Reykjavik: A book that left me feeling as cold as its setting

A little bit of background📃

I spotted Reykjavik at my local library, drawn in by the cover's blurb and the Icelandic setting. I love Scandi noir - so dark in its exploration of the nasty side of humans - so I expected an Icelandic book to be similar. I hadn't read anything previously by main author, Ragnar Jonasson, although I understand that he has penned the hugely successful Dark Iceland series. Interestingly, co-author, Katrin Jakobsdottir, is a former Prime Minister of Iceland, serving from 2017 to 2024. There is a second Jonasson-Jakobsdottir collaboration, The French hospital, published in 2025.

Reykjavik | Published January 2022 | Read January 2026

The story📖

Reykjavik is a cold case story. Fourteen-year-old Lara disappeared during a summer job in 1956 on the small island of Videy, just off the coast from Reykjavik. Over time, Lara's disappearance has become one of Iceland's most infamous unsolved cases. Thirty years later, as Reykjavik is celebrating its 200th anniversary, journalist Value Robertsson begins investigating Lara's case. Robertsson's digging soon reveals that the perpetrator will go to great lengths to keep their secrets.

My thoughts on the book💭

I enjoyed immersing myself in the world that the authors built in the story, particularly around Reykjavik's 200th anniversary and other important Icelandic and global events of 1986. That said, the book is a poor imitation of Scandi novels I have read. I was expecting more from acclaimed author, Ragnar Jonasson, and from what I thought was an Icelandic noir story The book has poorly drawn characters and bland dialogue. I love cold case stories and this one had so much promise, but the plot lacked the complexity I was expecting. Perhaps something has been lost in translation? I also wondered about the involvement of former Icelandic Prime Minister, Katrin Jakobsdottir. The book was written while she was in office. A vanity project for her that she didn't have the time to properly invest in?

In sum📝

Such a disappointment! All the ingredients were there - a cold case in an atmospheric setting and a fresh approach to the case at a pivotal time in Icelandic history - but the whole thing was poorly executed. I was expecting a haunting tale of the dark side of human nature, but the book lacked substance in terms of the characters and the plot. It may have read better in Icelandic, but the translation felt slow, clunky, and unconvincing.

Rating: ⭐⭐