12/9/25; 352 pages
St. Martin's Press
A Detective Konrad Novel #3
The Quiet Mother by Arnaldur Indridason is a recommended Icelandic crime procedural. Originally published in 2019 this English edition translated by Philip Roughan will be available on 12/9/25. This is the third novel in the Detective Konrad series. There are two case followed in this novel, as well as events from 1960's.
Retired detective Konrad returns to Reykjavik to assist in the investigate of the murder of Valborg, a seventy year old woman in her apartment, which had also been burglarized. Days earlier, she had been in contact with Konrad, trying to hire him to find the child she gave up 47 years ago. He declined, but now feels duty bound to follow up on her murder. At the same time Konrad and his friend, Eygló, are looking for clues in the murder of their fathers back in 1963. Their fathers worked together as spiritual con artists. At the same time, Eygló believes that her psychic abilities are real. Together, Konrad and Eygló look for old clues.
The narrative jumps between the two different cases while also switching to some events from the past without warning. It also moves at an extremely slow pace. The primary case is Valborg's murder. The cases are both interesting but the slow pace causes the story to drag on and it begins to feel overly long. Adding to this is the sometimes repetitious text in the story. The two cases do connect at one point. Valborg's case does reach a conclusion while the murder of his father does not. The novel might resonate more with those who have read the first two books in the series.
The Quiet Mother is recommended for those who enjoy Nordic Noir and crime fiction and don't mind a slower paced novel. Thanks to St. Martin's Press for providing me with an
advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and
expresses my honest opinion.
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