As always, many thanks to Orenda Books for including me on this blog tour for Ørjan Karlsson's "Into the Dark". Last year I reviewed the first book in the Arctic Mysteries series, Karlsson's "Into Thin Air", also for Orenda.
One of the qualities I enjoy most about Scandi/Nordic Noir mysteries is that character development, setting and social issues are as important as the plots. The main players (and some minor ones) change over time and so do their stories. This makes them extremely relatable because I become invested in the lives of the characters. Therefore, the experience of reading a new book in a series is enriched by the knowledge of the previous ones. So, if you're starting a book in this genre that's one of a series (e.g. the Kurt Wallander books, the Department Q mysteries, Nesbo's Harry Hole) I recommend that you read them in order of publication, with the caveat that you don't have to!
Like “Into Thin Air”, "Into the Dark" is set in Nordland – Norway’s far north – a striking expanse of land, surrounded by glaciers, forests, lakes, and plenty of places to hide a body (or two). Continuing characters Jakob Weber, Chief Investigator of Nordland Police, and his partner Noora Yun Sande, return along with their colleagues. Noora was a national investigator with Kripos (the NCIS of Norway), but left and joined the Nordland police for reasons that very few people know. She is still haunted by this secret.
I won't soon forget the way the book begins. An unnamed hiker sees a cabin in the woods that's not on his map. As he approaches it, he spots a cage hanging from a tree branch, with a raven inside. As he gets closer to the cabin, he finds six more ravens, each in its own cage, "hanging from the branches like dark cocoons." Their harsh cries are a very effective alarm system. All of the ravens are screaming and the man is overwhelmed by the noise. He turns as a monstrous figure is approaching him. When the person’s face “cracks open”, It's the last thing the unlucky hiker sees.
The story then turns to Chief Investigator Jakob Weber, taking his 16-year-old half-brother Ola André, (they share a father) to see Jakob's mother. Ola André was introduced in the previous book when he came to Weber's hometown of Bodø after his own mother died. Ola André lives with Jakob, who struggles to balance his demanding work life with his new family. The visit to see mom is cut short; Jakob gets a phone call with a report about a body found in the water in the village of Kjerringøy. He drops Ola André at a friend's house and goes to pick up Noora so they can head to the scene.
Noora is hiding something from Jakob that will have a serious impact on her investigative abilities. In the previous book, Noora was seriously injured. She should be resting and doing therapy, but desperately wants to return to work, so she lies to her doctor about the pain. She and Jakob will be investigating a difficult, high-profile case that is going to seriously test her physical endurance. Noora thinks she can make it through with painkillers and determination, but it's not one of her smarter decisions.
Going back a bit in time, the book turns to Tuva, Katja and Britt, friends and dedicated members of the "Kjerringøy Women’s Naked Bathing Club". They meet at a private harbor on a night when it is very, very cold outside. Nevertheless, they take a sauna, toast each other with champagne and jump into the water. Britt gets stuck on something and has to be pulled out by her friends. After they get Britt ashore, a bloated body suddenly emerges from the water. Tuva is shocked when she recognizes him. When Weber and Noora get to the crime scene, Tuva tells them she can positively ID the body as Emilio Sanchez, her ex-boyfriend.
Back at the police station, Nordland policeman Armann Femris gets a call about another body, this time in the suburb of Stille Dal. At first glance it looks like a suicide, but new forensic examiner Theresa Sommer thinks the death is suspicious. The body has been identified as 20-year-old Veronika Paulsen. When Armann gets to the scene, Theresa tells him she’s almost sure that Veronika was murdered.
As the police remove Veronika's body, someone very unsavory is watching; one of Karlsson's most disturbing recurring characters. Stein-Jarle is a sadist and a profound misogynist. Veronika was one of his "girlfriends". In reality he manipulated and abused her. He desperately needs to retrieve something he left in Veronika's bedroom, which he does after the police have left.
At the Kjerringøy harbor, Tuva tells Jakob and Noora that she thought that Emilio left her for another woman, which is why she never reported him missing. According to forensic specialist Ronald Janook, Emilio's been in the water for at least a month, weighted down until the unfortunate Britt got tangled in webbing around the body when she jumped in the water.
The harbour where Emilio's body was found is on the property of the mysterious “Meile Foundation Treatment Centre”. The centre accepts very few, extremely wealthy patients, and its therapeutic approach is a closely held secret. Centre Director Hermann Kjerschow is firmly close-mouthed about his "clients" and his methods. Convinced that there are clues to be found, Jakob gets a warrant for names of men being treated at the centre. Looking into their backgrounds helps to uncover what's really going on there. The therapy that Kjerschow offers is illegal, unethical and repugnant. But as yet, there's no evidence that Kjerschow or his clients are involved with Emilio’s death.
When Veronika's death is officially ruled a murder, Weber and Noora have two cases to solve. Since it's unlikely that two bodies being found in small villages so close together is a coincidence, the team begins looking for connections. When they find out that Veronika had been seeing Stein-Jarle, he immediately becomes a suspect. This is reinforced when Noora finds a photo of the now-deceased Veronika and Emilio together, If Stein-Jarle killed them out of jealousy, why were the bodies found so far apart in time and place? And how did Veronika and Emilio know each other?
On a hunch, Jakob shows the photo to the receptionist (at the only hotel in Kjerringøy) in case she knows anything. She recognizes Veronika, but as a young girl named “Vivian”, who worked at the hotel part-time. Jakob realizes that the two murders are definitely linked. Then he and Noora find a third body, with ghastly injuries similar to Emilio’s. The team is under a lot of pressure to find the killer (or killers), but clues are vague and confusing. Multiple witnesses, including Tuva, report seeing someone watching in the distance, wearing a parka with a fur hood. The person's features are strangely hard to describe and no one knows who he is.
Jakob, Noora, and the team have more questions than answers. Why was Emilio’s body hidden, but not the other two? What is the “therapy” offered by the Meile Foundation, and why does Kjerschow go to such lengths to keep it hidden? Why was Veronika working at the Kjerringøy hotel under a false name? Without a clear motive or hard evidence (the killer leaves no trace), the case proves to be demanding and complicated.
"Into the Dark" presents an intense challenge for Jakob, Noora, and the team. It's one of the reasons it's such a great read. The team is up against an elusive, merciless adversary whose motives are twisted and deep-rooted. The book simmers with the killer's rage and Karlsson sustains a high level of suspense throughout. I also like that Karlsson pushes his characters to, and beyond, their limits. Will this case strengthen or break them?
Karlsson closes the book without resolving all of the unanswered questions. I'm hoping this means that I will get the opportunity to read more about the small but fiercely determined Nordland police force in the Arctic Mysteries series.
Author Ørjan Karlsson grew up in Bodø, in the far north of Norway. A sociologist by education, he received officer training in the army and has taken part in many missions overseas. He has written a wide range of thrillers, sci-fi novels and crime fiction, and been shortlisted for or won numerous awards, with a number of his books currently in production for the screen. He lives in Nordland, where the Jakob Weber crime series is set.
Ian Giles is an Edinburgh-based translator working from Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish into English. With over a decade of experience, He's brought more than 30 titles to English-speaking readers, ranging from bestselling fiction to complex academic and cultural texts. Recent publications include high-profile translations of authors such as Camilla Läckberg and David Lagercrantz, as well as "Into Thin Air".
Ian GIles translated both books in the series into English and as always, did a great job of preserving the tone and effect of the original.
Please buy/order "Into the Dark" from your local independent bookstore, or go to bookshop.org and order there. They now offer ebooks as well.
For audiobooks, go to libro.fm.
