strada che porta a Pingvellir poi sullo Stiflidalsvatn e sul Mioavatn."??

[Irene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Congelada me he quedado.
Una trama envolvente, con un punto de partida casi místico, pero muy real.
La tensión a romper la línea entre la vida y la muerte es palpitante.
Y además conocemos más cosas de la vida de Erlendur.......

Como siempre mi detective favorito se supera.
Más en la siguiente entrega.

[Yigal Zur · Rating 3 out of 5]

it started so nice the first chapter. and than.. not that it was bad but somehow it was not interesting enough. yes, it is not typical thriller, not a common Scandinavian with a lot of blood etc. but i was not intrigued enough. so i have not a clear say about it. we did not have a match.

[Meltem Sağlam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yazarın okuduğum ikinci romanı. Her iki romanın da kahramanı Detektif Ernaldur karakterini de sevdim, olaylara yaklaşım tarzını da.

Akıcı, merak uyandırıcı ve gizemi son sayfaya kadar devam eden hikayeler. Bence çok başarılı bir polisiye dizisi.

Yazarın Türkçeye çevrilmiş tüm eserlerini okudum. Kitaplar her ne kadar birbirinden bağımsız olsa ve ana olaylar birbirini takip etmese de, detektif Erlandur’un özel hayatı ile ilgili bazı detaylar devamlılık oluşturduğundan, serinin orijinal yayınlanma sırasına göre okunmasını öneririm.

Serinin ana karakteri dedektif Erlandur ve ekibini, olayların geçtiği mekanı, ve ortamı, her kitabın içerdiği farklı mesaj ile hikayelerini, kitapların kurgusunu, planını ve anlatım tarzını çok beğendim.

Erlandur’un, sadece çözmüş olduğu davalara yaklaşımını değil, aile ilişkilerindeki özeleştiriyi, değişim çabasını ve yeniden kurulmaya çalışılan ilişkilerini de sevdim.

Kitapların -biri hariç (Sırlar Şehri)- çevirileri güzel ve akıcı.

[Nigel Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Hypothermia' is well named. There’s something chilling about the investigations of Detective Erlendur that runs from the first page right through to the end.

This book was my introduction to Erlendur, and I found him to be rather engaging. To try and post reference points to the uninitiated, I feel that he combines elements of Maigret and Columbo; the thoughtful country-boy working tirelessly and skilfully in the big city combined with a terrier-like erosion of the people involved. Throw in the rational, obsessive mind with cold blood passing through the veins and you have a fictional detective of a very high calibre to enjoy.

Here's one of the skills he's learned over the years:

'The rule was always to accept coffee if it was offered...'

It's a tip he passes on to the younger detectives, a small measure as to their capacity to do the job:

'...Elinburg had been quick to learn this. Sigurdur Oli still hadn't grasped the concept.'

It's the kind of subtlety that helps to make a book worth reading.

'Hypothermia' opens with a suicide. It’s an open-and-shut conclusion as far as the police are concerned, yet Erlendur is uneasy with the case. He wants to know why the tragedy happened, needs to explore the story behind the death.

As he does unpeels layers, he uncovers ghosts. There are the ghosts in the mind of the victim, the haunting tones of a series of unsolved missing persons investigations from decades earlier and there’s the ever-present spectre of his dead brother.

Through visits trawling the stories of the past and the lakes of Iceland, after mystics are consulted and evidence unearthed, the plot-lines are sewn together skilfully so that they have a symbiotic relationship which offers a hugely satisfying read.

If I were to have a minor gripe, it would be to suggest that the translation does not always run smoothly. I can’t be sure on this as my Icelandic is non-existent, but I have a feeling that the translation requires one more light edit to present it at its best. It didn’t detract too much from the pleasure of my reading, but some paragraphs were a little wordy and slightly tangled when simpler language or use of a pronoun might just have streamlined things.

There's also a fair amount of one of my least favourite styles in the writing of speech, that of the ... to represent pauses or hesitancy. It's a small thing that possibly reflects natural conversation, but natural conversation and good written dialogue often bear little relation. Those three dots might have a place, but when they're overused they do irritate me.

Translation and dots aside, this is a tremendous read. The characters and plot are fully formed and each time I put the book down I started looking forward to the next instalment.

I'll definitely be getting to know Erlendur better in the future and I'm certainly recommending this to any fans of the police-procedural who enjoy a touch of class.

[Mal Warwick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here’s an author — from Iceland, no less — who has sold more than five million copies of his thrillers and won several prizes along the way. So, sucker that I am for mysteries written in or about exotic times and places, I made a beeline for Hypothermia. After all, the crime novel maven at the New York Times had recommended it.

Unfortunately, this novel — literally subtitled “A Thriller,” like most of Indridason’s previous books — isn’t especially thrilling. I persisted to the end more out of mild curiosity and stubborn refusal to quit reading than because I found the book suspenseful.

Not that Hypothermia lacked the earmarks of professional writing. The plot was both complex and credible. The protagonist, a Reykjavik police detective named Erlendur, is reasonably believable, too. He’s driven by deep-seated guilt, a father of two less than admirable adult children and ex-husband of a . . . well, the only word is shrew . . . and he seems little rooted in the police department even after decades of work there. However, Indridason’s style is so spare that the picture I’d hoped to get of Reykjavik and its surroundings barely qualified as impressionistic. The only thing that came through clearly in the pages of this flawed novel was that the people of Iceland all appear to be profoundly unhappy. But, hey, this is Scandinavia, right?

Hypothermia begins with the apparent but surprising suicide of a history professor named Maria. In some mysterious fashion, her death appears to be linked to the disappearance of two young people many years earlier. In the end, Erlendur uncovers the link and figures out how Maria died, solving three cases simultaneously. Q.E.D.

[Dimitris Passas (TapTheLine) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Είναι σίγουρα το καλύτερο από τα μόλις τρία βιβλία του Arnaldur Indridason που έχω διαβάσει μέχρι στιγμής. Τα δύο προηγούμενα ( ''Jar City''- ή αλλιώς ''Myrin''- και ''Silence of the Grave''), αν και μου άρεσαν πολύ, τα βρήκα εξαιρετικά μελαγχολικά και μου προκάλεσαν ψυχοπλάκωμα, ιδιαίτερα το ''Silence of the Grave''. To ''Hypothermia'' όμως διαφέρει σε αρκετά μεγάλο βαθμό σε σχέση με τα 2 προαναφερθέντα βιβλία του Indridason, τοσο ως πρός το ύφος όσο και στον ρυθμό της αφήγησης. Εδώ έχουμε μια ιστορία και μια πλοκή η οποία εκτυλίσσεται με γρήγορο ρυθμό, χωρίς όμως να γίνεται τόσο καταιγιστικός ώστε να δυσκολεύεσαι να παρακολουθήσεις. Την θέση των μακροσκελών, αν και εξαιρετικά όμορφων, περιγραφών που διακρίνουν την γραφή του Ισλανδού, καταλαμβάνουν εδώ οι κοφτοί και απέριττοι διάλογοι που τραβάνε την ιστορία πρός τα εμπρός. Έτσι το βιβλίο δεν γίνεται σε κανένα σημείο κουραστικό και με προοδευτικά αυξανόμενο ρυθμό αποκαλύπτονται στον αναγνώστη όλα εκείνα τα απαραίτητα στοιχεία για να φτάσει στην λύση του μυστηρίου. Δεν θα μιλήσω συγκεκριμένα για την υπόθεση, καθώς θέλω να αποφέυγω τα spoilers, το μόνο που θα αναφέρω είναι ότι μου θύμησε αρκετά την ταινία ''Flatliners'', παραγωγής 1990, με πρωταγωνιστές τους K. Bacon και Κ. Sutherland. Όσοι έχουν διαβάσει το βιβλίο, σίγουρα καταλαβαίνουν τι εννοώ.
Συστήνεται ανεπιφύλακτα σε όλους τους αναγνώστες της crime fiction, ενώ οι λάτρεις της σκανδιναβικής σχολής είναι βέβαιο ότι θα ενθουσιαστούν.

Καλή ανάγνωση!

[Berit Lundqvist · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book deals with suicide and mental health issues. Maria, the rich but unstable wife of a doctor, has seemingly committed suicide by hanging herself in her summer house outside Reykjavik. She was suffering from a severe depression after her mother's death.

But detective Erlendur isn't fully convinced the tragic death really is a suicide. Shortly therafter, he gets his hands on a tape, containing a record of a seance Maria has attended earlier to get in contact with her dead mother.

His suspicions start to rise. Step by step the secrets in Maria's life unfold. A picture of a confused and manipulated woman appears.

Another sad book from Arnaldur. Even sadder than the previous one in the series. Nevertheless, I liked this one better. Both the plot and the language are better. And sadly, it seems like no country has an efficient system to deal with mental health issues.

Not so fun facts:

During 2017, 32 Icelandic men, two Icelandic women, and six foreigners of undisclosed gender committed suicide in Iceland.

Many of the deaths were related to alcoholism.

Suicides are most common in the Far Westfjörds.

[Touchka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow... this book is a gem. I've read six Erlendur stories by now and so far my favorite is The Draining Lake storywise. However this one takes the prize for the best dialogues and duels of words (with special mention for: Erlendur vs Halldora and Erlendur vs Baldvin). It is so gripping, that for two days my world was revolving around this book and I finished in tears. The story takes you to dark (and cold!) places, talks about broken homes, the need of forgiveness and - as in every other book in Erlendur series - disappearance that takes its toll on the family.

Indridason argues that the time doesn't heal us, if we live with an open question that can't be answered.

[Patryx · Rating 4 out of 5]

Non esistono casi archiviati per Erlendur: la determinazione e l'ostinazione sono tra le doti che ne fanno un poliziotto coscienzioso.
Stavolta Indriðason non si muove tra i bassifondi della capitale islandese ma tra le pieghe più nascoste dell'animo umano e non so sinceramente tra i due quale sia il luogo meno piacevole da esplorare; a differenza di quanto accade nei volumi precedenti della serie, in questo comincia a farsi strada un filo di speranza e nonostante tutto non ho chiuso il libro con la pesante angoscia che in genere si associa alla lettura delle indagini di Erlendur.

[Jovi Ene · Rating 3 out of 5]

O femeie se sinucide și toate cele petrecute în viața ei până atunci nu lasă loc de altă interpretare. Doi tineri au dispărut acum mai bine de 30 de ani, fără să aibă legătură unul cu celălalt, și niciun indiciu nu a apărut de atunci.
Detectivul Erlendur, și el urmărit de propriul trecut, încearcă să deslușească aceste dispariții, dar și adevăratele motive pentru care trecutul te poate urmări până ajungi la sinucidere. Un thriller polițist bun, construit pe multiple planuri, care te ține atent pentru a descoperi ițele încurcate ale poveștilor.

[Rawan AbuAlia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

يتم اكتشاف جثة ماريا وقد شنقت نفسها في منزل العطلات الخاص بعائلتها... والمحقق ارلندور ل��يه فضول لمعرفة سبب انتحارها فيقرر أن يقوم بعمل تحقيق حول المسألة على مسؤوليته الخاصة.. وما يكتشفه خلال التحقيق سيكون مذهلا..
في نفس الوقت يحاول المحقق اغلاق قضيتي اختفاء عالقتين منذ ثلاثين سنة..

الحياة بعد الموت.. هل هي موجودة فعلا؟ كيف تبدو؟ هل يمكن أن يرسل الموتى رسائل لأقربائهم وأحبائهم؟
هذه الأسئلة هي ما كان يؤرق ماريا طوال سنين حياتها حتى ماتت في سبيل هذه المعرفة..

اما عنوان الرواية (صقيع الموت) فكان اختيارا موفقا من المترجم حيث كان معبرا يجمع الثلاث قضايا كلها التي كان المحقق ارلندور يحقق حولها وهو عنوان موفق. ومع ذلك فعنوان الرواية الأصلي (Hepothemia) معبر أيضا..

ليست هذه أفضل روايات اندريداسون التي قرأتها وبالرغم من ذلك فقد كانت ممتعة.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

The atmosphere of HYPOTHERMIA is cold. The weather is cold and so are many of the characters, cold to the needs and the fears of those who trust them.

Maria is devastated by her mother’s death. Leonora had been dying for two years, slowly being consumed by cancer. Maria is married to Baldvin, a doctor, but it is the relationship with her mother that has determined her life. Since her father’s death when Maria was ten, Leonora has protected her daughter from all danger and over-protected so that Maria was afraid to move beyond the boundaries established by Leonora. Not deeply involved in this life, she is obsessed by the next one.

Inspector Erlendur is given the task of meeting with Baldvin after he has been notified of his wife’s death. The doctor maintains there was nothing in his wife’s behavior or attitude that suggested that she was contemplating suicide. He acknowledges that Maria was still consumed by her mother’s death but he thought she was improving. But Erlendur is approached by Maria’s best friend, Karen, the woman who found the body at the summer cottage. She gives Erlendur a tape that was made during a seance and she tells the inspector that Maria believed in dreams and that Leonora was going to send her a sign if there was, indeed, life in the next world.

The old man was back to see Erlendur, a visit he has made, first with his wife, for nearly thirty years. His son, David, had disappeared without a trace but the old man is convinced beyond question that he did not commit suicide. Erlendur has kept the case open for the sake of the father; now the old man tells Erlendur that this will be his last visit. He is dying and is living in a nursing home and he is resigned to dying without ever knowing what happened to his son.

There are two other missing persons cases that have a hold on Erlendur. A woman and another young man disappeated at the same time as David. The woman, Gudrun, was a student who disappeared while her parents were traveling in China and Japan. Reliable phone contact wasn’t a given and calls over such a long distance had to be booked in advance. They didn’t realize their daughter was missing until they returned to Europe, two months after Gudrun had last been seen. They blamed themselves for being out of touch but they, too, insisted that she would never have committed suicide.

Erlendur is convinced that the third missing person was the victim of weather and bad choices. The young man had left to take a short walk to the next village but he was considerably underdressed for the weather. He was considerably intoxicated and a blizzart blew in suddenly, confusing him, and he likely took the wrong direction and went into the sea. There had been a significant effort to find him, but Erlendur accepted that the water had claimed this one.

Erlendur has no reasonsable excuse for continuing to investigate Maria’s suicide. He has no reasonable expectation of being able to solve the missing persons cases after nearly thirty years, but Erlendur is compelled to keep searching just as he his compelled to continue searching for his brother, lost in a blizzard when Erlendur was ten and his brother only eight. He has always felt guilty that he survived and his brother did not.

Erlendur is surrounded by ghosts. Maria, her father, Magnus, her mother, Leonora, David, Gudrun, the man lost in the blizzard and his brother, Bergur. But there are living ghosts that haunt him, too. His son and daughter have made contact with him. Eva Lind wants desperately to have Erlendur and his ex-wife, Halldora, meet to have a reconciliation that she thinks will change her life for the better, bring everyone together as the family they never were.

But it is the living that torment Erlendur’s psyche. What drove Maria to believe that life beyond the grave was her immediate destiny? Why did she commit suicide? The causes of a suicide are not a police investigator’s responsibility. Why can he not let Maria’s death go?

HYPOTHERMIA causes the heart to stop pumping warm blood through a cold body. Sometimes it is the heart that is cold even though the body still lives. There is more than one way to be killed by the cold.

Arnaldur Indridason is a master of psychological manipulation. It is characters that move the story, not events. Events are stage-managed by those whose purpose is nefarious. His characters are perfectly ordinary, and often, perfectly evil.