by Thomas Enger & Jørn Lier Horst (T. Megan Turney)
SYNOPSIS
Buried sins
Brutal revenge…
Two years ago, Alexander Blix was the lead investigator in a missing person’s case where a young mother, Elisabeth Eie, was kidnapped. The case was never solved.
Blix’s career in law enforcement is now over, but her kidnapper is back, leaving evidence of Elisabeth's murder in Blix’s mailbox, as well as hints that there are other victims.
At the same time, Emma Ramm has been contacted by a teenage girl, whose stepfather has been arrested on suspicion of killing a childhood friend. But there is no body. Nor are there any other suspects…
Blix and Ramm can rely only on each other, and when Blix’s fingerprints are found on a child’s drawing at a crime scene, the present comes uncomfortably close to the past.
A past where a victim has found their own, shocking form of therapy.
And someone is watching…
Shocking, relentless and unbearably tense, Victim marks the return of the international bestselling, blockbuster Blix & Ramm series from two of Norway's finest crime writers.
REVIEW
I should probably warn you that this review is coming from a long-time fan of the Blix & Ramm series! I have loved every one Alexander Blix's investigations and this new book continues to take the series in a new direction since Blix is no longer allowed to work for the police force. Having said that, he still manages to find himself right in the centre of a murder investigation - an investigation that he refuses to stay away from, and one that right from the beginning seems to involve him personally.
Victim successfully combines several storylines including the present day discovery of a body from an old missing persons case, Emma's investigation into the innocence (or guilt) of a man who has been convicted of murdering a work colleague, Blix's struggle to return to society after his prison stay, and also a deeper look into Blix's past and troubled family history. While this might sound like a lot to pack into one book, it was done flawlessly, with each strand of the story turning out to be an important piece in this puzzling tale.
I just love their writing. The combination of these two authors working together is just perfection - the story is so descriptive and intricate, they build the tension in such a natural way, the police procedural elements feel like real-life cases as a result of Lier Horst's previous experience working as a police officer, and that classic Nordic darkness is extremely present throughout the whole investigation.
I am always disappointed to finish one of these stories, I honestly didn't want Victim to end! However, I am very happy that I can read the new Wisting novel at the end of the month from Jørn Lier Horst, and, I was beyond excited to hear the news that Thomas Enger is pairing up with Johana Gustawsson for a new series! Johana Gustawsson wrote The Bleeding which I still can't stop thinking about two years after reading it, and from what I've heard about Son, it seems like they have taken every one of my favourite tropes and crime fiction themes and put them all into one story - what more could I ask for?!
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Thomas Enger is a former journalist. He made his debut with the crime novel Burned (Skinndød) in 2010, which became an international sensation before publication. Burned is the first in a series of five books about the journalist Henning Juul, which delves into the depths of Oslo’s underbelly, skewering the corridors of dirty politics and nailing the fast-moving world of 24-hour news. Rights to the series have been sold to 28 countries to date. In 2013 Enger published his first book for young adults, a dark fantasy thriller called The Evil Legacy, for which he won the U-prize (best book Young Adult). Killer Instinct, another Young Adult suspense novel, was published in Norway in 2017. Rights have been sold to Germany and Iceland. Enger also composes music, and he lives in Oslo.
Follow him on Twitter @EngerThomas, on Facebook www.facebook.com/thomas.enger.77 or visit his website thomasenger.net
Jørn Lier Horst worked as a police officer and head of investigations before becoming a full-time writer, establishing himself as one of the most successful authors to come out of Scandinavia. He writes engaging and intelligent crime novels that offer an uncommonly detailed and realistic insight into the way serious crimes are investigated, as well as how both police and press work. His books have sold over two million copies in his native Norway alone and he’s published in twenty-six languages. His literary awards include the Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize, the Riverton Prize (Golden Revolver), the Scandinavian Glass Key, and the prestigious Martin Beck Award.
Thanks to Anne Cater - @RandomTTours, Jørn Lier Horst, Thomas Enger - @EngerThomas, and Orenda Books - @OrendaBooks for the opportunity to read and review
Fiction: Police Procedural / Nordic Noir
Publisher: Orenda Books
ISBN: 978-1916788343
Pages: 276pp
Comments