Snow Angels

Snow Angels
by Jim Thompson

This is a police procedural as dark as northern Finland itself is during kaamos, the country's two weeks of complete darkness. After his wife left him, Kari Vaara left Helsinki and rebuilt his life in his hometown. Now the police chief of Kittila, he spends his time on routine police matters. The few murders that come his way are easily solved domestics and bar fights gone wrong. A few days before Christmas the body of Sufia Elmi, a Somali refuge and minor film star, was found gruesomely murdered in a snowfield just outside of town. The evidence initially points towards the common law husband of Vaara's ex-wife as the killer, which brings forth speculation that Vaara is seeking revenge. Vaara ignores the gossip. He and his team follow the forensic trail and find a more complicated crime. Thompson's debut novel is full of atmospheric descriptions of winter in the artic circle where the temperature, fueled by polar winds, drops to 40º C. And night is 24 hours long. [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the works of Hakan Nesser, Anne Holt and Asa Larsson.] -- recommended by Donna G. - Virtual Services Department

[Also available in book-on-cd and downloadable E-book formats.]

[ official James Thompson - Author web site ]

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