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3.36 AVERAGE
3.36 AVERAGE
Not bad - interesting set up, and I liked Thora and Matthew - and their chemistry. I don't know if he's in the next book, but I hope so, their relationship was a lot of fun.
dark
mysterious
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
*3.5*
I haven't read too many mystery novels, only because it's not my favorite genre. But this was sounded interesting and how many books are set in Iceland?
I actually really liked the plot of this book. Sounds weird, but occult mysteries fascinate me. So the idea of a small town (country?) lawyer investigating a ritualistic murder sounded right up my alley. I thought Sigurðardóttir played out the mystery really well with plenty of dead ends, twists, and "who done it" moments.
Sigurðardóttir also clearly spent a lot of time on the research and detail of Icelandic history, which I loved. I was a history major in college and was ecstatic when she included so many historical details. It also made the book more than just about a gruesome murder and, at least for me, lent a very realistic feel to the motive behind the characters' actions.
Unfortunately, I was not the biggest fan of the MCs. They're the main reason I only give this 3.5 stars. Thora was kind of a bitch? Sorry, but a 30-something divorced mother of two who is well educated should not be so judgmental. I get that Bella, the secretary, was a terrible worker but Thora also criticized her looks, especially in front of Matthew. If you don't care that much about Bella, why would you criticize her when Matthew was only being nice to her? It just seemed that Thora had a low opinion of women in general, I guess. When she slept with Matthew the first time, she freaked out because she thought she was whore or something. And then she ruffled the bed sheets in her hotel bed so that the "help wouldn't think she was promiscuous". Literally, they could not give a shit. I'm sure they've seen much worse than an empty bed. Just the way she reacted to sleeping with someone was indicative of someone who thought women should be this perfect, beautiful specimen. Thora, as an attorney/investigator, was just fine. Professionally, I respected her. As a woman dealing with a terrible ex-husband, two kids, and her own internal issues, I was unimpressed.
Matthew was more just annoying. He was a stereotypical German at the beginning, tight-lipped with very little humor. As a German, I find this to be both offensive and likely accurate, but that's not my biggest problem. It seems like all of the sudden, his bluntness disappears and he's this funny, mildly inappropriate, random guy. He went from being completely professional at all times, to being a jokester and the shift seems sudden and with literally no cause. It's like Sigurðardóttir forgot what kind of character she wanted Matthew to be.
Overall, the plot and attention to historical detail was what kept me reading. But the MCs got on my nerves quite a bit. I'll definitely read the second Thora book, but really only because the plot sounds just as interesting and I enjoy Sigurðardóttir's story building.
I haven't read too many mystery novels, only because it's not my favorite genre. But this was sounded interesting and how many books are set in Iceland?
I actually really liked the plot of this book. Sounds weird, but occult mysteries fascinate me. So the idea of a small town (country?) lawyer investigating a ritualistic murder sounded right up my alley. I thought Sigurðardóttir played out the mystery really well with plenty of dead ends, twists, and "who done it" moments.
Sigurðardóttir also clearly spent a lot of time on the research and detail of Icelandic history, which I loved. I was a history major in college and was ecstatic when she included so many historical details. It also made the book more than just about a gruesome murder and, at least for me, lent a very realistic feel to the motive behind the characters' actions.
Unfortunately, I was not the biggest fan of the MCs. They're the main reason I only give this 3.5 stars. Thora was kind of a bitch? Sorry, but a 30-something divorced mother of two who is well educated should not be so judgmental. I get that Bella, the secretary, was a terrible worker but Thora also criticized her looks, especially in front of Matthew. If you don't care that much about Bella, why would you criticize her when Matthew was only being nice to her? It just seemed that Thora had a low opinion of women in general, I guess. When she
Matthew was more just annoying. He was a stereotypical German at the beginning, tight-lipped with very little humor. As a German, I find this to be both offensive and likely accurate, but that's not my biggest problem. It seems like all of the sudden, his bluntness disappears and he's this funny, mildly inappropriate, random guy. He went from being completely professional at all times, to being a jokester and the shift seems sudden and with literally no cause. It's like Sigurðardóttir forgot what kind of character she wanted Matthew to be.
Overall, the plot and attention to historical detail was what kept me reading. But the MCs got on my nerves quite a bit. I'll definitely read the second Thora book, but really only because the plot sounds just as interesting and I enjoy Sigurðardóttir's story building.
I'm. So. Bored. I'm. So. Bored. Read because Iceland, woo! This book, eeeh. I can't tell what's at fault: crappy translation paired with weird Icelandic sentence structures, or just not that great in general. Anyway: ICELAND, WOO!
This was a fun foray into Nordic Noir for me. I really liked Thora as a sleuth/mother/lawyer. The historical fast pace reminded me of a Dan Brown book. I will definitely be reading more!
I can’t tell if I didn’t like this because of the translation, but I found the side plots to be bizarre and farcical. Kinda bummed because I’ve been looking for a new crime series to tide me over until the next Maeve Kerrigan comes out and was hoping this would be it.
A German student was found dead and mutilated, one morning, and within 3 days, the police had a suspect arrested and jailed. The victim's family, however, was not convinced and sent their representative to Iceland to review the investigation. As his Icelandic wasn't up to scratch, he needed an assistance and that's where Thóra Gudmundsdóttir comes in.
Thóra is a lawyer and a single mother of two trying to make ends meet. The promised payout from this case, despite it being completely out of her usual work, was too tempting to resist. Despite some horrific details, she found herself drawn in and intrigued by the mystery. Meanwhile, her own teenage son was facing his own problem.
I enjoyed both Scandinavian crime thrillers and archaeological mysteries and in Last Ritual, they're both covered. Even if the topic of history itself, witch burning and dark magic, isn't that great, I do like the way it was intertwined with the crime. I didn't pick the killer so that was a great ending for me plus I found Thóra to be refreshingly not broken as other crime novels protagonists. I'll definitely be looking into the rest of the series.
Thóra is a lawyer and a single mother of two trying to make ends meet. The promised payout from this case, despite it being completely out of her usual work, was too tempting to resist. Despite some horrific details, she found herself drawn in and intrigued by the mystery. Meanwhile, her own teenage son was facing his own problem.
I enjoyed both Scandinavian crime thrillers and archaeological mysteries and in Last Ritual, they're both covered. Even if the topic of history itself, witch burning and dark magic, isn't that great, I do like the way it was intertwined with the crime. I didn't pick the killer so that was a great ending for me plus I found Thóra to be refreshingly not broken as other crime novels protagonists. I'll definitely be looking into the rest of the series.
Had my doubts but book turned out to be tightly plotted and well concluded. Exposition was nice flashbacks as ending built. There were a few great stomach punches too. Growing relationship between principals was realistic. Loved the ending!
The synopsis of this first Thora Gudmundsdottir mystery sounded really good, but heads-up the story inside is really gory. I usually don't mind "gory-ness," but this is pretty explicit. Gross-ness aside, the historical aspects, including witchcraft, were interesting. I was interested in Iceland, and I wish this story included more of the landscape and that I had more of a feeling that I was reading an Icelandic novel -- maybe that was lost in translation, though.
All in all, this was okay... I will give this series one more chance and hope that the next book is better.
All in all, this was okay... I will give this series one more chance and hope that the next book is better.
This was between three and four stars, actually. Just to be fair.
So, Last Rituals...an intriguing title, is it not? Along with the blue-black book cover and the Icelandic setting, the readers are in for a haunting reading.
Last Rituals was already in my TBR list, but I started reading sooner than I thought, taking part in the September reading discussion of the You'll love this one...!! A book club & more, a suggestion by our lovely moderators. It is the first installment in Yrsa Sigurðardóttir'sÞóra Guðmundsdóttir series and the story fully delivers to its title. The setting is wintery, dark and bleak, and the elements of Witchcraft, Pagan lore and sub-cultural beliefs give a supernatural touch, attracting the reader's interest, doing justice to the reputation of the Scandinavian/Nordic crime genre. There are some hints of Jo Nesbø (the raw, realistic prose) and of Camilla Läckberg (the haunting theme and the glances into the personal lives of the characters). So, is everything perfect?In my opinion, no. It is a well-written and interesting novel, but not perfect.
I can't really say what it was that bothered me concerning Þóra. Perhaps I am nit-picking, perhaps it is a case of cultural differences, perhaps it is a problem derived from translation. In any case, I cannot say I ever warmed to our protagonist. Some examples of her way of thinking, certain remarks of hers made her come across as cold and offensive. In addition, there were some questions on her part that demonstrated an unusual ignorence, I didn't think that was realistic. However, I believe she shows herself to be a good and caring mother, trying to find the balance between her demanding profession and the equally demanding family life. As for Matthew, I have no opinion whatsoever. Let's just say that he didn't attract my interest.
In spite of these cons, I fully enjoyed Last Rituals and I intend to follow the series. I hope for more haunting, bleak cases with interesting twists.
So, Last Rituals...an intriguing title, is it not? Along with the blue-black book cover and the Icelandic setting, the readers are in for a haunting reading.
Last Rituals was already in my TBR list, but I started reading sooner than I thought, taking part in the September reading discussion of the You'll love this one...!! A book club & more, a suggestion by our lovely moderators. It is the first installment in Yrsa Sigurðardóttir'sÞóra Guðmundsdóttir series and the story fully delivers to its title. The setting is wintery, dark and bleak, and the elements of Witchcraft, Pagan lore and sub-cultural beliefs give a supernatural touch, attracting the reader's interest, doing justice to the reputation of the Scandinavian/Nordic crime genre. There are some hints of Jo Nesbø (the raw, realistic prose) and of Camilla Läckberg (the haunting theme and the glances into the personal lives of the characters). So, is everything perfect?In my opinion, no. It is a well-written and interesting novel, but not perfect.
I can't really say what it was that bothered me concerning Þóra. Perhaps I am nit-picking, perhaps it is a case of cultural differences, perhaps it is a problem derived from translation. In any case, I cannot say I ever warmed to our protagonist. Some examples of her way of thinking, certain remarks of hers made her come across as cold and offensive. In addition, there were some questions on her part that demonstrated an unusual ignorence, I didn't think that was realistic. However, I believe she shows herself to be a good and caring mother, trying to find the balance between her demanding profession and the equally demanding family life. As for Matthew, I have no opinion whatsoever. Let's just say that he didn't attract my interest.
In spite of these cons, I fully enjoyed Last Rituals and I intend to follow the series. I hope for more haunting, bleak cases with interesting twists.