Cold as Hell: The breakout bestseller, first in the addictive An Áróra Investigation series

by Lilja Sigurdardóttir, Quentin Bates

Overview

ÁrÓra returns to Iceland when her estranged sister goes missing, and her search leads to places she could never have imagined. A chilling, tense thriller – FIRST in an addictive, nerve-shattering new series – from one of Iceland's bestselling authors...

'Icelandic crime writing at its finest ... immersive and unnerving' Shari Lapena

'Best-selling Icelandic crime-writer Sigurdardottir has built a formidable reputation with just four novels, but here she introduces a new protagonist who is set to cement her legacy' Daily Mail

'Another bleak, unpredictable classic' Metro

**Winner: Best Icelandic Crime Novel of the Year**

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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.

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'Lilja Sigurdardottir doesn't write cookie-cutter crime novels. She is aware that "the fundamentals of existence are totally incomprehensible and chaotic": anything can and does happen ... Isn't that what all crime writers should aim for?' The Times

'The blinding midnight sun in Iceland's summer is beautifully evoked as Arora establishes herself as a heroine to move the heart' Daily Mail

'Lilja is a standout voice in Icelandic Noir, and this book does not disappoint ... Cold as Hell is her best yet' James Oswald

'Atmospheric' Crime Monthly

'Intricate, enthralling and very moving – a wonderful crime novel' William Ryan

'Three things we love about Cold as Hell: Iceland's unrelenting midnight sun; the gritty Nordic murder mystery; the peculiar and bewitching characters' Apple Books

'Lilja SigurðardÓttir just gets better and better ... Árora is a wonderful character: unique, passionate, unpredictable and very real' Michael Ridpath

Praise for Lilja SigurðardÓttir

'Smart writing with a strongly beating heart' Big Issue

'Tough, uncompromising and unsettling' Val McDermid

'Tense and pacey' Guardian

'Deftly plotted' Financial Times

'An emotional suspense rollercoaster on a

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781913193898
Publisher:	Orenda Books
Publication date:	08/28/2021
Series:	Áróra Investigation Series , #1
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	276
Sales rank:	4,516
File size:	608 KB

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 new 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 being chosen as a Guardian Book of the Year. Lilja's standalone Betrayal was shortlisted for the Glass Key Award for Best Nordic Crime Novel.

Quentin Bates is a journalist, writer and translator, living in Iceland for many years and acclaimed for his series of Iceland-set crime novels featuring police officer Gunnhildur GÍsladÓttir. His other translations include Ragnar JÓnasson.

Editorial Reviews

12/06/2021

Domestic abuse, high-finance hanky-panky, and illegal immigration all figure in this arresting series launch from Sigurdardottír (the Reykjavík Noir trilogy). Áróra, a half-Icelandic financial investigator living in the U.K., has already rescued her older sister, Ísafold, from the sister’s abusive boyfriend, Reykjavík drug dealer Björn, too many times when their English mother begs Áróra to find Ísafold, who’s disappeared. Áróra returns to Iceland, where she soon gets sidetracked bugging the hotel bedroom of Hákon Hauksson, a smooth big-time swindler, in an effort to locate his ill-gotten stash. Meanwhile, Grímur, a weirdo living downstairs from Björn, has his own plan for Björn, which involves Omar, an undocumented refugee hiding out with a gullible middle-aged widow. At her mother’s suggestion, Áróra enlists Daniel Hansson, a police detective who was once married to her aunt, to help search for Ísafold. Intriguing characters and strong local color compensate for the somewhat flat ending that sets up the sequel. This scathing exposure of greed and betrayal is sure to please Scandi noir fans. Agent: Valgerdur Benediktsdottir, Forlagid (Iceland). (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

"Reading Cold as Hell sometimes gives you “the bizarre feeling of having been struck by a hand that had previously been so gentle”. Isn’t that what all crime writers should aim for? The good news, my “cuddle dumplings”, is that Arora will be back." —Times

“Thriller of the year.” —New York Journal of Books on Snare

“A taut, gritty, thoroughly absorbing journey into Reykjavik’s underworld.” —Booklist on Snare

“With its clever plot and brisk, tight pace, this hard-to-put-down Nordic thriller will be a treat for crime fiction fans.” —Library Journal on Snare

"fans of Nordic noir will find plenty to like." —Publishers Weekly on Trap

"Prime binge-reading.” —Booklist on Trap

“Sigurðardóttir knows how to ratchet up the tension…[Trap] is a worthy addition to the icy-cold crime genre popularized by Scandinavian noir novels.” —Foreword Reviews on Trap

"[A] lively conclusion...Fans already invested in this Nordic crime series will race through the pages."— Publishers Weekly on Cage


"Tough, uncompromising and unsettling." —Val McDermid on Betrayal

From the Publisher

01/14/2022

Sigurðardóttir's "Reykjavik Noir" trilogy (Trap; Snare; Cage) was about survival, a woman trapped in the world of drugs and smuggling. Her latest isn't about survival so much as investigation and an Icelandic investigator named Áróra, solving a series of partly interlocking puzzles. Áróra's sister has gone missing and has an abusive boyfriend who's clearly hiding something. Áróra has barely begun digging into the matter when she meets a sexy millionaire who declared bankruptcy to avoid mountains of debt but still lives high. Áróra, who earns her living doing financial investigations, wonders where he has hidden his money and sees a potential payday in him. Strange moments and people abound, like her sister's creepy neighbor who shaves his body, all over, three times daily because he can't stand the feel of hair on his body; there's also an undocumented immigrant with the name of a murdered man, and a faked postcard from Áróra's sister. The subtext of Sigurðardóttir's mystery is abuse, a bad man ruining a weakened woman. Is everything resolved by the end of the book? No. But Áróra does the best she can with partial and sometimes misleading evidence. It's just like life. VERDICT The writing is crisp, and Áróra is an appealing character. For lovers of Scandinavian noir.—David Keymer

Library Journal