I didn't love this one as much as [b:The Shadow District|35011768|The Shadow District|Arnaldur Indriðason|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1493485145s/35011768.jpg|26640646], but it was still a really solid work of historical fiction and police procedural. I think my lack of enthusiasm here is mainly to do with the fact that I didn't care much for any of the characters outside of the ones we already knew, Flóvent and Thorson. However, the angle of Icelandic WWII history he covers here is an interesting one - German-Icelandic people during the war and their relationship with the two counties. Also interesting is that the 1940s element takes place before the 1940s plot of The Shadow District, and while Arnaldur had a modern plot to parallel in the first book, he looks back to the 1930s in this one. Meanwhile, he throws in a bit more about Thorson's character that could lead in an interesting direction in further books. I do love how this author imbues a fairly straightforward police procedural with so much information on Icelandic history and culture, and yet it's so subtle that the reader absorbs it without fulling realizing. Great stuff. Definitely looking forward to the next installment!

The fine print: received ARC from NetGalley.