Death at the Sanatorium is set in the northern Icelandic town of Akureyre. The year is 1983, and Tinna finds her co-worker, Yrsa, slumped over her desk in a pool of blood, two of her fingers severed. She is dead, and Tinna—despite the gruesome scene--is somewhat relieved. They are nurses at a sanatorium that was once an overburdened TB hospital; but in 1983, it became a research facility. With only five people with access to the facility, it must be one of them who committed the crime. Could it be: Tinna, the first one on the scene; Elisabet, next in line for the aging, Yrsa’s job; Thorri, a young, arrogant, and ambitious physician; Broddi, the strange caretaker; or Fridjon, the elderly director of the sanatorium? If not them, then who? Could it be an outsider with a score to settle?

We visit the sanatorium three times within a span of 72 years. In 1950, we learn the history of
the sanatorium, and are introduced to some of the pertinent characters. In 1983, the murders are committed and hastily investigated. In 2012, a young man, working on a dissertation of the sanatorium deaths, begins a fresh investigation. Were the detectives correct in 1983? Was justice served? Were secrets kept?

Ragnar Jonasson is an award-winning author from Iceland. I am a big fan of his, and have read eleven of his twelve translated novels (the last title sits on my shelf waiting to be read). The only detractor—for me—has been questionable translations that make some prose awkward to read. I highly recommend looking into his Dark Iceland series.

I would like to thank Minotaur books and NetGalley the opportunity to read and review this novel,

I love Nordic Noir and Ragnar is at the top of my favourite authors. His craft and skill in bringing about rich characters and plot lines shines in Death at The Sanitarium. This was atmospheric and immersive! The use of tension and anticipation really helped to build the story and keep me turning pages well into the night! I also loved the subtle references of time, place and characters from past novels! I was happy to see Hulda again!

Thank you to the publishers and author and NetGalley for my advanced copy.

Ragnar Jónasson's Hidden Iceland trilogy (The Darkness, The Island, The Mist) featuring Hulda Hermannsdóttir is one of my all-time favorites, so I was pleased to see that Hulda would make an appearance in Death at the Sanatorium. Granted, it's more of a cameo, but she does make an impact, and her appearance is bittersweet for those readers who have read the Hidden Iceland trilogy. (Do you need to read that trilogy before reading this book? Absolutely not.)

Jónasson has translated Agatha Christie into Icelandic, and his familiarity with her work is obvious in his meticulous plotting. When it comes to plots, this man is a master weaver. But Death at the Sanatorium isn't all about the story. Jónasson is also a master at atmospheric settings, and you can't get much better than setting a murder mystery in an old tuberculosis sanatorium. I have a special sympathy for this setting because my mother was a patient in one when I was a baby. I'm very familiar with the photographs taken there-- especially the one of my grandfather holding me up to the window, me reaching futilely for my mother, and the look on my mother's face on the other side of the glass.

Plot? Check. Setting? Check. What about the characters?

It didn't take me long to want to throttle the young nurse, Linna. She enjoyed being an important witness, and she wasn't above stretching the truth. "The truth was that life was easier if you tweaked the facts a little in your favor." See what I mean?

Helgi is the star here. His father was an antiquarian bookseller, and Helgi has a fantastic library of detective fiction, in particular translated detective fiction, that was lovingly collected by both his grandfather and father. Those books-- as well as his investigation into the 1983 deaths at the sanatorium-- are his escape, and he does need one, as readers soon learn.

The ending of Death at the Sanatorium made me smile in appreciation of the author's skill. It also made me want to see Helgi again because I hope that he can solve yet another murder.

Death at the Sanatorium is an engaging novel with plenty of suspense and tension. It unfolds in the unique setting of the old TB Sanatorium in northern Iceland, where a closed murder case from 1983 is reopened in 2012 by a young police officer (Helgi) working on his Master’s thesis. The story is narrated from multiple perspectives, with Helgi’s being the central one.

I really enjoyed the story. It was clever, full of flawed characters and unreliable witnesses, and had excellent pacing. I am eagerly anticipating the next Helgi story and future works by the author!

I want like to thank NetGalley and St Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for providing me with an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

*3.5 stars

I would call this mystery a police procedural. It is set in Reykjavik, Iceland in the year 2012 but the timeline also goes back to the years 1950 and 1983. The protagonist, Helgi Reykdal, is re-examining a cold case from 30 years ago, when 2 deaths occurred at an old tuberculosis sanatorium, in an effort to finish his dissertation for a post-grad degree in criminology.

He has a couple personal decisions to make too. The Reykjavik police are keen to hire him to work for them but he's tempted to go back to the UK to finish his schooling. His personal life is in rather a mess: he and his live-in girlfriend, Bergthóra, have knock-down, drag out fights that have the neighbors reporting the disturbance. Should he stay with her and commit to buying a home together or give it up as a lost cause? His one solace is retreating to his favorite Golden Age mysteries from Agatha Christie and the like, inherited when his father's bookstore when it was sold.

The cold case is very intriguing with several interesting characters. Just whodunit? Then a new murder occurs and Helgi worries that his digging has stirred the pot and made a murderer nervous. I have to say the ending left me shattered. I'm sort of hoping this is the beginning of a series and there's more to come!

Note: I enjoyed the look into the author's background and how that shaped his character Helgi in the section titled 'And Then There Was Christie.' I too grew up reading Dame Christie's books so I could definitely relate to his experiences.

Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new mystery via
NetGalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed here my own.

A chilling mystery set in an isolated sanatorium. Jónasson’s atmospheric storytelling and intricate plot make this a gripping and suspenseful addition to the genre.

This is another thrilling book from Ragnar Jonasson. Think insane asylum mixed with girl with the dragon tattoo meets da vinci code. While not as gripping as his previous novel Outside, it is still a chilling winter noir

This was a fun read. My first Jonasson book, although not my first Nordic detective thriller. I appreciated the quick chapters, and that the three timelines (okay, two mainly, with a few scenes set decades earlier than either) were pretty easy to keep straight. I did have the perp’s identity figured out very early on and wasn’t surprised, so I’m subtracting a star, and one more for the cliffhanger ending — I like resolution in the end of my books, and felt like too many ends were left open for a sequel that didn’t need to be in order for me to come back for book 2.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC to check this book out early!

This author's name was familiar to me, but I had not read any of his other books. This definitely feels like Nordic noir, so if that's your thing, you'll probably enjoy this. With multiple timelines and POVs, we follow a police officer writing a dissertation on a decades-old case as he explores the events surrounding the case.

I'm still trying to decide how much I like the Nordic noir style. It was a fine enough mystery, but I wasn't compelled to keep coming back to it whenever I had a spare moment. It was a quick read. If you aren't sure if it's your style, I'd recommend trying it.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #MinotaurBooks for a free copy of #DeathAtTheSanatorium by Ragnar Jonasson. All opinions are my own.

Death at the Sanatorium was slow and light on action. The author chooses to tell the reader about things that happened more often then let us experience it ourselves. The plot meandered and was good when we got back to it. The atmosphere was possibly the best part of this entire book. I left the whole thing more sad than anything else.

This is such a gripping tale of an old murder suicide that a graduate student begins looking into- thinking it was rather a double murder. This book holds your attention all the way to the bitter end. And that ending…

This book was a well written police procedural type of book set in Reykjavik, even though it started out with the premise of completion of a graduate thesis. In fact, while the thesis is mentioned throughout, we don't see much of the academic side. The deaths alluded to in the title occured some time ago at a sanatorium in a small town in the north of Iceland. The main character Helgi conducts a series of interviews, which I have a hard time understanding how they contribute to a thesis, and winds up doing police work. The plot is interesting, but more interesting are the personal stories and the progress of the 'investigation'. And right from the start we see that Helgi is in a troubled, very abusive relationship and I have to ask myself why he hasn't already left. Although it is rare for men to be the abused party, it does happen, and I would like to see more depth to this element. Perhaps it is in Jonasson's earlier works, which I haven't read, but now will. And I'm quite hopeful for another addition to this series, as I'm hooked on the story lines introduced here.

I was given this ARC by the publisher and NetGalley; the opinions expressed herein are strictly my own.

A Master’s Thesis Turns Real

Helgi Reykdal has returned to Iceland after completing his classes for a Master's in criminology in England. He only needs to complete his thesis. He selects an almost 30-year-old case of two murders to conduct a thorough academic analysis. While the case is closed, questions concerning the conclusions of the original police investigation remain, and the motive is still unclear. The novel opens with the police knocking on his door. He just had a loud row with his wife, and his upstairs neighbor called the police.

This novel has only one main storyline thread, which starts as a study of an old closed case for his master thesis and then morphs into an actual reinvestigation. During the initial phase of the novel, the 1983 investigation is shown to be faulty, so I, like Reykdal, want to know who murdered the two persons. The list of possible suspects is small. To enhance interest, the author employs extensive use of flashbacks. During the latter phase of the novel, another death ratchets up the suspense. Reykdal had several issues working against him. The primary problem is his dysfunctional relationship with his partner, Bergthóra, significantly affecting his ability to work on his thesis. The others are his desire to work in England and a significant witness to the murders does not want to talk to him. This main storyline captured my interest and kept it to the novel's end.

As mentioned, much of the background is provided by Reykdal's introspection into his relationship with his partner and his future with her. This introspective approach is also used to delve into his personal history and the reasons that led him to his current situation. His potential position in the Reykjavík police criminal investigation division adds another layer of complexity. The way he navigates this police connection before being hired is programmatic for me. These aspects of the novel added to my enjoyment of reading it.

Aspects do not exist in this novel that can cause readers to stop reading. Intimate scenes are non-existent. Objectionable language is very infrequent. There is only one scene of violence, and it is over in a flash. Some scenes may lead to violence, but the actual violence is left to the reader’s imagination. I found reading this novel on an e-reader advantageous. I made extensive use of the easy access to the Internet. I needed to look up the meaning of some words and find the location of towns or regions in the novel. This is a standalone novel, so no dependency exists on what happened in an earlier novel.

I enjoyed how the author keeps all suspects viable to the novel’s end. This is not unusual, but authors seem to throw in someone who was never a suspect. Hints did not favor one of the suspects until the reveal. This is the primary reason that I could not stop reading. I had a problem with how Reykdal used his temporary police service and his current offer to a police position to suggest some official connection to his inquiries. Also, an incident in the novel disturbed me and left a bad feeling from this novel. It was not so severe that I regretted reading this novel.

I received this novel's free prepublication e-book version through NetGalley from Minotaur. I still recommend reading this novel. Also, I did not lower my Must-Read ranking of this author. This is based on reading six previous novels, some in a series and some standalone. I am looking forward to reading further novels by this author. I have enjoyed reading this novel and rate it with four stars.

I received this novel's free prepublication e-book version through NetGalley from Minotaur Books. My review is based solely on my own reading experience. Thank you, Minotaur Books, for the opportunity to read and review this novel early.

A slow burn mystery that’s about a cold case of a murder in a sanatorium. Atmospheric and gripping. RJ has such a way of turning a tale that’s very original. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for read and review

Can’t go wrong with an Icelandic thriller.
This is a spinoff from his Hidden Iceland series.
Three timelines. Multiple narrators. Not difficult to keep them straight. Suspense is top notch. I did not have this one figured out until it was revealed. Had an inkling as to where it was headed and how the timelines intertwined but didn’t call the suspect. Probably going to be a sequel by the looks of the ending. Can’t wait!!

This isn't my first Ragnar Jònasson novel, and it will not be the last 😀 In Death at the Sanatorium, Jònasson introduces a new character, Helgi, who is a graduate student working on a criminology dissertation. This dissertation reviews the police work of a long ago murder at the sanatorium in his hometown. As he interviews the people who were touched by the murder, interesting details are revealed. At the same time, we learn more about Helgi. This murder mystery starts out slow, but really hits a good pace after a few chapters. I really enjoyed meeting Helgi and hope to see him again soon.

I would like to thank Minotaur Books [St Martin's Press] for providing me with an early copy of Death at the Sanatorium in exchange for my honest review.

This book has been translated from the Icelandic and I have to say that it is very well done. I have read a few books that have been translated to English and this was one of the few that was very well done and did not feel clunky. There were only a couple phrases that were a bit funny but over all it was easy to read through without any hiccups.

Helgi is writing a dissertation about the handling of an investigation at the old Sanatorium before he begins his police career. As he looks into the people involved in the original case he finds there are holes and unanswered questions that itch at his love for detective stories.

We have different time lines happening that eventually lead up to 2012 when Helgi begins his research and we are allowed to read different points of view of people who were involved in the original case.

I enjoyed reading about the history of the Sanatorium and how things evolved and the characters have changed over the 30 years of our story.

The ending, even though the mystery is solved, left me wanting more! I was made there wasn't at least one more chapter or epilogue, but usually that is a sign of a good book, when you don't want it to end.

Death at the Sanatorium will be available at your local bookseller or public library on September 10 2024

Helgi Reykdal, a criminology student, is concluding his dissertation focusing on a murder-suicide that took place thirty years ago at a former TB sanatorium in Northern Iceland. Despite the case being deemed 'solved' at the time, Helgi decides to revisit the investigation by interviewing former suspects, most of whom are reluctant to relive the past.
In his personal life, Helgi faces challenges with his girlfriend, who pressures him to take a local police job and move from their rented flat to a more permanent home. Her erratic behavior jeopardizes both their relationship and Helgi's cherished collection of Golden Age mysteries, inherited from his bookseller father. During particularly rough patches with his girlfriend, Helgi finds comfort in his favorite mystery novels. This novel pays homage to the genre and to Agatha Christie, whom the author, an ardent Christie fan has translated 14 of her books into Icelandic.

Although a standalone work, the novel briefly references Reykjavik detective Hulda Hermannsdottir, a character from Jónasson's popular Hidden Iceland series, who was involved in the original case thirty years ago. The atmospheric plot unfolds through short chapters with shifting timelines and various narrators, which can be challenging to follow in the audio version. However, the audio narration does smooth out the pronunciation of Icelandic character and place names. Jónasson’s latest offering is poised to captivate fans eager for more Nordic Noir.

An enthralling read by the Icelandic author Ragnar Jonasson, the first of his that this reader has experienced, but certainly not to be the last.

This sequel to “The Darkness” can be read and enjoyed successfully as a standalone novel, (as I did,) with the loss of some backstory in the main characters. However, after reading (and loving) this story, I for one, do intend to go back and read more of this author, including this first prequel.

Helgi Reykdal is a thirty-something former Icelandic cop, now studying for an MA in criminology, who appears to have a somewhat sinister secret personal life. Helgi is writing his academic dissertation on a thirty-year-old unsolved series of murders that took place in a rural Akureyri (Northern Iceland) sanatorium. Once (back in the 60’s and 70’s), this sanatorium was a depressing death-cloaked institution, doing its best to cope with slews of bed-ridden patients, (many of them tragically doomed), suffering from the largely-incurable Tuberculosis (chillingly known as the White Death).

Now an administrative institution housing two doctors, two nurses, and a creepy caretaker, as Helgi delves deeper into the mystery housed at the sanatorium — tracking down the former house staff, interviewing them and attempting to recreate the factors driving the crimes thirty years ago — we, the reader travel along with him, absorbing a winding and weaving story that spans current day (2012 in this book, and the timeline of Helgi’s experiences ) and 1983 (the year of the original crimes and the people involved).

Fascinating and slow-burning, this tale unfolds as a sort of Icelandic “film noir” - deeply atmospheric, insular, and with undercurrents creaking as they run deep. This mystery is also reminiscent, and inspired by (as explained by the author) crime novels of yore featuring detectives in hats, little old ladies, and Belgians with magnificent waxed mustaches. Glorious literary fodder for this reader in youth, as clearly was also the case for this author.

I enjoyed this book tremendously, including its two-part ending (satisfying in part one, and a total cliff-hanger in part two) and am looking forward to reading more of this series and this talented author.

Note: I reviewed the audio version of this story, made magnificent by the velvet tones and immersive performance of the narrator Sam Woolf. Truly a treat to listen to and experience what was already a wonderful story, made even more entertaining in this medium.

A great big thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.

Four and a half stars

I am drawn to Icelandic authors. I like their dark take on murders, the atmospheric environment, and the exciting plots. I especially liked Jonasson's last book, "Reykjavik," which he co-authored with Katrin Jakobsdottir. In this, his latest book, Jonasson, is again at the top of his game.

In 1983, at a former tuberculous sanatorium, a nurse was found brutally murdered. Detective Sverrir arrests the groundskeeper, only to release him when the chief physician is found dead. The cause of death is suspected suicide - overcome by his guilt of the murder of his colleague. The case is closed.

Flash forward to 2012. Helgi Reykdal is completing his master's in criminology. His dissertation focuses on the 1983 deaths and the police investigation. As he digs into the past, he begins to doubt the competency of the police investigation, but the lack of cooperation of those involved makes him wonder what they are hiding. Soon, the past and present collide, and what Helgi uncovers threatens to reveal long-held secrets and again endanger lives.

This is an intricately plotted book with interesting characters and excellent pacing. The back-and-forth timelines reveal clues to the murderer and the long-buried secrets that add to the absorbing story. If you enjoy good suspenseful crime fiction, I recommend this book. 4.5/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and Minotaur Books, for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is September 10, 2024.