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Review
'The second book from Yrsa Sigurdardottir is funny as well as being a taut and accomplished novel' (Independent, Books of the Year 20080129)
'This is well-written, pacey and wonderfully atmospheric, but the USP here is the character of Gudmundsdottir. Wry, very funny and valiantly trying to balance the demands of her private life with her work - she is a joy. I'm looking forward to number three.' (Guardian 20080129)
'Sigurdardotittir delivers terrific clammy atmosphere and frequent frissons of fear; she is entitled to join the front rank of Nordic crime writers.' (The Times )
'Both frightening and funny - a terrific trick if you can pull it off.' (Observer )
'Distinguished by superb evocations of extraordinary landscapes and . . . rivetingly gruesome inventiveness.' (Independent )
'The numerous twists and turns are worthy of Agatha Christie and keep the reader guessing until the very end.' (Sunday Telegraph )
'A suspenseful, sophisticated story' (Sunday Telegraph )
'A welcome second outing for the good-natured lawyer-sleuth Thora Gudmundsdottir . . . Yrsa Sigurdardottir's lightness of touch is refreshing' (Daily Telegraph on MY SOUL TO TAKE )
'The novel is both spooky and gruesome. But Thora's distinctly chaotic private life provides a welcome contrast and moments of very black humour . . . It's rare to find a crime novel that's both chilling and witty - an agreeable combination' (Andrew Taylor, Spectator )
'Dark, rich and satisfying.' (Woman & Home )
'Yrsa Sigurdardottir has arrived, fully formed, it seems, as something of a unique talent in the field . . . [She] matches Tess Gerritsen and Kathy Reichs in the bloodchiller stakes.' (Waterstone's Books Quarterly )
'More splendidly accomplished - and involving - fare from Sigurdardottir' (Good Book Guide )
'Yrsa Sigurdardottir brilliantly conjures an atmosphere of creeping menace and unreality.'
(Guardian 20080129)'This is well-written, pacey and wonderfully atmospheric, but the USP here is the character of Gudmundsdottir. Wry, very funny and valiantly trying to balance the demands of her private life with her work - she is a joy. I'm looking forward to number three.' (Guardian 20080129)
'Sigurdardotittir delivers terrific clammy atmosphere and frequent frissons of fear; she is entitled to join the front rank of Nordic crime writers.' (The Times )
'Both frightening and funny - a terrific trick if you can pull it off.' (Observer )
'Distinguished by superb evocations of extraordinary landscapes and . . . rivetingly gruesome inventiveness.' (Independent )
'The numerous twists and turns are worthy of Agatha Christie and keep the reader guessing until the very end.' (Sunday Telegraph )
'A suspenseful, sophisticated story' (Sunday Telegraph )
'A welcome second outing for the good-natured lawyer-sleuth Thora Gudmundsdottir . . . Yrsa Sigurdardottir's lightness of touch is refreshing' (Daily Telegraph on MY SOUL TO TAKE )
'The novel is both spooky and gruesome. But Thora's distinctly chaotic private life provides a welcome contrast and moments of very black humour . . . It's rare to find a crime novel that's both chilling and witty - an agreeable combination' (Andrew Taylor, Spectator )
'Dark, rich and satisfying.' (Woman & Home )
'Yrsa Sigurdardottir has arrived, fully formed, it seems, as something of a unique talent in the field . . . [She] matches Tess Gerritsen and Kathy Reichs in the bloodchiller stakes.' (Waterstone's Books Quarterly )
'Iceland is fast becoming a hotbed of fine crime writing, and Sigurdardottir is at the front of the pack. This second novel builds on her already impressive reputation . . . brilliantly paced and expertly constructed.'
(The Big Issue )'More splendidly accomplished - and involving - fare from Sigurdardottir' (Good Book Guide )
Review
'This is well-written, pacey and wonderfully atmospheric, but the USP here is the character of Gudmundsdottir. Wry, very funny and valiantly trying to balance the demands of her private life with her work - she is a joy. I'm looking forward to number three.' -- Guardian 'Sigurdardotittir delivers terrific clammy atmosphere and frequent frissons of fear; she is entitled to join the front rank of Nordic crime writers.' -- The Times 'Both frightening and funny - a terrific trick if you can pull it off' -- Observer 20090405 'Distinguished by superb evocations of extraordinary landscapes and... rivetingly gruesome inventiveness' -- Independent 20090415 'Dark, rich and satisfying' -- Woman & Home 20090406 'Glacially chilling and dark as an arctic winter, this gripping Icelandic page-turner will keep you guessing all the way' -- Choice 20090406 'An irresistible read. And very, very chilly inded' -- City AM 20090406 'Considering its population is only around 300,000, Iceland seems to have more than its fair share of good crime writers. Yrsa Sigurdardottir keeps up the standard... untypically, instead of the usual gloomy middle-aged man, her sleuth is a young woman... a personable heroine.' -- Sunday Telegraph 20080106 'Yrsa Sigurdardottir has arrived, fully formed, it seems, as something of a unique talent in the field... [She] matches Tess Gerritsen and Kathy Reichs in the bloodchiller stakes.' -- Waterstone's Books Quarterly 20080129 'Dark, deep and icy as an Icelandic fjord; this is a rich and rewarding debut novel of ancient mysteries and very modern murder.' -- Mark Billingham on LAST RITUALS 20071207 'Given the dark subject matter, this is a surprisingly funny book... a quirky and interesting read.' -- Guardian on LAST RITUALS 20071222 Iceland is fast becoming a hotbed of fine crime writing, and Sigurdardottir is at the front of the pack. This second novel builds on her already impressive reputation ... brilliantly paced and expertly constructed. -- The Big Issue 20071222 'A satisfying mix of mystery and pure madness.' -- Time Out 20071222
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Yrsa was an accomplished author with a number of children's books under her belt before she branched into crime writing and dared to be compared to the new crop of Icelandic/Scandinavian authors, Indridason et al. Although engaging and literate enough herself in English, a second language for her when seen at Crime Writing festivals (she studied in Canada for a while) I felt immediately that I would enjoy her previous book LAST RITUALS but unfortunately I found the victim and the rest of the protagonists in it hard to sympathise with. Then the descriptions relating to the medieval historical background of witchcraft and rituals seemed overly long and unnecessary tedious, so that although it fulfilled the criteria of being quirky and extremely dark I thought the plot rather difficult to swallow, so I admit it was with trepidation I reached for her second helping, hoping I'd been mistaken.
Luckily MY SOUL TO TAKE was much easier to read and funnier too, devoid of too much padding, with the characters seeming much more normal, if only a little on the odd side, and the settings were more interesting in the remote Icelandic country/ seaside location where a new resort has been built and where petty jealousies and long held secrets hide. I doubted how she was going to take Matthew through a further story after Book #1 but she does it with ease.
I can now look forward to the 3rd.
Luckily MY SOUL TO TAKE was much easier to read and funnier too, devoid of too much padding, with the characters seeming much more normal, if only a little on the odd side, and the settings were more interesting in the remote Icelandic country/ seaside location where a new resort has been built and where petty jealousies and long held secrets hide. I doubted how she was going to take Matthew through a further story after Book #1 but she does it with ease.
I can now look forward to the 3rd.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read and loved 'Last Rituals' so maybe my expectactions were too high for this one, but it did not grab me as the previous one. The opening is terrifying and leading to think we are in for a chilling journey. But soon we are taken instead to this 'new age' resort-hotel where we get to know some odd characters, including the hotel owner soon suspected of murdering the young female architect killed on the nearby beach. The lawyer-detective is his friend, so she agrees to stay and helps him clear his name. Then we get on this intricate, detailed saga into a complicated family inheritance and honestly at some point it rather lost me or I lost interest in the complex family links and past history. There is some further murder that tries hard to be horrifying but is not really. And overwhole I did not find the plot very interesting. What goes for this book is of course the great icelandic atmosphere and the quaintness of characters and settings, but is not quite enough to redeem its weakness. The German boyfriend is a very 'added-on' sidekick that does not in fact add anything genuine to the story but feels like a ploy to give the detective someone to talk to and to give her some colour throughout the story. Her own family problems also come on as totally unecessary and very superficial. Still it is a book I would not want to discourage anyone from reading, quite the opposite but one should not expect here the greatest crime story of the year !
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I suppose, being Icelandic, that it can be said the author comes from that school of Scandinavian writers who have blossomed in the world of crime writing in recent years. But she has a style which is her own, and should not be pigeonholed so simply. She is a writer of both children's books and crime fiction. This is her second crime novel, using her main character, lawyer Thora Gudmundsdottir.
The story of My Soul to Take begins in 1945, and whatever happens in the present is influenced by those events. Thora finds herself contacted by an old friend and client called Jonas, who is setting up an holistic hotel on the site of two farms he has bought. He wants to know if he can get compensation for something not revealed at the sale - the fact that the site is haunted. Thora agrees to stay at the hotel to investigate, only to arrive just as the body of architect Birna is found on a remote beach. Before the police can begin to investigate closely, Thora searches Birna's room and finds her diary.
The background to the murder clearly goes back a generation to the two brothers who owned the two farms on the site, one of whom has a connection with Nazism. There is also the mysterious Kristin, who with the help of her German ex-police officer friend Matthew, Thora tries to track down. But soon there is another death, and a dynasty of politicians who want to be kept clean, and matters get more and more confused. Thora's investigation is not helped by the fact that her precocious young son runs off with his pregnant girlfriend. The life of the fictional detective rarely runs smoothly.
Yrsa's first book, Last Rituals, introduced the world to her lawyer and amateur detective Thora in a context of black magic and hocus-pocus. In this second book Thora has to tackle unpleasant family histories, and Nazism in wartime Iceland. What in both cases could have been a grisly tale, was handled with a lightness of touch due to the nature of Yrsa's protagonist. Thora is in no way a hard-boiled gumshoe, but can deal with unpleasant facts, and nasty deaths. The story pulls no punches, but does not wallow in grisly detail either. Neatly translated by Bernard Scudder and Anna Yates, this is a compelling read with a clever mixture of darkness and wit. There will be more to come.
Ian Morson Author of Falconer books and short listed for 1999 Ellis Peters Historical Crime Dagger
The story of My Soul to Take begins in 1945, and whatever happens in the present is influenced by those events. Thora finds herself contacted by an old friend and client called Jonas, who is setting up an holistic hotel on the site of two farms he has bought. He wants to know if he can get compensation for something not revealed at the sale - the fact that the site is haunted. Thora agrees to stay at the hotel to investigate, only to arrive just as the body of architect Birna is found on a remote beach. Before the police can begin to investigate closely, Thora searches Birna's room and finds her diary.
The background to the murder clearly goes back a generation to the two brothers who owned the two farms on the site, one of whom has a connection with Nazism. There is also the mysterious Kristin, who with the help of her German ex-police officer friend Matthew, Thora tries to track down. But soon there is another death, and a dynasty of politicians who want to be kept clean, and matters get more and more confused. Thora's investigation is not helped by the fact that her precocious young son runs off with his pregnant girlfriend. The life of the fictional detective rarely runs smoothly.
Yrsa's first book, Last Rituals, introduced the world to her lawyer and amateur detective Thora in a context of black magic and hocus-pocus. In this second book Thora has to tackle unpleasant family histories, and Nazism in wartime Iceland. What in both cases could have been a grisly tale, was handled with a lightness of touch due to the nature of Yrsa's protagonist. Thora is in no way a hard-boiled gumshoe, but can deal with unpleasant facts, and nasty deaths. The story pulls no punches, but does not wallow in grisly detail either. Neatly translated by Bernard Scudder and Anna Yates, this is a compelling read with a clever mixture of darkness and wit. There will be more to come.
Ian Morson Author of Falconer books and short listed for 1999 Ellis Peters Historical Crime Dagger
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Who? What????
As most folks on here have said, very gripping beginning but sadly it was only the desire to find out what happened to the poor little girl which kept me wading through the rest. Read more
Published 3 months ago by grapemuncher
Enjoyable sequel
In this sequel to Last Rituals Icelandic lawyer Thóra is asked by her client, the owner of a New Age hotel, to investigate claims that it is haunted. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Eleanor
Chilling start to this crime mystery
Yrsa Sigurdardottir is becoming more comfortable with her characters in this second book, the research isn't so intrusive and the translation much better than Last Rituals. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Bizgen
Good
THe books are in excellent condition, but it took them more than a month to arrive. The seller in any case provided quick feedback.
Published 12 months ago by M. Saric
Fun
Loved this book. It has just the right amount of humour and fright. In fact, it has a lot of humour, and the central crime and climax really make for a great read. Read more
Published 14 months ago by liveenl
not bad at all
This is the first of this series that I have read, and I enjoyed it- a bit slow towards the end but some nice witty touches and at least it avoids the 'detective as gloomy... Read more
Published 18 months ago by tigercat
Domestic Unbliss
Why do female Scandanavian crime wirters have to detail their detectives' domestic problems that have zero bearing on the story? Read more
Published 22 months ago by pigsmayfly
Starts well enough but soon disappoints
The novel starts very promisingly. I don't know whether it is the writing itself or whether it hasn't translated into English particularly well but it is written in a very... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Mrs. Barbara Davey
More murders in Iceland
This is the second thriller by Sigurdardottir and though I enjoyed it and found it a quick read, I didn't think it was as good as her first book "Last Rituals". Read more
Published 24 months ago by EMB
Nice page-turner
I liked this book, though I felt the solution was somewhat telegraphed. Unlike many books of this genre I didn't find it so dark as to be uncomfortable or impossible to believe. Read more
Published on 9 May 2010 by V. Waters
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