Excitingly subtle Nordic Noir addition!

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The Darkness: A Thriller (Hidden Iceland #1) by Ragnar Jonasson       
Ok, I don't quite know what to do with this story. It left things puzzling unfinished, and me hanging in midair. (Hanging on every word and action by the way) Unfinished from the point of view of about to retire Detective Inspector Hulda Hermannsdóttir of the Reykjavík police and her enquiry into the assumed suicide of a young Russian woman found washed up on a deserted shoreline two years before. The more we learn about Hulda, the more we sympathize with her perceptions about her work colleagues, and her inner drive that seems to ignore anything but the goal she's fixated on.
As little by little Hulda's life history is revealed, some of her actions become more understandable, if not sometimes slightly bizarre.
Hulda's enforced retirement notice begs the questions of the last chapter's happenings and her colleagues opinions of her. Where does the truth lie?
Hulda chooses one last case to investigate, and the time allowed becomes shorter as she treads on official's  toes and companion's egos. The suicide case sparks attraction from many quarters, most of it unwanted.
The Darkness is the first part a trilogy that appears to have begun with the ending. Maybe!
At first the structure of the series and the interplay of Hulda's past and present annoyed me, however as I read on I was caught.  How the storyline is eventually going to play out will have me returning out of sheer curiosity. The forcefulness of Hulda's personality and the stories within stories has well and truly trapped me! I find myself desperately wanting to continue with Hulda's journey, despite its ending. Truly Nordic Noir! I loved it!

 A NetGalley ARC

*****

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