Girl Who Lie by Eva Björg Ægisdóttir

Happy first day of July! Today I'm a stop on the Random Things tour for the second book in Eva Björg Ægisdóttir's Forbidden Iceland series, Girls Who Lie. 

Two boys out playing on the Grábrók lava fields stumble over a body and Elma and her fellow CID officers are called to investigate. 

From the start, they're certain the body is that of Maríanna, a woman who went missing seven months ago. And they're also certain that this wasn't an accident. But Maríanna's story is complicated and it quickly becomes clear that the suspect list isn't a short one. Worse yet, Maríanna's own daughter, Hekla, is suspicious in her own right. 

But the truth to this murder lies hidden in the past and it's up to Elma and her team to unravel the clues if they're to discover the person behind it all. 

As mentioned above, this is the second book in the series, following Ægisdóttir's debut, The Creak on the Stairs. Which I am ashamed to say that I have not yet read! (Don't worry, I will very soon!)

I've been pretty up front about the fact that Nordic Noir as a whole was one of the things that's helped me cope with the continuing Covid Times. There's a very clear style to the writing, even when many of the titles are translated, as is the case with Girls Who Lie. And a little shout out to Victoria Cribb who does a truly wonderful job with the translation here. 

(I've sung the praises of translators before. Theirs is a job that consists of way more than simply translating words! They have to maintain the author's voice while also translating in such a way that the narrative reads smoothly—not always an easy task considering there are turns of phrase and speech that don't necessarily translate easily into another language!)

In addition to the style that's unique to Nordic Noir, there's also the sense of place. And in this Ægisdóttir truly excels! Iceland itself is more than the setting for this story. It takes on an almost character-like aspect from the very beginning of the book. It's details like Elma's observation of the landscape as they're traveling to the crime scene. And the note that the boys who discover the body thought it was a dark elf (Icelandic lore is some of the most fun I've ever read!). 

And the characters themselves are so carefully crafted! Maríanna's story is heartbreaking. We meet her when she's just given birth and it's clear that she's suffering from postpartum depression. She never does connect with her daughter and, as a single mother, the two of them exist in an atmosphere that is hard to read. 

Elma, on the other hand, really thought that she'd be living the quiet life in her new position. Boy was she wrong! But her new job does allow her to spend more time with her family, particularly her nephew. 

Small details like that make it clear that Ægisdóttir is putting a lot of thought and consideration into every aspect of her writing! And Girls Who Lie really is the whole package, because the plot and pacing are fabulous!

I loved every bit of this book! Ægisdóttir is absolutely one to watch and one I highly recommend, right alongside two of my other Icelandic favorites, Ragnar Jónasson and Yrsa Sigurðardóttir! I cannot wait to read more from this author. She's a welcome addition to my auto-buy list!