Jar City

The thrilling first installation of the Reykjavic Murder Mystery Series

By: Arnaldur Indridason, Bernard Scudder - translator

Narrated by: Saul Reichlin

An old man is found murdered in his Reykjavik flat.

A cryptic note and a photograph of a young girl's grave are left behind.

DID THE DEAD MAN’S PAST COME BACK TO HAUNT HIM?

Inspector Erlendur discovers that several decades ago the victim was accused, but not convicted, of an unsolved crime. As he follows a fascinating trail of strange forensic evidence, Inspector Erlendur uncovers secrets that are much larger than the murder of one man — dark secrets that have been carefully guarded for many, many years…

-----
‘A chilling Icelandic saga of the DNA age’ Independent

FROM CWA GOLD DAGGER AWARD-WINNING CRIME WRITER ARNALDUR INDRIDASON

Critic reviews

A chilling read

Highly recommended...thoroughly gripping...impressively moving

A chilling Icelandic saga of the DNA age. This careful, sparsely-written book operates at a deeper level than most crime fiction

Perfect Icelandic Thriller

Dark and grim like the autumnal October rain falling relentlessly on the poor souls that try to live their life as best they can...But maladies, evil and life's cruel surprises await them
Masterfully written and narrated. It will give you just the tiniest ray of hope in the finale.

Very enjoyable

Great story and narration. On to the next one in series. Glad to have discovered this author

Strong characters couldn’t save the story

This one didn’t quite land for me, though the characters were a standout. The story felt flat, specially because I expected more from an Icelandic setting, but the plot was obvious from early on. That said, the characters deserve five stars: layered, believable, and genuinely engaging. The narration, was good, but it leaned too heavy on the shouting and it became distracting. I also struggled to keep track of the Icelandic names, though that’s on me and not on the book.

worse than watching paint dry

boring with a stiff, expressionless narrator. no character development, plot had no twists. very pedestrian.