Scan barcode
beckylej's review
4.0
Two boys out playing on the Grábrók lava fields stumble over a body and Elma and her fellow CID officers are called to investigate.
From the start, they're certain the body is that of Maríanna, a woman who went missing seven months ago. And they're also certain that this wasn't an accident. But Maríanna's story is complicated and it quickly becomes clear that the suspect list isn't a short one. Worse yet, Maríanna's own daughter, Hekla, is suspicious in her own right.
But the truth to this murder lies hidden in the past and it's up to Elma and her team to unravel the clues if they're to discover the person behind it all.
As mentioned above, this is the second book in the series, following Ægisdóttir's debut, The Creak on the Stairs. Which I am ashamed to say that I have not yet read! (Don't worry, I will very soon!)
I've been pretty up front about the fact that Nordic Noir as a whole was one of the things that's helped me cope with the continuing Covid Times. There's a very clear style to the writing, even when many of the titles are translated, as is the case with Girls Who Lie. And a little shout out to Victoria Cribb who does a truly wonderful job with the translation here.
(I've sung the praises of translators before. Theirs is a job that consists of way more than simply translating words! They have to maintain the author's voice while also translating in such a way that the narrative reads smoothly—not always an easy task considering there are turns of phrase and speech that don't necessarily translate easily into another language!)
In addition to the style that's unique to Nordic Noir, there's also the sense of place. And in this Ægisdóttir truly excels! Iceland itself is more than the setting for this story. It takes on an almost character-like aspect from the very beginning of the book. It's details like Elma's observation of the landscape as they're traveling to the crime scene. And the note that the boys who discover the body thought it was a dark elf (Icelandic lore is some of the most fun I've ever read!).
And the characters themselves are so carefully crafted! Maríanna's story is heartbreaking. We meet her when she's just given birth and it's clear that she's suffering from postpartum depression. She never does connect with her daughter and, as a single mother, the two of them exist in an atmosphere that is hard to read.
Elma, on the other hand, really thought that she'd be living the quiet life in her new position. Boy was she wrong! But her new job does allow her to spend more time with her family, particularly her nephew.
Small details like that make it clear that Ægisdóttir is putting a lot of thought and consideration into every aspect of her writing! And Girls Who Lie really is the whole package, because the plot and pacing are fabulous!
I loved every bit of this book! Ægisdóttir is absolutely one to watch and one I highly recommend, right alongside two of my other Icelandic favorites, Ragnar Jónasson and Yrsa Sigurðardóttir! I cannot wait to read more from this author. She's a welcome addition to my auto-buy list!
From the start, they're certain the body is that of Maríanna, a woman who went missing seven months ago. And they're also certain that this wasn't an accident. But Maríanna's story is complicated and it quickly becomes clear that the suspect list isn't a short one. Worse yet, Maríanna's own daughter, Hekla, is suspicious in her own right.
But the truth to this murder lies hidden in the past and it's up to Elma and her team to unravel the clues if they're to discover the person behind it all.
As mentioned above, this is the second book in the series, following Ægisdóttir's debut, The Creak on the Stairs. Which I am ashamed to say that I have not yet read! (Don't worry, I will very soon!)
I've been pretty up front about the fact that Nordic Noir as a whole was one of the things that's helped me cope with the continuing Covid Times. There's a very clear style to the writing, even when many of the titles are translated, as is the case with Girls Who Lie. And a little shout out to Victoria Cribb who does a truly wonderful job with the translation here.
(I've sung the praises of translators before. Theirs is a job that consists of way more than simply translating words! They have to maintain the author's voice while also translating in such a way that the narrative reads smoothly—not always an easy task considering there are turns of phrase and speech that don't necessarily translate easily into another language!)
In addition to the style that's unique to Nordic Noir, there's also the sense of place. And in this Ægisdóttir truly excels! Iceland itself is more than the setting for this story. It takes on an almost character-like aspect from the very beginning of the book. It's details like Elma's observation of the landscape as they're traveling to the crime scene. And the note that the boys who discover the body thought it was a dark elf (Icelandic lore is some of the most fun I've ever read!).
And the characters themselves are so carefully crafted! Maríanna's story is heartbreaking. We meet her when she's just given birth and it's clear that she's suffering from postpartum depression. She never does connect with her daughter and, as a single mother, the two of them exist in an atmosphere that is hard to read.
Elma, on the other hand, really thought that she'd be living the quiet life in her new position. Boy was she wrong! But her new job does allow her to spend more time with her family, particularly her nephew.
Small details like that make it clear that Ægisdóttir is putting a lot of thought and consideration into every aspect of her writing! And Girls Who Lie really is the whole package, because the plot and pacing are fabulous!
I loved every bit of this book! Ægisdóttir is absolutely one to watch and one I highly recommend, right alongside two of my other Icelandic favorites, Ragnar Jónasson and Yrsa Sigurðardóttir! I cannot wait to read more from this author. She's a welcome addition to my auto-buy list!
kernowchris's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
shelfofunread's review against another edition
3.0
Having read and reviewed Eva Björg Ægisdóttir’s confident and compelling debut The Creak on the Stairs last year, I was keen to read the next instalment in the Forbidden Iceland saga and discover what small town secrets Chief Investigating Officer Elma and her colleagues in Akranes found themselves investigating next. As it turns out, the dust has barely settled on Elma’s first case when the body of a missing woman is found.
Everyone has assumed troubled single mother Marianna had taken her own life but it soon becomes clear from the body that Marianna was the victim of a brutal crime. As Elma and her colleagues Sævar and Hörður investigate, they quickly find themselves embroiled in a dark and twisted saga of abuse and scandal, rooted several decades before.
While A Creak on the Stairs was most definitely Nordic noir, Girls Who Lie adds an additional layer of psychological tension to the gloomy atmosphere of Akranes. Whilst not overtly violent or gory in its tone, it therefore pays to mention trigger warnings for sexual abuse, rape, discussion of false allegations, psychological trauma, child neglect, psychological manipulation, post-natal depression, and suicide. As with its predecessor though, these harrowing topics are handled with sensitivity however and the novel ably interrogates the relationship between personal trauma and wider societal issues.
Getting back into the shoes of Chief Investigating Officer Elma was a delight. Sharp, perceptive, and hard-working, Elma retains all the dogged commitment from The Creak on the Stairs but has, finally, begun to recover from the personal trauma that led to her returning to Akranes. As such, she is a slightly softer character in Girls Who Lie and whilst this doesn’t exactly remove all of her sharp edges, it does allow us to see her work on her relationships with her sister Dagny and colleague Sævar, both subplots that I enjoyed immensely.
As with her previous novel, Eva Björg Ægisdóttir has also brilliantly captured the rhythms and patterns of small town life, from the respectability and comfort of the suburbs, to the grim reality of life on the poverty line. She’s also brilliantly evoked Iceland in all its harsh and wintery glory.
Written with subtly and nuance, Girls Who Lie also provides a compelling psychological portrait of a desperate new mother. In intermittent first-person chapters, we are transported into the mind of a troubled young woman and her daughter. These chapters make for some of the most harrowing in the novel as their unknown narrator grapples with her own complex, conflicting – and occasionally very dark – feelings towards her little girl. Working out who this unknown mother is – and what relationship she and her daughter might have to Marianna’s murder – makes for a compelling addition and, running alongside chapters focusing on the police investigation, makes for plenty of twists and turns before the novel’s end!
As with its predecessor, Girls Who Lie is a chilling, absorbing slow-burn of a book that combines a sophisticated police procedural with a subtle and emotive psychological portrait into a compelling and atmospheric package. Skilfully translated by Victoria Cribb, this is a complex, twisty novel with a compelling central protagonist and it cements the Forbidden Iceland series as amongst the finest of Nordic and Scandinavian noir.
NB: This review first appeared on my blog at https://theshelfofunreadbooks.wordpress.com/ as part of the blog tour for the book. My thanks go to the publisher for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest and unbiased review.
Everyone has assumed troubled single mother Marianna had taken her own life but it soon becomes clear from the body that Marianna was the victim of a brutal crime. As Elma and her colleagues Sævar and Hörður investigate, they quickly find themselves embroiled in a dark and twisted saga of abuse and scandal, rooted several decades before.
While A Creak on the Stairs was most definitely Nordic noir, Girls Who Lie adds an additional layer of psychological tension to the gloomy atmosphere of Akranes. Whilst not overtly violent or gory in its tone, it therefore pays to mention trigger warnings for sexual abuse, rape, discussion of false allegations, psychological trauma, child neglect, psychological manipulation, post-natal depression, and suicide. As with its predecessor though, these harrowing topics are handled with sensitivity however and the novel ably interrogates the relationship between personal trauma and wider societal issues.
Getting back into the shoes of Chief Investigating Officer Elma was a delight. Sharp, perceptive, and hard-working, Elma retains all the dogged commitment from The Creak on the Stairs but has, finally, begun to recover from the personal trauma that led to her returning to Akranes. As such, she is a slightly softer character in Girls Who Lie and whilst this doesn’t exactly remove all of her sharp edges, it does allow us to see her work on her relationships with her sister Dagny and colleague Sævar, both subplots that I enjoyed immensely.
As with her previous novel, Eva Björg Ægisdóttir has also brilliantly captured the rhythms and patterns of small town life, from the respectability and comfort of the suburbs, to the grim reality of life on the poverty line. She’s also brilliantly evoked Iceland in all its harsh and wintery glory.
Written with subtly and nuance, Girls Who Lie also provides a compelling psychological portrait of a desperate new mother. In intermittent first-person chapters, we are transported into the mind of a troubled young woman and her daughter. These chapters make for some of the most harrowing in the novel as their unknown narrator grapples with her own complex, conflicting – and occasionally very dark – feelings towards her little girl. Working out who this unknown mother is – and what relationship she and her daughter might have to Marianna’s murder – makes for a compelling addition and, running alongside chapters focusing on the police investigation, makes for plenty of twists and turns before the novel’s end!
As with its predecessor, Girls Who Lie is a chilling, absorbing slow-burn of a book that combines a sophisticated police procedural with a subtle and emotive psychological portrait into a compelling and atmospheric package. Skilfully translated by Victoria Cribb, this is a complex, twisty novel with a compelling central protagonist and it cements the Forbidden Iceland series as amongst the finest of Nordic and Scandinavian noir.
NB: This review first appeared on my blog at https://theshelfofunreadbooks.wordpress.com/ as part of the blog tour for the book. My thanks go to the publisher for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest and unbiased review.
steinunnfridriks's review against another edition
3.0
Spennandi og ófyrirsjáanleg en lausnin er bara mjög skrítin.
condygurl's review against another edition
4.0
I don't even know where to start on writing a review for this book. Suffice it to say, I was pretty pissed at the end.
First of all, it's a mystery so I don't want to give anything away. So I can't go into any details about the story itself.
I can say I was a little confused for quite a while with the "thoughts" of whomever it was. I thought it was the thoughts of one person, and then I thought okay maybe it's not who I think it is, and then I was just tossed. It literally took nearly the entire book before I figured out who the heck the special font/thoughts were from.
All in all another great book from this very talented author.
First of all, it's a mystery so I don't want to give anything away. So I can't go into any details about the story itself.
I can say I was a little confused for quite a while with the "thoughts" of whomever it was. I thought it was the thoughts of one person, and then I thought okay maybe it's not who I think it is, and then I was just tossed. It literally took nearly the entire book before I figured out who the heck the special font/thoughts were from.
All in all another great book from this very talented author.
sirisolh's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Bullying, Cancer, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Murder, and Pregnancy
More...