Reading in Reykjavík

Originally published in 2 parts, on March 9-12, 2004. Book 7 in my first 52 books challenge. Part 1: Author: Peter Ackroyd Published: 1985 Where got: public library Genre: mystery, horror I read this book years ago as part of a college course on modern English literature, but I remember nothing about it. Even now, when I'm almost finished with part one, I still remember nothing about the previous reading, which I guess shows how interested I was in it at the time. Every other chapter happens in the 18th century and is written in the style of that time, which takes a while to get used to. The other chapters are written in modern English and happen in modern times. The narrative point of view shifts between chapters, from 1st person to 3rd person. These stylistic changes necessitate a shifting of mental gears at the beginning of each chapter and make the book challenging to read. So far I'm finding it to be a dark and rather menacing narrative. Dyer, the 18th century narrator...

No. in series: 3 Year of publication: 1994 Type of mystery: Murder Type of investigator: Police Setting & time: North Carolina, USA, contemporary Some themes: Second sight, madness, family ties, ghosts, legend Story: Police dispatcher Martha Ayers wants to become a policewoman. After some hesitation, Sheriff Arrowood takes her on, saying if she passes her probationary period he will send her for training and make her a full member of the small police force in Dark Hollow. Her lover, police officer Joe LeDonne, isn't too pleased and finds an outlet for his feelings that could break up the relationship. Meanwhile, an escaped convict is making his way towards the town and his ex-wife and daughter. He suffers from a mental disorder that makes him think he is still back in the sixties and it's only a few days since he last saw them. At the same time a student of folklore is trying to retrace the trail along which a young woman captured by Indians 200 years before escaped,...

No. in series: 2 Year of publication: 1992 Type of mystery: Murder Type of investigator: Police Setting & time: North Carolina, USA, contemporary Some themes: Life and death, second sight, cancer, madness, family ties Story: Two teenagers are the only survivors of a family tragedy that ended in a triple murder and suicide, a woman expecting her first child is beset by loneliness and doubt, a young mother wants the best for her child, and an old man discovers that the cancer that is killing him may be the result of drinking polluted water. All of these stories begin to knit together little by little, with Sheriff Arrowood and seer Nora Bonesteel observing and occasionally participating in the story. Review: Calling this installation in the Ballad series a mystery is simplifying things. It is not just a mystery but also a psychological thriller, a true-to-life story about ordinary people, and an ode to the Appalachians and their inhabitants. But "mystery" is perhaps...

Title: Case Histories Year published: 2004 Type of mystery: Literary mystery, murder, missing persons Type of investigator: Private detective Setting & time: Cambridge, UK, contemporary Number of suspicious deaths: 3 Some themes: Missing persons, family, hopelessness, murder You may wonder why I am counting Kate Atkinson as a mystery writer. Simple: she has written two mysteries so far which is all it takes to make it onto my mystery author reading list. I am trying to get my hands on her other mystery, which is about the same lead character as this one. Story: Jackson Brodie is a typical depressed, divorced and chain-smoking hopeless P.I. Three cases land on his table: a child's disappearance more than 20 years before, a 10 year old unsolved murder, and a missing person. The stories of Jackson's investigations into these cases, his private life and the lives of some of those involved intertwine and in the end some things are solved for the participants and others on...

Author: José Carlos Somoza Year published: 2000 Pages: 314 Type of mystery: Murder Type of detective: A “decipherer of enigmas” Setting & time: Athens, ancient Greece Some themes: Murder, philosophy, obsession, translation The Story: It is the time of Plato. A beautiful young man is found murdered on the outskirts of Athens, and his teacher, the philosopher Diagoras, hires Heracles Pontor, Decipherer of Enigmas, to investigate the death. In footnotes we see the comments of the translator who is translating the ancient manuscript that tells the story, into a modern language. As the investigation progresses, the translator gets more and more involved in the story, even begins to think he is in it, and traces, for the benefit of the reader, some clues that are scattered throughout the text and seem to refer to the 12 labours of Hercules. The translator thinks they are the key to a secret meaning hidden in the text (and the reader scents an ancient secret about to be revealed)....