VOICES

VOICES
Arnaldur Indridason
St. Martin's Minotaur, 313 pp.



Here is another great read set in Iceland, with Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson back in action. It is almost Christmas when Gudlaugur, a hotel doorman and seasonal Santa, is found dead in a small room in the hotel's basement. It turns out that Gudlaugur was once a famous child singer, a choirboy, who had made two records and enjoyed a bit more than 15 minutes of fame as a boy soprano.

How has the choirboy ended up here, forgotten and ignored and, as we learn, detested by his sister and father?

Once again Indridason's melancholy voice gives the answer, or tries to, while taking a side trip down a case of child abuse that challenges one of the detectives' assumptions.

I enjoy the sense of experiencing Iceland at Christmas. Reykjavik is swarming with tourists, who vacation there out of some desire to see what winter is like in the land of long, black nights and brief days. One of the tourists is a record collector, come to find Gudlaugur, the voice on his most cherished records.

Don't miss this excellent story, translated from the Icelandic by Bernard Scudder.