Books in the Thóra Gudmundsdóttir series in order

Fascinerende roman, der tager læseren med på en rejse tilbage i tiden til 1600-tallets Island, hvor heksejagter, magi og overtro herskede. I 2005 bliver liget af en tysk udvekslingsstudent fundet på universitetet i Reykjavik. Alt tyder på, at han er blevet tortureret til døde – blandt andet mangler hans øjne, og en gammel islandsk tryllerune er blevet ristet på hans brystkasse. Offerets familie hyrer en kvindelig advokat til at forestå en efterforskning, og hun finder ud af, at den tyske udvekslingsstudent havde en gruppe venner, der alle delte hans interesse for trolddomskunst, tortur og henrettelser – og det ser ud til, at de sammen har eksperimenteret med stoffer og forskellige former for seksuelle udfoldelser. Men har gruppens medlemmer noget med den tyske students død at gøre? Først da advokaten begiver sig til Islands nordvestkyst, som siges at være heksekraftens vugge, begynder der at ske et skred i efterforskningen.

Plottet tager udgangspunkt i virkelige hændelser: Vulkanudbruddet på Vestmannaøerne i 1973. Selve historien indledes med et mord – og læseren kan ikke umiddelbart afgøre, om det foregår i fortid eller nutid. Straks efter klippes der til Vestmannaøerne, hvor en noget usædvanlig arkæologisk udgravning er i gang: ’Nordens Pompei’ hedder projektet, der går ud på at udgrave udvalgte huse, der blev lagt i aske under udbruddet på Vestmannaøerne, og derefter lave en udstilling af de ting, der blev efterladt ved evakueringen. Thóras klient Markús Magnússons barndomshjem er et af de huse, der skal graves ud, men han har gjort indsigelse og forlangt at få lov til at gå alene ned i husets kælder, inden arkæologerne tager fat. I kælderen ligger et hoved og ligene af tre mænd, der er blevet banket til døde. Markús hævder ikke at kende til sagen, men bliver ikke desto mindre mistænkt og senere sigtet for drab og varetægtsfængslet. Markús’ veninde findes snart efter død i sit hjem. Det formodede selvmord viser sig hurtigt at være mord, og de to mordgåder flettes nu sammen i en forrygende opbygget intrige.

"It was once said that the Inuit natives of Greenland have no religion - only fear."Matthew, der nu er bosat i Island og ansat som sikkerhedskonsulent hos banken Kaupþing, bliver bedt om at undersøge to mænds forsvinden på Grønland. Mændene arbejdede for et islandsk firma, der har fået til opgave at etablere et laboratorium på Østgrønland, hvor mulighederne for at begynde minedrift skal undersøges. En "task-force" bestående af Matthew, Thóra og hendes sekretær Bella tager af sted sammen med fire eksperter – en mandlig computerspecialist og en kvindelig geolog, som begge tidligere har arbejdet på stedet, en mand med kendskab til lokalforholdene i kraft af sin erfaring med opbygning af grønlandske redningskorps, og en mandlig læge, der også er garvet grønlandskender.Det er altså vores hold, som forfatteren ubarmhjertigt placerer ude i isørkenen, hvor de fuldstændig afskåret fra omverdenen (deres muligheder for kontakt bliver hurtigt efter ankomsten saboteret) skal forsøge at kaste lys over, hvilke hårrejsende begivenheder her har fundet sted, og hvad der ligger bag."En bog, der koster nattesøvn, fordi man ikke vil lægge den fra sig." - Arktiske anmeldelser

Det er skumring, da tre voksne mennesker og en lille hund bliver sat i land i det gammle fiskerleje Hesteyri i Jökulsfjörður på nordvestkysten af Island. Deres plan er at istandsætte et gammelt hus og omdanne det til pensionat, som de forhåbentlig kan drive med økonomisk genvinst. Katrín er modvilligt taget med sin mand, og den tredje person er Lif, som netop er blevet enke. Katrín har ikke været mange minutter på den mennesketomme ø, før hun ser konturerne af en ukendt og truende skikkelse, der lusker omkring huset. Snart hører de også fodtrin inde i huset, og kun på øens højeste punkt er der mobildækning.På den anden side af øen bliver psykiateren Freyr kaldt ud til et hærværk. Gerningsmandnen virker syg. Freyr kæmper mod sine egne dæmoner, efter hans lille søn forsvandt tre år tidligere. Freyr bliver også trukket ind i efterforskningen af et selvmord. Afdøde er en ældre kvinde, som synes at have været besat af Freyrs søn. Under efterforskningen opdager Freyr ligheder mellem den aktuelle sag og noget, der fandt sted ti år tidligere. Noget gentager sig. Nogen begynder at råbe efter far..."... højspændt univers af nervepirrende uhygge" - Berlingske"Isnende uhygge kryber over siderne på denne nervepirrende gyser med effektive cliffhangere." - Litteratursiden

A chilling crime novel from the Queen of Icelandic crime and author of the highly-acclaimed LAST RITUALS.If I die before I wake . . .A grisly murder is committed at a health resort situated in a recently renovated farmhouse, which turns out to be notorious for being haunted. Attorney Thora Gudmundsdottir is called upon by the owner of the resort - the prime suspect in the case - to represent him. Her investigations uncover some very disturbing occurrences at the farm decades earlier - things that have never before seen the light of day . . .MY SOUL TO TAKE is a chilling, dark and witty crime novel, and a welcome return for Thora, the heroine of the highly-acclaimed LAST RITUALS.

The first Thora Gudmundsdottir novel from Yrsa Sigurdardottir - 'Queen of Icelandic crime'.'Yrsa is one of the most exciting new voices in the crime thriller world.' - Peter JamesA young man is found brutally murdered, his eyes gouged out. A student of Icelandic history in Reykjavik, he came from a wealthy German family who do not share the police's belief that his drug dealer murdered him. Attorney Thora Gudmundsdottir is commissioned by his mother to find out the truth, with the help - and hindrance - of boorish ex-policeman Matthew Reich. Their investigations into his research take them deep into a grisly world of torture and witchcraft both past and present, as they draw ever closer to a killer gripped by a dangerous obsession...

A creepy, compelling thriller, SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME is the fifth Thora Gudmundsdottir novel from Yrsa, 'Iceland's answer to Stieg Larsson' (Daily Telegraph). A young man with Down's Syndrome has been convicted of burning down his care home and killing five people, but a fellow inmate at his secure psychiatric unit has hired Thora to prove that Jakob is innocent. If he didn't do it, who did? And how is the multiple murder connected to the death of Magga, killed in a hit and run on her way to babysit?

WINNER OF THE 2015 PETRONA AWARDA Sunday Times '100 best crime novels and thrillers since 1945' pick!The most chilling novel yet from the Queen of Nordic Noir, not to be missed for fans of Jo Nesbo and Stieg Larsson.'Mummy dead.' The child's pure treble was uncomfortably clear. It was the last thing Brynjar - and doubtless the others - wanted to hear at that moment. 'Daddy dead.' It got worse. 'Adda dead. Bygga dead.' The child sighed and clutched her grandmother's leg. 'All dead.' A luxury yacht arrives in Reykjavik harbour with nobody on board. What has happened to the crew, and to the family who were on board when it left Lisbon?Thora Gudmundsdottir is hired by the young father's parents to investigate, and is soon drawn deeper into the mystery. What should she make of the rumours saying that the vessel was cursed, especially given that when she boards the yacht she thinks she sees one of the missing twins? Where is Karitas, the glamorous young wife of the yacht's former owner? And whose is the body that has washed up further along the shore?

A chilling new case for Thora Gudmundsdottir, from Iceland's answer to Stieg Larsson.When all contact is lost with two Icelanders working in a harsh and sparsely populated area on the northeast coast of Greenland, Thora is hired to investigate. Is there any connection with the woman who vanished from the site some months earlier? Why are the locals so hostile? And could one of the team staying at the site with Thora be responsible for the disappearances?Already an international bestseller, this fourth book to feature Thora Gudmundsdottir ('a delight' - Guardian) is chilling, unsettling and compulsively readable.

The third crime novel from international bestseller Yrsa Sigurdardottir, ASHES TO DUST is tense, taut and terrifying - not to be missed for fans of Nordic Noir. Thora peered at the floor, but couldn't see anything that could have frightened Markus that much, only three mounds of dust. She moved the light of her torch over them. It took her some time to realize what she was seeing-- and then it was all she could do not to let the torch slip from her hand. 'Good God,' she said. She ran the light over the three faces, one after another. Sunken cheeks, empty eye-sockets, gaping mouths; they reminded her of photographs of mummies she'd once seen in National Geographic. 'Who are these people?''I don't know,' said Markus...Bodies are discovered in one of the excavated houses at a volcanic tourist attraction dubbed 'The Pompeii of the North'.Markus Magnusson, who was only a teenager when the volcano erupted, falls under suspicion and hires attorney Thora Gudmundsdottir to defend him - but when his childhood sweetheart is murdered his case starts to look more difficult, and the locals seem oddly reluctant to back him up . . .