Book Synopsis:
Icelandic sisters Áróra and Ísafold live in different countries and aren‘t on speaking terms, but when their mother loses contact with Ísafold, Áróra reluctantly returns to Iceland to find her sister. But she soon realizes that her sister isn’t avoiding her … she has disappeared, without trace. As she confronts Ísafold’s abusive, drug-dealing boyfriend Björn, and begins to probe her sister’s reclusive neighbours – who have their own reasons for staying out of sight – Áróra is led into an ever-darker web of intrigue and manipulation. Baffled by the conflicting details of her sister’s life, and blinded by the shiveringly bright midnight sun of the Icelandic summer, Áróra enlists the help of police officer Daníel, as she tries to track her sister’s movements, and begins to tail Björn – but she isn’t the only one watching…Slick, tense, atmospheric and superbly plotted, Cold as Hell marks the start of a riveting, addictive new series from one of Iceland’s bestselling crime writers.
My Review:
Cold As Hell is an emotional, atmospheric read which felt a little different to her previous books though somehow just as addictive!
The thing that most stood out for me in this book is the sense of foreboding that runs through the book. I quickly figured out what was happening and who was doing it but not their motivation behind it which made me very intrigued. It made for a very creepy atmosphere and I almost felt like someone was watching me, as they were watching Arora in the book.
Ãrora’s investigation was very interesting and I liked how the author gradually peels back the layers of her sister’s life to reveal some quite disturbing truths about her relationship. I couldn’t decide whether I liked Ãrora or not. On one hand she seems very clever and has a hidden depth to her which I enjoyed getting to learn more about, but in the other she’s quite prickly which doesn’t make her easy to warm to. The author seems to be good a creating characters like to this that I’m not sure I like but still somehow care about at the same time.
Overall i did enjoy this book which kept me gripped throughout. I liked the change in pace from her previous books that I felt allowed me time to get to know the characters more and appreciate the natural beauty of Iceland. The author does a great job here with the vivid descriptions allowing the reader to picture the island in their mind. The landscape seems to sometimes reflect the characters mood too which I thought was clever and helped to draw the reader further into the story.
Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Orenda for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Icelandic crime-writer Lilja Sigurdardóttir was born in the town of Akranes in 1972 and raised in Mexico, Sweden, Spain and Iceland. An award-winning playwright, Lilja has written four crime novels, with Snare, the first in a series and Lilja’s English debut shortlisting for the CWA International Dagger and hitting bestseller lists worldwide. Trap soon followed suit, with the third in the trilogy Cage winning the Best Icelandic Crime Novel of the Year, and was a Guardian Book of the Year. Lilja’s standalone Betrayal, was shortlisted for the Glass Key Award for Best Nordic Crime Novel. The film rights have been bought by Palomar Pictures in California. Lilja is also an award-winning screenwriter in her native Iceland. She lives in Reykjavík with her partner.
Over The Rainbow Blog 
Thanks for the blog tour support x
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