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A review by pensandpeaches
Snowblind by Ragnar Jónasson
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Gosh. I'm not even sure where to begin with this book... first off, I really wanted to love this book, because it was billed as an Icelandic noir take on Agatha Christie... an homage to "And Then There Were None".
What I loved...
- parts of the book were really beautifully descriptive... though it's a sad moment, the description of the body was very vividly written
- the setting of Iceland, while not unique to an Icelandic author of course, is fresh and enchanting to those of us who very far away from it's snowy vistas
What frustrated me...
- the pacing was all over... it went really, really slow for the first half or so of the book, then it jumped forward and went really fast, and suddenly chapters were maybe 2-3 pages long
- the writing that was so beautiful and colorful in some parts, was purposefuly obfuscating in others... all of a sudden entire conversations are being had, but you're not getting to find out what's being said, it's all very "ah yes, I thought as much" and you're left going... "thought WHAT!?"
- the wrapup had the exact same pacing issue... without giving spoilers there's a major interplay between a few of the characters that's rather abruptly dealt with in the last 2 pages of the book
In general, I liked this, but I'm not thinking I'll probably read it again.
**Also, on a language note, there was very nearly no language, and then all of a sudden a character has this "mask off" moment, and starts flinging around f-bombs and insulting people willy-nilly... it was incredibly jarring, and a little bizarre, but perhaps that was the intent.
What I loved...
- parts of the book were really beautifully descriptive... though it's a sad moment, the description of the body was very vividly written
- the setting of Iceland, while not unique to an Icelandic author of course, is fresh and enchanting to those of us who very far away from it's snowy vistas
What frustrated me...
- the pacing was all over... it went really, really slow for the first half or so of the book, then it jumped forward and went really fast, and suddenly chapters were maybe 2-3 pages long
- the writing that was so beautiful and colorful in some parts, was purposefuly obfuscating in others... all of a sudden entire conversations are being had, but you're not getting to find out what's being said, it's all very "ah yes, I thought as much" and you're left going... "thought WHAT!?"
- the wrapup had the exact same pacing issue... without giving spoilers there's a major interplay between a few of the characters that's rather abruptly dealt with in the last 2 pages of the book
In general, I liked this, but I'm not thinking I'll probably read it again.
**Also, on a language note, there was very nearly no language, and then all of a sudden a character has this "mask off" moment, and starts flinging around f-bombs and insulting people willy-nilly... it was incredibly jarring, and a little bizarre, but perhaps that was the intent.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide