A thrilling, 5-star scandi-crime and one of the best I’ve read in a while, don’t miss Smoke Screen by Thomas Enger & Jørn Lier Horst.
The plot:
Oslo, New Year’s Eve. The annual firework celebration is rocked by an explosion, and the city is put on terrorist alert.
Police officer Alexander Blix and blogger Emma Ramm are on the scene, and when a severely injured survivor is pulled from the icy harbour, she is identified as the mother of two-year-old Patricia Smeplass, who was kidnapped on her way home from kindergarten ten years earlier… and never found.
Blix and Ramm join forces to investigate the unsolved case, as public interest heightens, the terror threat is raised, and it becomes clear that Patricia’s disappearance is not all that it seems…
A completely faultless read
Sometimes, you find a book that is so addictive that you get a papercut when turning the pages – this is exactly what happened here for me. Based on the synopsis – a crime fiction with a suspected terrorist attack and an old unsolved crime – SIGN ME UP. I knew I’d like it, but didn’t realise how much I’d like it.
It’s intense with a jaw-dropping ending, and is a completely faultless read.
The characters make you want to instantly go back and read the previous book in the Blix & Ramm series (Death Deserved), especially as they have a complex background which draws you in from the get-go. I do have Death Deserved and I am KICKING myself for not reading it sooner.
Each chapter followed either Blix or Ramm, which I found especially well done the whole way through (I’d never thought I’d say such a thing!). Without giving spoilers, this has been done to hone in on the character’s feelings, and especially at the ending – wowzaaaaa give me that action.
It is of no surprise that the first book is an award-winning best seller with Enger and Horst at the realm.
This is an absolute must-read if you love crime fiction – you will not be disappointed. It’s chilling, atmospheric with the gorgeous backdrop of Scandinavia, and haunting with its revelations. Tie-in that it’s incredibly fast-paced and a read-straight-through book, you’ve got yourself a winner.
I’m still mind-blown about the ending, and the journey there was fantastic with a slight police procedural angle.
Easy 5-stars. Have allllll the stars.
Smoke Screen, Thomas Enger & Jørn Lier Horst, RRP £8.99 (paperback); Book Depository
Pages: 308
Publisher: Orenda Books
Genre: Scandi-Crime/ Crime Fiction
