Chief Investigator of Nordland Police, Jakob Weber is drawn into a complex case when a teenaged girl goes missing in Northern Norway, and a second woman disappears from a remote island in similar circumstances … FIRST in a compelling, dark new Nordic Noir series.
In Norway’s frozen north, it’s not just secrets that are buried…
When nineteen-year-old Iselin Hanssen disappears during a run in a popular hiking area in Bodø, Northern Norway, suspicion quickly falls on her boyfriend. For investigator Jakob Weber, the case seems clear-cut, almost unexceptional, even though there is some suggestion that Iselin lived parts of her life beneath the radar of both family and friends.
But events take a dramatic turn when another woman disappears in similar circumstances – this time on the island of Røst, miles off the Norwegian coast, in the wild ocean.
Rumours that a killer is on the loose begin to spread, terrifying the local population and leading to wild conspiracies. But then Jakob discovers that this isn’t the first time that young women have vanished without a trace in the region, and it becomes clear that someone is hiding something … and another murderous spree may have just begun…
For fans of Joe Pickett, Ragnar Jonasson and Jorn Lier Horst
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Into Thin Air by Ørjan Karlsson was published by Orenda Books on 16 January 2025 and is translated by Ian Giles. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review.
I do love a new series, I am especially fond of translated crime fiction, and anything set in Norway also ticks my boxes, so Into Thin Air is just my thing.
Lead character; Jakob Weber is Chief Investigator of Norland Police. He's an interesting character, carefully created by the author and has many personal issues of his own. However, these do not affect his ability to do his job. When Iselin Hanssen goes missing, after going for a run in the area, Jakob considers the case to be fairly straightforward. Iselin had a on/off boyfriend, whose interviews sound a little suspcious. However, when another woman disappears, from a different area, but under very similar circumstances, Jakob realises that there may be more to this case.
Jakob's professional partner is Noora Yun Sande; newly transferred from Kripos is Oslo and just like Jakob, she has burdens of her own to carry. The reader is unaware of just why Noora transferred from Kripos, but it is clear that she's suffered a trauma and the current case being investigated is having an effect on her too.
Karlsson writes incredibly well, he's written a lot of crime fiction in his home land, but this is the first of his books that I've read. His ability to re-create the often bleak Norwegian landscape is excellent. His characters are flawed, yet fit perfectly into the story. At times, the narrative is tough and violent and the crimes against women are described fully.
This is a great start to a new series. It is very dark, yet also totally gripping, with great characters and a setting that adds such a lot to the plot.
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A sociologist by trade, he received officer training in the army and has taken part in overseas missions.
He has worked in the Defence Ministry and is now a departmental manager in the Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection.
He has written a large number of thrillers, sci-fi novels and crime novels for adults.
Instagram @orjan_nk
Ian Giles has a PhD in Scandinavian literature from the University of Edinburgh. Past translations include novels by crime and thriller luminaries such as Arne Dahl, Carin Gerhardsen, Michael Katz Krefeld, David Lagercrantz, Camilla Läckberg and Gustaf Skördeman. His translation of Andreas Norman’s Into a Raging Blaze was shortlisted for the 2015 CWA International Dagger.
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