Many thanks to Orenda Books and Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for the advance copy of "Under the Blazing Sun" for review.
"Under the Blazing Sun" is the second book to feature the prickliest protagonist in
Scandi/Nordic Noir, Hannah Krause-Bendix. I first encountered Hannah when I reviewed "Thirty Days of Darkness" in 2024. As I wrote then:
(but not best-selling) Danish author Hannah Krause-Bendix. She’s a judgmental snob
who believes that commercial success is beneath her."
This feeling didn't last long and I ended up being a huge Hannah fan. She's acerbic, misanthropic, quick to anger, a huge snob and ultimately, very funny and extremely appealing.
In her second outing, we find Hannah very put out by the success of her best-selling mystery, "Murder Island", which was inspired by the events of "Thirty Days of Darkness". It brought her a nice income and great publicity, but she wrote it out of necessity and spite and is sick of talking about it. She tell Bastian, her long-suffering editor:
She also loathes the genre label given to "Murder Island"; the phrase "femi-crime novel" makes her want to throw large objects across the room. Hannah thinks of herself as a serious writer who addresses important social subjects and resents this label. Forced to do a TV interview by Bastian, (this man has the patience of a saint), she walks off the set in a rage when the host compares her book to "the Fanø crime novels by Karoline Carstensen." How dare he lump her in with a "popular" author who writes inconsequential fiction for the masses?
Trouble is, no one wants to interview Hannah about the books she IS proud of, dense romance novels that tackle important societal themes. Bastian points out that the success of the first book will eventually allow her to write the kind of novels she wants. Hannah is in a quandary; Bastian has paid her a large advance for a second mystery that she can't even think about writing.
Not only is Hannah fresh out of book ideas, she's desperately missing her married lover Margrét. She met Margrét in Iceland in the small town that gave Hannah the idea for her first mystery. They've been in touch long-distance, but Margrét won't leave her home and children for Copenhagen, and Hannah can't imagine moving to Iceland. Money troubles, romantic problems: no wonder Hannah is in a perpetual bad mood. That is to say, worse than usual.
Bastian decides that sending Hannah on a trip is just the thing she needs to write that second mystery. He happens to know someone with a lovely house in Sicily, only two hours from Palermo, and his friend is more than happy for Hannah to stay there. She doesn't hate the idea of warm breezes and a view of the sea, and agrees to go. She will go out of her MIND when she finds out who the house's owner is...but that's yet to come.
Hannah lands at the airport, rents a car, and arrives at her "vacation" home, a beautiful villa by the sea. Even Hannah can't stay vexed in a place like this. There's a pool, a gorgeous patio and to look after her and the house, husband and wife Manfredo and Liva. Hannah would prefer complete solitude, but secretly she has "always wondered what it would be like to have servants".
She walks down to the small town of Sant’Emilia for lunch and finds a lovely restaurant. Much to her anti-social dismay, a couple "with a distinct Scandinavian air" comes in and sits near her. Sure enough, Hans and Greta (really?) from Sweden strike up a conversation with the unwilling author. They've lived there for years and Hannah MUST call them if she needs recommendations or other help. Greta hands Hannah a business card; it's got all of her contact info and the name of her consulting company. Hannah would rather throw herself off a cliff before talking to them again but she'll be digging that card out soon enough.
The mystery begins the night that a reluctant Hannah is having dinner at Hans and Greta's luxurious, expansive, high-security villa. At dinner, served by their maid Lucette, she drinks too much wine and is persuaded to stay overnight.
Hannah wakes in the middle of the night to hear agitated voices that could be Hans and Greta, but they're too far away and Hannah is too tipsy. She's wakened in the morning by a panicky Lucette, screaming "there's blood everywhere!". Hannah goes downstairs to find Greta's body on the floor in front of the fridge, with her head in a pool of blood. There is no sign of Hans. Does Hannah panic and grab a meat tenderizer in case the killer is still in the house? You bet. Does it turn out to be the murder weapon? Absolutely.
Hannah has only been in the country for a couple of days, and she's already involved in a murder. Lucette has called the police and two officers, Bruno and Carlotta, arrive at the house. Suspicion immediately falls on Hannah, who explains that she barely knew Hans and Greta and picked up the meat tenderizer by mistake. They bring Hannah in for questioning and although they let her go, they caution her not to leave town.
Hannah calls Bastian to ask him for help, in case he knows someone at the local Danish embassy who can recommend an attorney. He's inappropriately excited about Greta's murder, hoping that Hannah might use the crime as inspiration for the long-overdue book. She tells him she's NEVER EVER going to write it and hangs up. Hannah resolves to do some snooping around, help solve the crime, and clear her name. Understandably, the police do not trust her at all, especially when Greta's missing husband, Hans, shows up at Hannah's villa. They've been watching her house and arrest Hans immediately.
Hannah keeps investigating, but someone has noticed; she receives a threat to "stay out of this or you'll die too". Not exactly comforting, but she doesn't let this put her off. She questions Lucetta, researches Greta's consulting company and noses around in town. Before he got arrested, Hans told Hannah to call a man named Bernardo Gambino, who turns out to be a dangerous organized crime figure. She takes the risky step of pretending to be an intimate friend of his so she can find out what his connection is to the couple. Bad idea.
Hannah is in for more surprises, including a visitor to the town who is the last person in the world she expected to see there. This throws Hannah into an emotional frenzy that clouds her judgement. You know she's desperate when she emails her bête noire, world-famous Danish mystery author Jørn Jensen, for help. Hannah despises him but he has access to resources that she could use to analyze a video she recorded for clues. Her interactions with Jensen are hilarious, and they make a very odd but compelling sleuthing team.
In "Under the Blazing Sun", Jenny Lund Madsen has great fun taking Hannah so far outside of her comfort zone. The warm climate, sea air and great food and wine allow her to loosen up a bit and relax for a short time. Greta's murder forces Hannah to go out and interact with other people, which is not on her top ten list of enjoyable things. (Actually, I doubt Hannah has such a list). Hannah is reliably snarky and sardonic, and it's a pleasure to follow the mystery to its conclusion through her eyes. I'd gladly read another Hannah mystery. Hats off to Jenny Lund Madsen for creating such a memorable and quirky character.
Acknowledgement also goes to Paul Garrett for a very smooth translation, in which the humor and tone of the original really come through.
Jenny Lund Madsen is one of Denmark’s most acclaimed scriptwriters (including the international hits Rita and Follow the Money) and is known as an advocate for better representation for sexual and ethnic minorities in Danish TV and film.
She recently made her debut as a playwright with the critically acclaimed Audition (Aarhus Teater). Her debut literary thriller, Thirty Days of Darkness, first in an addictive new series, won the Harald Mogensen Prize for Best Danish Crime Novel of the year and was shortlisted for the coveted Glass Key Award. She lives in Denmark with her young family.
Translator Paul Garrett specializes in translating Danish & Norwegian books into English. His recent work includes the co-translation of the Norwegian fantasy series, The Raven Rings, (Arctis Press), the co-translation of four short stories in Re-Imagining Sexual Harassment: Perspectives from the Nordic Region (Bristol University Press), and Beowulf: The Tragedy Of A Hero. A Reading (U Press, Copenhagen).
Please buy/order "Under the Blazing Sun" 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.
