#BlogTour: The Courier by Kjell Ola Dahl @ko_dahl @OrendaBooks @annecater #TheCourier #WW2Fiction #5Stars

Book Synopsis:

The international bestselling godfather of Nordic Noir takes on one of the most horrific periods of modern history, in a stunning standalone thriller

‘A masterclass in plotting, atmosphere and character that finely balances shocking twists’ The Times

‘Utterly convincing’ Publishers Weekly

In 1942, Jewish courier Ester is betrayed, narrowly avoiding arrest by the Gestapo. In a great haste, she escapes to Sweden, saving herself. Her family in Oslo, however, is deported to Auschwitz. In Stockholm, Ester meets the resistance hero, Gerhard Falkum, who has left his little daughter and fled both the Germans and allegations that he murdered his wife, Åse, who helped Ester get to Sweden. Their burgeoning relationship ends abruptly when Falkum dies in a fire.

And yet, twenty-five years later, Falkum shows up in Oslo. He wants to reconnect with his daughter. But where has he been, and what is the real reason for his return? Ester stumbles across information that forces her to look closely at her past, and to revisit her war-time training to stay alive…

Written with Dahl’s trademark characterization and elegant plotting, The Courier sees the hugely respected godfather of Nordic Noir at his best, as he takes on one of the most horrific periods of modern history, in an exceptional, shocking thriller.

The Courier is available now in ebook and in paperback on the 21st March 2019. You can purchase or pre-order your copy using the link below.

My Review:

I’m a huge fan of this author’s previous books but have to admit I was a bit nervous about reading an historical thriller from him. I needn’t have worried as once again Dahl has produced an atmospheric, gripping read!

The reader is thrown almost immediately into the story with a rather dramatic scene that helps to bring the setting of Norway in WW2 vividly to life. The fear and uncertainty is almost palpable as the situation that Esther’s family finds themselves in becomes clear. I hadn’t read much about Norway in the second world war or about their role in exporting Jews so I found this part of the book very interesting.

Esther is a fantastic main characters who I immediately liked. She seemed very brave particularly when she finds herself on her own in a dangerous situation. She is very loyal to her friends, refusing to put anyone in danger when they offer to help her which was very selfless of her.

The story follows Esther through many different times which sounds like it should be confusing but it’s not and actually works really well. It was interesting to see how the world changed through the years and to follow Esther after the end of the war.

This was an incredibly gripping and tense novel which helped make it a quick read as I found it hard to put down. I kept promising myself that I’d read only one more chapter but ended up reading until midnight, only putting the book down when my baby woke up for his bottle and I realised the time. The tension is almost unbearable at times and I found myself frequently imploring Esther not to do something and put herself in danger, sometimes out loud which amused my husband! The author manages to keep the intrigue and action going throughout the book so there is never a dull moment which made for an incredibly exciting read.

This is the third book I’ve read by this author and I’m very excited to read more from him as all his books end up on my keep forever shelf and are frequently recommended to friends. If you like gripped, tense and thrilling historical crime books then you’ll love this book.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Karen from Orenda books for giving me a copy of this book which I received in exchange for an honest review.

About The Author:

One of the fathers of the Nordic Noir genre, Kjell Ola Dahl was born in 1958 in Gjøvik. He made his debut in 1993, and has since published eleven novels, the most prominent of which is a series of police procedurals cum psychological thrillers featuring investigators Gunnarstranda and Frølich. In 2000 he won the Riverton Prize for The Last Fix and he won both the prestigious Brage and Riverton Prizes for The Courier in 2015. His work has been published in fourteen countries, and he lives in Oslo.
Follow Kjell Ola on Twitter @ko_dahl