THE GIRL BY THE BRIDGE - Arnaldur Indridason


 Detective Konrád (retired from the police) is still searching for those responsible for his father's murder when he is called by an elderly couple looking for help.  Their granddaughter, a young woman, is missing. She is a known drug smuggler and Konrád is reluctant to take the case, but the elderly couple have a loose connection to Konrád's wife and so he agrees to look into it but gets much more than he bargained for.

Some 50 years earlier in this area where Konrád is now investigating, the body of a young girl was discovered in the water under a bridge.  At the time, the case was declared an accidental drowning and subsequently closed. But upon talking with locals regarding the now-missing young drug mule, Konrád begins to suspect that there is some connection between the two cases, despite being half a century apart.

What he suspected was a simple drug-runner disappearance case turns into something much more, with the safety and welfare of children at its heart.

There is a term called "Icelandic Noir" and if it wasn't coined because of the works of Arnaldur Indridason an argument could be made that he is the leading author in the genre. His books are dark and gritty and very methodic.  His leading characters, Konrád here, appear to have seen too much of the dark side of humanity and carry little to no humor.

I've seen other reviewers write that Konrád is a difficult person to like and I think that greatly takes away from who he is.  While it's true that the character is not someone readers will wish was a personal friend, he is a solid and determined detective with a great moral compass.  Isn't that what you really want in a detective?  More than 'likeability'?

I liked how the mysteries, decades apart, slowly came together. Konrád's approach is rarely to jump in and make quick assumptions (although he does assume that the missing girl is a drug deal gone bad). His methodical approach might seem a little dull, given a rather even pace to the writing, but the revelation of information - the slow adding on of new bits - really helps to keep the reader engaged.

This is my second book in Arnaldur Indridason's Konrád series and I have read a few of his slightly more famous Erlandur series and I definitely enjoy these Konrád books more so far. These Konrád books seem to deal more with cold cases, eliminating some of the immediacy of solving the crime, allowing the detective (and the reader) to enjoy the process more

Looking for a good book? The Girl by the Bridge by Arnaldur Indridason is perfect for fans of Iclandic Noir and police procedural mysteries.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

* * * * * *

The Girl by the Bridge

author: Arnaldur Indridason

series: Konrád #2

publisher: Harvill Secker

ISBN: 9781787303515

paperback, 352 pages

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