Random Things Tours: You Can´t See Me by Eva Björg Ægisdóttir translated by Victoria Cribb

 

Extended families of all sorts do offer an unlimited source of amazement and dark secrets. Especially in times of crisis, under the unexpected duress of dramatic external events. From this point of view, the premises of You Can´t See Me by Eva Björg Ægisdóttir, translated from Icelandic by Victoria Cribb, published by Orenda Books are an excellent.

This was my second encounter with this Icelandic author, the book being part of the Forbidden Iceland series.

A rich family reunites in a fancy resort. The conflict between different generations is clear, but maybe stronger than the age-related worldviews is the personal conflict between the new and old members of the family. And as the tension seems to slowly increase in the fancy resort, there is a corpse and police intervenes to investigate. The best occasion to allow more secrets and inimities to reveal.

As an orchestra conductor, the author allows a concert of points of view, shared by most of the characters of the book. Instead of creating a cacophony it offers a magistral display of the human nature, with all its weaknesses. However, it amplifies the mystery and the doubts about the possible outcome.

I am a big admirer of writers creating a story out of an everyday life situation - family conflicts, minus the corpse, obviously - and Ægisdóttir is definitely a crafted master in her own way. I loved how the story - universal, translatable all over the world - was given a local Made in Iceland flavor, which makes the reading experience even more powerful and unforgettable.

I can only expect more installments from the Forbidden Iceland, as I am becoming more and more fascinated with this society, one Icelandic Noir book at a time. 

Rating: 4.5 stars

Disclaimer: Book offered as part of the book tour but the opinions are, as usual, my own