A review by nanditalaks
Black Seconds by Karin Fossum

3.0

I read this book for the Popsugar Nordic Noir prompt and I think it really lived up to the categorization. My previous experiences with this genre have been Nesbo and Stieg Larsson, both who write intense city based plots. This was so much more atmospheric and chilling. The book takes a little getting into and a lot of the fatalism is expressed not through dialog but just the dull and moody setting. Set in very insular rural Norway the book is built on the disappearance of a little girl and takes a lot of dark and chilling turns. Inspector Sejer was such a revelation and pleasant change from the dark, brooding men with a sad past that we often encounter in crime fiction. I was especially impressed at how sensitive the handling of the core issues -mental illness and mothers trying to shield their children from the world- was. Might be a cliche but I think I could tell the that it was a woman at the helm. (3.5 stars)