Mystery set on Ellidaey Island, Iceland – The Island – Ragnar Jonasson

This is the second in the Hidden Iceland series and looks at the story of Hulga. The clever and rather unusual thing about this however, is the fact that this story lets you see why the events in The Darkness are the way they are. Reverse storytelling if you like. Unusual but the books do read as standalones too. However, once you discover more about  Hulga and what happens to her in the future , this shapes how you read about her past.

This mystery was creepy and multilayered. The idea of having a reunion on this island was creepy. This is the reunion that reunites a group of friends involved in a terrible secret. A murder of a girl years earlier. But in the present day, a body of another girl has been found. Are the two cases related?

The sense of claustrophobia is on every page. The police investigation is difficult and you can only imagine how hard it would be to find and investigate a cold case on the island. The present case is equally as chilling. There is a couple having a romantic stay in the only house on the island.
One leaves and the scenes of them alone in the cabin freaked me out. That was even before anything happened.!

The investigation is multilayered and there are many twists and turns along the way. You got a good sense of the characters, motivations and there’s a strong sense of friendship, responsibility, human relationships and the tangled web we weave.

You might not want to go to Elliðaey any time soon though!