How often do you hear the phrase “comic Nordic Noir”? I’m guessing not often. Yet that’s exactly what Madson delivers in this delightful/terrifying novel that parodies the publishing industry while also taking on a real, live murder case. Hannah is one of Denmark’s most successful literary authors, even if no one actually reads her. Forced by her editor to attend a book convention—snobbish Hannah abhors these sorts of things—she manages to get into an argument with crime writer Jørn Jensen, Denmark’s James Patterson. In the end, she agrees to Jensen’s challenge to write a crime novel in one month. Why not? All she’s doing is facing a nasty case of writer’s block while day drinking. To keep her focused, her editor bundles her off to the rural, coastal Icelandic town of Húsafjörður, where Hannah lives with an older woman, Ella. Hannah’s take on life in Húsafjörður is wonderfully droll—indeed, the town and its cast of characters would make the perfect setting for a cozy. But things take a more violent turn when Ella’s nephew Thor drowns, likely murdered. Faced with a completely incompetent police officer, Hannah can’t help but take on the investigation herself. And best of all, the sleuthing will let her gather all the information she needs to write her mystery. If, of course, she survives. For fans of Anthony Horowitz.
