- Hardcover: 313 pages
- Publisher: Minotaur Books (2 Oct 2007)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0312358717
- ISBN-13: 978-0312358716
- Product Dimensions: 21.6 x 14.9 x 2.7 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 4,617,243 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Voices
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Review
"If you like your thrillers slow but masterfully written then this one is for you."
-"Irish Times"
"Morosely, intelligently, Erlendur unravels the mystery. With Voices Indridason proves that his Golden Dagger victory for Silence of the Grave last year was no fluke."
-"The Times"
-"Irish Times"
"Morosely, intelligently, Erlendur unravels the mystery. With Voices Indridason proves that his Golden Dagger victory for Silence of the Grave last year was no fluke."
-"The Times"
"From the Paperback edition." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Irish Times
'if you like your thrillers slow but masterfully written then this one is for you.' - Vincent Banville
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
At one of Reykjavík's largest hotels, the doorman/caretaker is found dead with multiple stab wounds, just before he was due to play Santa Claus at a children's party. He is unclothed and wearing a used condom. Although he has been there for 20 years, no one in the hotel seems to know anything about him or wants to talk about it. They just prevaricate.
The police have difficulty tracking down anyone who knows him. But eventually they find a hotel guest who has come to Iceland specifically to buy rare LP records from him, and his family who disowned him, and they are both telling lies. With senior hotel staff also engaged in lies and cover-ups, the blank canvas becomes painted with no shortage of suspects.
I'm not a crime fiction fan, but I don't mind the occasional entertainment by a top quality author. It is mainly my interest in Iceland that drew me to Arnaldur's books. And I've ended up buying several. I like them, because they reek of the Icelandic character and the nature of Reykjavík. It is an intensely compelling and human story. The hotel doesn't want a fuss at one of the busiest times of year, and no one wants it to drag on into Christmas itself. Erlendur's family issues as ever threaten to become involved. His investigation is sometimes exposed as less careful than it ought to be, meaning that important evidence might have been lost. The truth, when it finally emerges, is genuinely plausible, rather than some clever and complex plot. To that extent, I would say it is a much better book than Tainted Blood/Jar City (alternate names for the same book), which relied on a complex plot device, albeit one which is highly specific to the special conditions of life Iceland.
The police have difficulty tracking down anyone who knows him. But eventually they find a hotel guest who has come to Iceland specifically to buy rare LP records from him, and his family who disowned him, and they are both telling lies. With senior hotel staff also engaged in lies and cover-ups, the blank canvas becomes painted with no shortage of suspects.
I'm not a crime fiction fan, but I don't mind the occasional entertainment by a top quality author. It is mainly my interest in Iceland that drew me to Arnaldur's books. And I've ended up buying several. I like them, because they reek of the Icelandic character and the nature of Reykjavík. It is an intensely compelling and human story. The hotel doesn't want a fuss at one of the busiest times of year, and no one wants it to drag on into Christmas itself. Erlendur's family issues as ever threaten to become involved. His investigation is sometimes exposed as less careful than it ought to be, meaning that important evidence might have been lost. The truth, when it finally emerges, is genuinely plausible, rather than some clever and complex plot. To that extent, I would say it is a much better book than Tainted Blood/Jar City (alternate names for the same book), which relied on a complex plot device, albeit one which is highly specific to the special conditions of life Iceland.
109 of 114 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
If you're familiar with Arnaldur Indridason's 'Reykjavik murders' series, then you'll already know what a fine writer he is. If you haven't come across these novels before, they will appeal to anyone who enjoys Ian Rankin or Henning Mankell. Indeed the main character, Inspector Erlendur, does bear an uncanny similarity to Rebus and Wallander. Like them, he is a melancholic, middle-aged man who has been through an acrimonius divorce, has a difficult relationship with his daughter and spends many an evening alone in his flat eating warm-up meals. However, Erlendur is no pale imitation of other detectives and Indridason has successfully created a character who is intriguing and likeable in his own right. And after all, who wants a happy detective?
'Voices' in the third novel in this series and in my opinion, it's Indridason's best yet. Not only is the plot highly original, but I really felt that Indridason has found his voice as a writer, establishing a style that is very much his own. The judicious use of flashbacks manages to provide an extra dimension to the investigation and in this novel we also gain more of an insight into Erlendur's personal history.
Iceland may not seem the most fertile ground for a series of crime novels given it's reputation as one of the safest places in the world, but it is precisely this civilised backdrop that makes a murder twice as shocking. And if you thought that Iceland was all about geysers rather than geezers, prepare to be surprised!
With one novel a year, there is no danger of the 'Bergerac effect' where a seemingly safe place suddenly becomes more dangerous than the Bronx and Indridason's plots are plausible and compelling. If you like thoughtful, well-written crime fiction, then try this writer.
'Voices' in the third novel in this series and in my opinion, it's Indridason's best yet. Not only is the plot highly original, but I really felt that Indridason has found his voice as a writer, establishing a style that is very much his own. The judicious use of flashbacks manages to provide an extra dimension to the investigation and in this novel we also gain more of an insight into Erlendur's personal history.
Iceland may not seem the most fertile ground for a series of crime novels given it's reputation as one of the safest places in the world, but it is precisely this civilised backdrop that makes a murder twice as shocking. And if you thought that Iceland was all about geysers rather than geezers, prepare to be surprised!
With one novel a year, there is no danger of the 'Bergerac effect' where a seemingly safe place suddenly becomes more dangerous than the Bronx and Indridason's plots are plausible and compelling. If you like thoughtful, well-written crime fiction, then try this writer.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
All too often I have just picked up a crime fiction book, read it, enjoyed it, but found myself asking too many questions about characters, relationships and the like. I therefore decided to start the first book in the `series', if you want to call it that. I am glad I did.
The book is a good read with a real sense of atmosphere. The author is able to paint an image of the hotel where the majority of the novel is set and as you read through the novel you feel as if you are sitting in the lobby watching the events unwind. Considering that this is a translation of the authors work it makes the strength of his writing all the more impressive.
The story itself is simple and, in my opinion, believable which is a rare occurrence with so many pieces of crime fiction. The fact that the story is plausible lends to the attraction of the mundane nature of the investigation and the search for the killer.
A very enjoyable read and I will now without a doubt read more of the authors work.
The book is a good read with a real sense of atmosphere. The author is able to paint an image of the hotel where the majority of the novel is set and as you read through the novel you feel as if you are sitting in the lobby watching the events unwind. Considering that this is a translation of the authors work it makes the strength of his writing all the more impressive.
The story itself is simple and, in my opinion, believable which is a rare occurrence with so many pieces of crime fiction. The fact that the story is plausible lends to the attraction of the mundane nature of the investigation and the search for the killer.
A very enjoyable read and I will now without a doubt read more of the authors work.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
a cracking good read
This is the first book by arnaldur indridason i have read and proved to be a pleasant suprise.This is the third book in the series concerning detectives erlendur and sigurdur... Read more
Published 1 month ago by oldginger ebbw vale
Someone has killed Father Christmas...
Indridason's Detective Erlendur is haunted by the memory of losing his younger brother in a snowstorm when they were children. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Eileen Shaw
Reykjavik Murder Mysteries - best of the Nordic Bunch
Having read the Steig Larsson series a while back, I watched the Channel 4 'Nordic Noir' documentary that mentioned the works of a number of Nordic authors. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Nordic Noir
Another Indridason Cracker
In a large hotel in Reykjavík a body is found and Inspector Erlendur and his team are left to investigate. The body is that of the hotel doorman & caretaker. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mr. S. N. Pattison
Icelandic Murder Mystery
Erlandur reminds me of Colombo, he asks what appear to be obscure questions, but they help him to solve the case.
Published 6 months ago by Siouxie
Voices
An excellent book by an excellent writer - kept me sitting on the edge of my chair and the plot was wonderfully worked out I am now reading more and more of his books and cannot... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Mrs. S. Fishman
Strong character development within the confines of a hotel
Whilst the first and second in the Reyavik Murder Mystery Series, Jar City (Reykjavik Murder Mysteries 1) and Silence Of The Grave (Reykjavik Murder Mysteries 2), had good, yet... Read more
Published 12 months ago by J. Milton
Wonderfully atmospheric storytelling
Fans of Arnaldur Indridason will not be disappointed by this latest offering. Detective Erlendur slowly but surely unravels all the twists in this latest case of a Santa who is... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Caz Mysteries
respect !!
This is another volume in the Erlendur crime series, set in Iceland, and again I am very impressed. It is the third one I am reading
and, although it has the flimsiest plot,... Read more
and, although it has the flimsiest plot,... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Ramses
`Who appointed you the conscience of the world?'
Just days before Christmas, Gudlauger Egilsson, Reykjavik hotel doorman, handyman and occasional Santa Claus is found stabbed to death in his room in the hotel basement. Read more
Published 18 months ago by J. Cameron-Smith
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