Snowblind - Ragnar Jonasson

"Siglufjorour: an idyllically quiet fishing village in Northern Iceland, where no one locks their doors - accessible only via a small mountain tunnel. Ari Thor Arason: a rookie policeman on his first posting, far from his girlfriend in Reykjavik - with a past that he's unable to leave behind. When a young woman is found lying half-naked in the snow, bleeding and unconscious, and a highly esteemed, elderly writer falls to his death in the local theatre, Ari is dragged straight into the heart of a community where he can trust no one, and secrets and lies are a way of life. An avalanche and unremitting snowstorms close the mountain pass, and the 24-hour darkness threatens to push Ari over the edge, as curtains begin to twitch, and his investigation becomes increasingly complex, chilling and personal. Past plays tag with the present and the claustrophobic tension mounts, while Ari is thrust ever deeper into his own darkness - blinded by snow, and with a killer on the loose. Taut and terrifying, Snowblind is a startling debut from an extraordinary new talent, taking Nordic Noir to soaring new heights."

I think I have a new favourite to add to my ever-growing collection of authors of whom I simply MUST read everything they've ever written. Snowblind is a subtle, quiet mystery set in the most exquisite landscape - justice cannot to be done to how gorgeously Ragnar Jonasson describes the Icelandic village in which the story is set. A funny little set of characters emerge - each one seemingly keeping some kind of secret to themselves, and all quite determined not to let in Ari Thor, a new policeman from Reykjavik. 

I gulped this down in the space of one weekend, (a birthday weekend too, which also involved two consecutive nights out - this was the perfect way to recover!), and fell ever so slightly in love with Iceland. While the pace is fairly slow, and it is not a heart-racing, arm-grabbing, screechy kind of a crime novel, the story is a slow burner that will suck you in and not let you go until you finish the final page. 

Please hurry up with some more Ragnar Jonasson. I'm not ready to let Ari Thor go just quite yet.

Snowblind is out in June and you can get it here:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Snowblind-Dark-Iceland

**Thanks to the publisher and Liz @ lizlovesbooks.com for my ARC**