#RivetingReviews: Ewa Sherman reviews INTO THIN AIR by Ørjan N. Karlsson

Bodø, located just north of the Arctic Circle in Norway, and a European Capital of Culture 2024, is the biggest town nearest to Lofoten archipelago in the wild ocean famed for its stunning dramatic beauty. Yet the natural beauty brings another type of drama, in this latest offering from Orenda Books: the first in the new dark and totally gripping series by Ørjan N. Karlsson, entitled Into Thin Air. The novel’s action revolves around Jakob Weber, Chief Investigator of Nordland Police, who gets pulled into a complex case when nineteen-year-old Iselin Hanssen vanishes during a run in a popular hiking area in Bodø. Her boyfriend immediately becomes a suspect, and soon it becomes clear that her life was more than what she had shared with family and friends. However, Weber isn’t convinced this unfortunate situation is suspicious.

Then news comes about disappearance of a second woman, influencer Marte Moi known as Nature Lady, from a remote island in the archipelago in similar circumstances. In addition to two other on-going investigations, the remains of another woman, Galyna, are discovered in an unused WWII bunker. She was among the first Ukrainian refugees from Mariupol to arrive in the city. Killer-on-the run rumours proliferate and conspiracy theories abound.

Weber’s colleague Armann Femris says that investigation was a bit like religion. You had to keep the faith until you saw the light. Which is why Weber, an analyst from the old school […] who ‘lived and breathed the case, has to cope with this complex investigation while dealing with intensely personal matters: he is grieving the recent death of his wife as well as trying to come to terms with childhood trauma. But he’s assisted on the case by Noora Yun Sande, a brilliant detective who has joined his team from Oslo after being subjected to a clear case of sexual harassment and abuse of power, which she wasn’t prepared to fight. Getting to know the procedural and psychological landscape of Weber’s team adds to the quiet intensity of the story. Each member of the group is a well defined character with their own story and unique skills. The relationship between them allows for a deeper level of understanding of how the local community works, and how it is affected by the world outside. Social and historical issues are woven into the narrative throughout: the recent pandemic, the war in the Ukraine, the impact of information shared on social media platforms.

Ørjan N. Karlsson assembles very fine cast of characters both in the eye of investigation and in supporting roles, essential to the story and driving the plot along the isolated mental and actual roads in the area, which the author knows well: he grew up in Bodø, took part in overseas missions as an army officer and is a sociologist by trade. Karlsson focuses on authenticity of the location and the people of northern Norway, with their traditional values and quirks; and so the mysterious Peder Skarvheim, … the village eccentric … almost a recluse. Lives alone with his mother, who’s house-bound, adds a new dimension to the police procedural which goes beyond the standard elements of the genre. It’s such a joy to discover a new author who, be it noted, has been writing for many years but only now has his first book available in English, in a first class translation by Ian Giles. I cannot wait for the next translation … or I will need to brush up my Norwegian.

Reviewed by Ewa Sherman

INTO THIN AIR

Written by Ørjan N. Karlsson

Translated from the Norwegian by Ian Giles

Published by Orenda Books (January 2025)

December 2024 #RivetingReviews titles are available to buy from bookshop.org.

Ewa Sherman is a writer, translator and critic. She studied Polish Literature and Language, and Law, and worked with the Polish media. She’s translated several books of sonnets written by her mother Krystyna Konecka from Polish to English.

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