Gallows Rock by Yrsa Sigurdardottir is another great domestic noir novel featuring Freyja and Hulder. This is the second novel of hers that I’ve read with these characters and I really enjoyed it.

It is filled with twists, turns and suspense and while it was a little confusing in the beginning with the introduction of so many characters, things quickly fell into place. However, it was totally unpredictable and I never, ever saw the ending coming.

The narrative is cleverly woven, with intricate details that are easily overlooked until the final reveal, when the premise is finally understood.

I really enjoyed getting to know these characters. The details of their lives and backstory add significantly to their characterization but in an easy-to-read manner that makes it feel like you’re getting to know a couple of friends. However, I like Freyja but I don’t like Hulder, and I’m not so sure about their relationship.

The translation is excellent. I did not feel like I was reading a translated novel, so a shout-out to Victoria Cribb!

#netgalley #gallowsrock #yrsasigurdardottir #hodder&stoughton

Helgi Fredrikkson has been found hanged from Gallows Rock - at first it is thought he’s committed suicide but the nail, fired from a nail gun, in his chest shows that it was murder. When detectives go to his flat a four year old boy is discovered there. The boy doesn’t know where he lives or what his parents are called; only that he was taken there by a man who told him not to do anything until an alarm clock went off. The police investigation leads them to a video shared on a porn site - the woman turns out to be the young boy’s mother and the man is Helgi. The police are searching for the woman and her husband - especially as she is eight months pregnant.

Fantastic read from start to finish - love Yrsa Sigurdardottir’s books.

Thanks to Netgalley, Hodder & Stoughton and Yrsa Sigurdardottir for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advance copy of Gallows Rock, the fourth novel to feature child psychologist Freyja and police detective Huldar.

A man is found hanging from Gallows Rock, a tourist attraction outside Reykjavik, but the bolt through his chest indicates murder rather than suicide. Things get stranger when they go to Helgi’s flat and find a four year old boy, Siggi, alone there. Freya looks after him while Huldar tries to find Siggi’s parents and Helgi’s killer.

I thoroughly enjoyed Gallows Rock which is an absorbing read full of twists and turns. It is told mostly from the investigative point of view so the reader can live it with them. I was captured by the unusual premise and then got really involved in the plot, trying to figure out the links and the motive. I got a couple of details but mostly I was just following the author’s lead. It’s clever the way small, easily overlooked details are woven into the outcome without giving any hints of what’s to come. I was hooked from start to finish. And what a finish, a final flourishing twist.

This is a novel more about Huldar than Freyja as it’s all about the investigation of this very strange situation. I like the way the author includes modern themes, even if they aren’t pleasant, without baffling the reader with too much tech speak. The broad brushstroke approach to internet manipulation is very appealing and makes it understandable. I also like the humanity of the characters, Freyja wondering if she can afford a flat and Huldar trying to get a date with Freyja, among other things. They seem very normal and relatable. I like the small moments of humour in the novel, like Freyja’s flat hunting experience which made me laugh, again it’s the small observations that make it relatable.

Gallows Rock is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Just as compelling as the previous books in the series. All of Yrsa Sigurðardóttir's books are extremely well written and a joy to read. There is plenty of suspense and twists in this story. The ending is an excellent surprise. I love the characters and the tensions between them. I read this book in one sitting, I was unable to put it down. Highly recommended.

This is the first Children's House novel by Sigurdardottir that I've read, having loved her previous series about Reykjavik lawyer Thora Gudmundsdottir, and I wasn't sure it would measure up but it really did. Gripping and impossible to predict, with the ever-evocative Icelandic setting adding an extra layer of interest. Readers new to Icelandic crime may find some of the prose style a little jarring - when characters talk it can tend towards the brusque, even rude (especially to people used to the overly-polite British style of communication) - but for me, getting to grips with another country's culture is what makes Sigurdardottir's books so intriguing.

Another good installment of this series. Perhaps not as gory as previous books but still as engaging to read.

I enjoyed this book, it's not as gory as previous books but still a good story.
V v c

Intriguing start to the book,with a hanged man,and a young child stashed in his flat.
The story takes many twists and turns,and gets quite dark before the whole truth is revealed.

It was a good read,but I personally am not getting anything from the Freyja and Huldar relationship

As with the other books by Yrsa Sigurdardottir I read, there are plenty twists and turns to keep you glued to the page to be topped off with an unexpected ending. However, not as mind-boggling as I was hoping.