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Hypothermia
Hypothermia
Apr 5, 2026 1:45 PM

Author:Arnaldur Indridason,Victoria Cribb,Saul Reichlin

Hypothermia

One cold autumn night, a woman is found hanging from a beam at her holiday cottage. At first sight, it appears like a straightforward case of suicide; María had never recovered from the death of her mother two years previously and she had a history of depression. But then the friend who found her body approaches Detective Erlendur with a tape of a séance that María attended before her death and his curiosity is aroused.

Driven by a need to find answers, Erlendur begins an unofficial investigation into María's death. But he is also haunted by another unsolved mystery - the disappearance of two young people thirty years ago - and by his own quest to find the body of his brother, who died in a blizzard when he was a boy. Hypothermia is Indridason's most compelling novel yet.

Reviews

one of the most haunting crime novels you can expect to read: unsentimental, yet informed throughout by Indridason’s extraordinary empathy with human suffering

—— The Times

An intelligent, gripping and moody tale with superior characterisation

—— Marcel Berlins , The Times

The narrative grips, the writing, excellently translated by Cribb, is resonant and lyrical, and the atmosphere is chillingly creepy

—— Laura Wilson , Guardian

Hypothermia is one of the most haunting crime novels I've read in a long time, unsentimental yet informed by the author's extraordinary empathy with human suffering

—— Joan Smith , Sunday Times

An insightful human story, beautifully written and translated

—— Jessica Mann , Literary Review

Descriptions of Iceland's stunning crystalline landscape are lyrical and the overall storyline thoughtful and original

—— Carla McKay , Daily Mail

Indridason's best novel so far

—— Books Quarterly

Indridason has a remarkable understanding of grief and its persistence... Indridason combines psychological acuteness with great stylistic economy and a pleasing pace

—— Jane Jakeman , Independent

A personal odyssey, suffused with a melancholy that, like the icy chill, seeps into the bones

—— Alastair Mabbott , Herald

This Icelandic novelist keeps on getting better

—— Sunday Times

Our love affair with Scandinavian crime continues with the latest instalment of Indridason's award-winning Icelandic murder mystery series

—— Daily Express

Arnaldur Indridason has built an international reputation with this series, and rightly so. Hypothermia is perhaps his best book yet, gracefully depicting the lengths to which people are driven by the need for answers. An outstanding novel

—— Joanna Hines , Guardian

The Icelandic master of crime Arnaldur Indridason is not yet as well known in this country as Sweden's Henning Mankell, but on this showing, it is only a matter of time...a wonderfully atmospheric tale

—— Sally Cousins , Sunday Telegraph

This is a humane, unsentimental study of grief and guilt, which is both moving and unsettling. It's also a softly gripping narrative, without ever resorting to fight scenes, car chases or torture

—— Brandon Robshaw , Independent on Sunday

[A] cornucopia of a novel.

—— Kathy Stevenson , Daily Mail

As funny as it is surreal.

—— India Ross , Financial Times

This funny and exciting novel takes a fresh look at life during the excitement and danger of the 17th century.

—— Catholic Herald

The language is beautiful, creating fantastic images with her descriptions.

—— Claire Snook , Bookmunch

Eyre’s prose is sensuous and rich… Her recreation of the period is persuasive and alluring.

—— Andrew Tong , Independent on Sunday

A pacy, cleverly postmodern historical novel... Viper Wine is a high-flying, high-concept mix that stylishly transmutes its wildly disparate elements into an assured, flamboyant gem.

—— Tina Jackson , Metro

A mad, psychedelic romp through some of history’s most fertile ground... The author’s voracious enthusiasm for eclectic, highly-researched detail is persistently entertaining, breathing new life into the genre of the historical novel. A real tonic.

—— Matilda Bathurst , Country Life

Clever, lively and playful... [An] impressive first novel.

—— Clarissa Burden , Tablet

A dazzling debut… Wickedly funny.

—— ELLE Decoration

This dazzling firework of a debut novel is a reminder of how inventive and original historical fiction can be.

—— Anna Carey , Irish Times

Eyre pulls off a notable trick in Viper Wine, not just by reconstructing her chosen period but rendering it permeable to intrusions from other ages… Playful moments…are made all the more striking by being woven unannounced into a meticulously luscious fantasia on a theme of English high life in the 1630s.

—— Michael Caine , Times Literary Supplement

The horrors of the beauty industry are taken apart with feline wit and the book will make you purr with pleasure.

—— Frances Wilson , New Statesman

The most richly fruited post-modern novel since Jeanette Winterson’s Sexing the Cherrys

—— Marcus Field , Independent

A bold, impressive debut

—— 4 stars , Daily Telegraph

As a debut novel, it is truly dazzling and Hermione Eyre has proved herself an author well worth watching out for

—— Susannah Perkins , Nudge

Profoundly moving

—— Country Life
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