An old sanatorium. A terrifying murder. Five suspects and a case that never closed . . . The first book in a spin-off series from The Darkness, featuring criminologist Helgi Reykdal.
“Ragnar Jonasson is no ordinary writer. Death at the Sanatorium is a knowing and unnerving mystery … Even fans of Christie and co will be shocked by how things turn out.” - The Times
“Ragnar Jonasson channels Agatha Christie … Death at the Sanatorium contains the intricate plotting and startling twists Christie was known for.” - ABC News
“One of the finest crime writers in the world today, Iceland-born Jonasson demonstrates his execptional talent in this magnificently twisty mystery … Superbly told and packed with subtle nods to crime writers of the past, this is exquisite, delicate story-telling.“ - Daily Mail
One of the five best mystery novels to read this season “Jonasson echoes the mystery queen’s tight pacing while adding his own touch of Icelandic noir.” - Washington Post
“next-gen Nordic star” - Los Angeles Times
“… meticulously plotted whodunit worthy of Agatha Christie … another winner from Jonasson” - Publishers Weekly, starred review
”Genius at work” - David Walliams
“A great author” - Harlan Coben, #1 NYT Bestselling Author
“If you're looking for your next awesome read, here it is, Death at the Sanatorium … an amazing author.” - Brad Thor, #1 NYT Bestselling Author
“Delightfully fiendish” - Miami Herald
One of LA Times’ must-reads for fall 2024.
One of the best new books out in August - i paper
"DEATH AT THE SANATORIUM deftly straddles multiple timelines in pursuit of the killer of a nurse at a remote Icelandic sanatorium. Ragnar Jònasson brings alive his native Iceland, reaching into the past to construct a meticulously plotted puzzle. A devilish combination of locked room mystery and cold case investigation.” - Vaseem Khan
“Another brilliant whodunnit from the master of Agatha Christie-type suspense” - Leslie Zemeckis
“The story never stops moving . . . reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock” MORGUNBLADID, ICELAND
”Skilfully told on different time levels, and with an ending that promises more” GÖTEBORGS-POSTEN, SWEDEN
1983
At a former sanatorium in the north of Iceland, now a hospital ward, an old nurse, Yrsa, is found murdered. Detective Hulda Hermannsdottir and her boss, Sverrir, are sent to investigate her death. There, they discover five suspects: the chief physician, two junior nurses, a young doctor, and the caretaker, who is arrested following false testimony from one of the nurses, but subsequently released.
Less than a week after the murder, the chief physician, is also found dead, having apparently fallen from a balcony. Sverrir, rules his death as suicide and assumes that he was guilty of the murder as well. The case is closed.
2012
Almost thirty years later, Helgi Reykdal, a young police officer, has been studying criminology in the UK, but decides to return to Iceland when he is offered a job at the Reykjavik police department—the job which detective Hulda Hermannsdottir is about to retire from.
He is also a collector of golden age detective stories, and is writing his thesis on the 1983 murders in the north. As Helgi delves deeper into the past, and starts his new job, he decides to try to meet with the original suspects. But soon he finds silence and suspicion at every turn, as he tries to finally solve the mystery from years before.
