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    Silence of the Grave
    Silence of the Grave
    Silence of the Grave
    Audiobook8 hours

    Silence of the Grave

    Written by Arnaldur Indridason

    Narrated by George Guidall

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Inspector Erlendur returns in this gripping Icelandic thriller When a skeleton is discovered half-buried in a construction site outside of ReykjavIk, Inspector Erlendur finds himself knee-deep in both a crime scene and an archeological dig. Bone by bone, the body is unearthed, and the brutalizing history of a family who lived near the building site comes to light along with it. Was the skeleton a man or a woman, a victim or a killer, and is this a simple case of murder or a long-concealed act of justice? As Erlendur tries to crack this cold case, he must also save his drug-addicted daughter from self destruction and somehow glue his hopelessly fractured family back together. Like the chilly Nordic mysteries of Henning Mankell and Karen Fossum, Arnaldur Indridason delivers a stark police procedural full of humanity and pathos, a classic noir from a very cold place.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateFeb 21, 2014
    ISBN9781490619781
    Silence of the Grave
    Author

    Arnaldur Indridason

    ARNALDUR INDRIÐASON won the CWA Gold Dagger Award for Silence of the Grave and is the only author to win the Glass Key Award for Best Nordic Crime Novel two years in a row, for Jar City and Silence of the Grave. Strange Shores was nominated for the 2014 CWA Gold Dagger Award.

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    Reviews for Silence of the Grave

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    • 5/5
      I have to say, this guy is a writer on par with Raymond Chandler, that other master of the Noir genre. The translator was no slouch, either. I wasn't left with the feeling that something was missing, although I think a glossary of Icelandic terms used in the book would have helped. However, I was able to infer what was meant by many of the terms by the context, or it became clear with further reading of the book. The story spans a 70-year period in Iceland, from World War II to the turn of this century. The novel starts with a scene of a children's birthday party, where a baby is chewing on what looks like a white stone. An observant medical student takes notice, and upon inspection, he realizes it's actually a human rib bone. A search for the grave ensues by the birthday guests and the birthday boy's mother. The police are called, and that's how Erlendur gets involved in the case. The story involves graphic scenes of domestic violence. While there aren't graphic depictions of physical violence against children, the verbal abuse is pretty awful. Erlendur's daughter is a drug user, so that life is depicted as well. The writing was so good, that I was swept up in the story, even though on an emotional level, it wasn't easy reading. The plot jumps back and forth between the turn of the millennium and the American occupation of Iceland during World War II. This period of history especially interested me, because my mother spent part of World War II in Iceland, when she was prevented from returning to her native Norway by the Nazi occupation of that country. It was a fascinating period of time in Iceland's history, because they were in danger of being invaded by the Nazis and the allied troops were there to protect them. Along with the influx of soldiers, came a housing shortage, which resulted in some strange living arrangements for people, such as the family in the book. More than that, I don't want to say, because I don't want to spoil the plot for anyone. But lovers of Scandinavian crime fiction, or "Ice Noir" as I like to call it (still hoping that term will catch on!) will enjoy this book, as will anyone who enjoys a good mystery that is well-written.
    • 4/5
      The discovery of two skeletons at a construction site in suburban Reykjavik leads Erlendur and his colleagues to a case of severe and terrifying domestic violence dating back to World War II, when American troops were posted in Iceland. There's no urgency to solving the crime, given that it's decades old, but there are several mysteries that need resolving.
    • 3/5
      I had hoped there would be a bit more of a mystery, but I knew who would be in the grave about a third of the way through. Not the second body though. The narrator was fairly decent but he has a tendency to do all the the female voices as if they were a little histrionic and breathless. It wasn't a bad story, but not great either.
    • 4/5
      This is the fifth book I have read in this series and my favorite to date. I am mostly working my way backwards as the first one I read was one of the last to be translated into English. The strong points that I have come to expect in these books are all here. The two most notable being that the characters and sense of place are very well drawn. The story unfolds in a compelling yet un-overly dramatic way.
    • 4/5
      Fantastic! This man know how to write. I enjoyed it very much.The only issue I had is that it ends in such a way that it's obvious there is to be a sequel. I hate it when that happens - books are not soap operas - they should stand alone in my opinion.
    • 4/5
      Reykjavik is expanding into areas surrounding the city that not so long ago were open country. When a guest at a party sees a baby gnawing on a human bone he quizzes the mother and finds out the birthday boy brought it back from a basement excavation. Inspector Erlendur and his group show up and discover there is a complete skeleton in the ground. Erlendur contacts an archeologist who agrees to excavate the body but in the manner of archeologists this process takes a long time. It is obvious to the police that the body was buried and not just someone who got lost in a storm and perished. While they wait for the body to reveal its secrets they investigate as much as they can find about the area and anyone who lived there. During World War II there was an airbase nearby but no soldiers were ever reported as missing. Because of the housing shortage some vacation homes were being lived in full time during the war but, again, there are no missing person reports from that time. Detective Erlendur finds it hard to concentrate on this case because his daughter, who is a drug addict, gave birth prematurely and is now in a coma in the hospital. Erlendur separated from his wife when his two children were quite small and he has only recently had any contact with them. And yet his daughter called him for help when she realized she was in labour so he thinks he must stay by her side as much as possible. Interspersed between the present day chapters is the story of one of the families who lived in a home near the gravesite. The husband physically abused his wife and also abused his children verbally and probably sexually. The daughter has quite severe movement impairment due to a childhood illness and she is subject to the most verbal abuse. It's pretty clear that someone from this home lies in that grave but who is it? That's the mystery.Although these books by Indridason are pretty bleak there is something about them that keeps drawing me back. I see there are more after #6 so I would read them if I run across copies.
    • 5/5
      Great, great Scandinavian mystery. Wonderfully written and almost unbearably intense at times. The two storylines converge thrillingly. Second in the Erlendur series. First is Jar City, which I though was decent, and a was little bit on the fence about reading more in the series. Glad I did. Went on to read the next two very solid entries, Voices and Draining Lake.
    • 4/5
      This book stirred up a lot of dark emotions in me; depression and sadness. Mankind is so often unkind to their fellow men. I searched for a light and found it in the midst of this book. Beautifully written; never forgotten.
    • 3/5
      Best for:People who like a mystery that you might actually start to be able to solve, but probably won’t. Like, nothing in here was utterly shocking, but it wasn’t so telescoped that I could have written the ending myself.In a nutshell:CN for the book: Intimate Partner Violence, AbleismDetective Erlendur is back. His daughter is in hospital and unconscious, while he tries to solve the mystery of some bones found near a construction site that are likely 60 or more years old. While he works things out, we get a glimpse into what may have happened, until it all comes together.Worth quoting:“Spring and summer were not Erlendur’s seasons. Too bright. Too frivolous. He wanted heavy, dark winters.” (Same, Erlendur. Same.)Why I chose it:I’m in it now. I think there are like ten books in this series? So buckle up!Review:So, I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this author. I think he tells stories well, and he is sensitive to the seriousness of the crimes he whips up for his books. But so far, women in distress have featured heavily - the first book involved sexual assault; this one involves intimate partner violence. I’m REALLY hoping the next book does not have a woman as the main victim, but we shall see.A child is discovered gnawing on a toy, which turns out to be a rib, from a skeleton that has been discovered. It is clearly a VERY old body, so the investigation doesn’t any level of urgency. The author solves this, however, by interspersing chapters of the investigation with vignettes from the lives of those who may have been involved in this death. It’s Iceland during WWII, where far outside of Reykjavik, the British have set up barracks. A family lives in a rented shack nearby, with a vicious husband, a scared wife, and three children. Is the skeleton one of theirs? I mean, I knew whose bones I was hoping it was …We learn a bit more about Erlendur’s colleagues in this one. The guy is in a relationship and is a bit emotionally immature; the woman plays a bit more of a role in this one (interviewing people) and also has a moment with one interviewer that acknowledges the lack of women in her field. I get that, again, the main character is a man, and that’s what I’m here for, but it’d be cool if more of the women around him weren’t experiencing deep amounts of distress.Keep it / Pass to a Friend / Donate it / Toss it:Donate it
    • 4/5
      A brutal, yet fascinating mystery. Explores domestic violence, the tension between countryside and city Icelanders, between Icelanders and the British & Americans, and drugs and the dark side of Reykjavik.
    • 4/5
      ***Spoilers you have been warned***I loved Jar City because of the dark bleak mood setting that’s described in Erlandur’s world. This one proves to be just the same. Coupled with a well written mystery that goes back into the past, this one lived up to the previous.The book goes back and forth in time. It features on the past of a woman and her family and the horrendous abuse she endures. It leads up to the mystery surrounding the body found in the present. It’s good background storytelling and put in the missing pieces gradually as you progress in the book. Then as it goes forward to present day, you have Erlandur and his crew attempting to figure out the mystery but it also focuses on Erlandur’s past, and his attempt at patching things up with Eva Lind as she’s in a coma at the hospital. Don’t expect twists and turns or any special revelations in this novel. It’s a subtle mystery but so well written that it’s a quick read and you’re so immersed into the book that the pages do fly by. It’s the writing style that makes it so good. The mood and setting is again, dark as usual. It’s more bleak than the previous one due to the subject matter and with what Erlandur experiences. Admittedly, this isn’t for everyone. The physical, mental, emotional abuse featured in this book is hard to read. You sympathize with the mother and her children and Grimur is just one awful piece of garbage. Erlandur’s ghosts from the past is also revealed in this book and he’s got quite a lot of baggage on his shoulders (not including his ex wife and Eva Lind) but it gives his character more substance and he’s not just a presence in the novel. You also learn more about his colleagues (although I’d like to learn more about Elinborg) as they have their lives as well. I like this aspect of the novel as it shows what they do out of duty and gives them a more realistic human feel to the book.Not much of a mystery but makes for really good reading, not only do the characters flesh out more but the writing is so well done. Recommended and I’ll be moving onto the next book after this one.
    • 5/5
      A really well-paced mystery that juxtaposes a present-day police investigation and a violent family history from WWII. It quickly becomes obvious to the reader that the newly-discovered skeleton, buried for decades, will be explained by the family's story, but who the corpse is is an open question until the very end.
    • 3/5
      I am disappointed that this is not going to be a series that I will return to. I did finish it. The characters were extreme characterizations, not believable. Many of the situations felt too contrived, again not believable.
    • 2/5
      The back story was interesting, but everything about this "mystery" was very predictable. If you like genuine mysteries, skip this one.
    • 4/5
      Erlunder and his team have to solve a mystery surrounding bones that were discovered in a Reykjavik housing development. They turn out to have been buried for several decades, dating from the time that British and then American troops were stationed in Iceland during WWII. Erlunder is also struggling with his emotions towards his estranged daughter, who is hospitalized in a coma after a miscarriage. I particularly enjoyed learning more about the history of Iceland during the war years.
    • 4/5
      Buried secrets are brought to light in "Silence of the Grave," one of the early entries in Arnaldur Indridason's successful series of Icelandic mysteries.A skeleton is found after, shockingly, a little boy is seen teething with a human finger bone. The skeleton, discovered with one hand reaching up as if reaching from the grave, appears to have been in the ground for decades. It also gives the appearance of murder.Digging up the body is left to archaeologists, which means that even determining the sex or approximate age of the victim takes several days, but even so Inspector Erlendur and his team begin their investigation immediately. They discover that in the area where the body was buried a young woman, made pregnant by someone other than the man she was engaged to marry, had disappeared, and an abusive man had lived with his wife and three children. Might the body belong to one of these people?Yet Indridason writes about other buried secrets as well, those long hidden by Inspector Erlendur himself. Long estranged from his wife and two children, he receives a brief call for help from Eva Lind, his angry, pregnant and drug-addicted daughter. When he finds her, she is in a coma. The doctor suggests that in those hours spent at her hospital bedside Erlendur talk to his daughter. Perhaps she will hear him. But what can he say to a daughter he has never been able to talk to or who has never been willing to listen to anything he has to say? So the police officer, when off duty, tells Eva Lind about his life, revealing burdensome secrets he has never told anyone.This is a powerful tale that will make you want to read others in the Reykjavik series.
    • 4/5
      This is the second book in Indridason's Inspector Erlendur series, 11 of 14 of which have been translated into English. It's the first I've read, so I have no comment on how it fits into the series.When human remains are found in what appears to be a grave on a construction site, the Reykjavik homicide squad, led by Inspector Erlendur, is call to investigate -- as is a team of archeologists from the National Museum and a geologist from the university. By examining the soil strata, the geologist determines the grave to be about 70 years old -- so the mystery becomes who was buried there and why.The story of the investigation is interwoven with chapters revealing the harrowing life of a family terrorized by the father during the wartime occupation of Iceland, first by the British and then by the Americans.The plot is more focused on character than procedures or revelations. It certainly belongs to the Scandinavian-noir genre -- a fast, but not particularly pleasant read.
    • 4/5
      The discovery of an unmarked grave at a building site outside Reykjavik starts an investigation into the past. A row of red currant bushes is the only indication left of a house that stood not too far from the gravesite. While the archeologists slowly dig out the corpse and the past is put into context piece by piece, Erlendur also has to deal with a phone call for help from his estranged daughter.

      It took me a while to get into the story, but after that this was a very satisfying read. The story is told on various levels - the story of the family that lived on the hill, the story of Erlendur and his family, the context of the story of Reykjavik during World War II. Many relationships are explored before the backdrop of this story.
    • 4/5
      another very good Scandinavian author, detective. I highly recommend the series.
    • 4/5
      Silence of the Grave flips back and forth between Erlendur and team's present-day investigation of a human skeleton discovered by a child and the story of a family terrorized by its wife-beating father. Although my late father never laid a finger on my mother (thank you, Granny, for knocking my grandfather out cold the first time he came home drunk and tried to beat you up), he did beat those of his children who lived with him and his last wife. Unlike the wife-beater in this book, he alternated between being a loving, laughing, supportive father and a screaming, hitting monster. I never knew which Dad I'd be coming home to after school.Warning: Arnaldur captures the terror and bewilderment of the batterer's victims. Like my father, the abuser was a former victim of child abuse grown up. Like my grandfather, he also drank. If you're wondering why his wife didn't just take the kids and leave, wait until the chapter where she tried. You'll find out what means the dastard used to keep her in line.Another family's shameful secret is exposed along the way. I wanted to just scream at the way they treated the victim. Erlendur's daughter is in intensive care. We learn more about why he walked out on his wife, son, and daughter. We also learn about some nasty lies his ex-wife told about him. The inspector meets a medium in the hospital who tells him something she shouldn't have been able to know. I rather wish he'd answered her question, even if he doesn't believe in mediums.There are plenty of twists to make the reader wonder just who is lying in that grave. We also get to learn what happened to those children who were forced to watch their mother being beaten to a pulp. This is not an easy book to read (or to listen to), particularly if one has personally experienced what is so politely called 'domestic violence,' but it is very good.
    • 4/5
      Another unsettling Icelandic contemporary crime novel set in Reykjavik with the central character of detective Erlendur. The crime happened in the 1940's and is investigated following the discovery of a body on a building site on the outskirts of Reykjavik. There follows a sad story of domestic abuse, or soul death as a character in the book describes it, and its consequences. Not a happy read.The story is character driven, rather than a whodunit, and whilst the main character is not sympathetic, you do feel empathy for him, and an interest in learning more about him.
    • 4/5
      This story perfectly fit the template for Nordic Noir -- very bleak, very dark, very atmospheric, featuring a detective with a dysfunctional personal life. It pondered societal issues of the day and days past. It was disturbing. It was also very, very well-written.'As the city of Reykjavik expands, excavation begins for development of a hill once outside the city, near an old military installation from WWII. Bones are found in one of the foundation areas -- bones that have been there for a long time, possibly dating back to the war days. Who are they? Can Inspector Erlandur bridge the gap of time and find out what happened? At the same time, he is dealing with family tragedy, as his daughter lies in Intensive Care at the local hospital.Interwoven with this is the tale of a violently dysfunctional family during the war years. How did their story end -- and is it related to the bones? How?I stayed up late and started reading again early to finish this one. (I'm yawning now, but not when I was reading!)
    • 2/5
      Got through it very fast and immediately read the next one - 'Voices' - which I liked better. More interesting plot and not so much violence to women.
    • 4/5
      A skeleton is discovered on the site of new building construction and the police have to first determine who the victim is, how long it's been buried, and then the cause of death. At the same time as the bodu excavation is taking place DI Erlendur and his team are trying to find out who may have lived in the old housing projects that once stood on the site.Erlendur is distracted, however, because his drug addict daughter is in a coma and he can't stop blaming himself.Each time that I've sat down with this series, I have a hard time because the names of the characters are so different from what I'm used to. But each time, I've been very glad that I read the book. The writing, style and plotting are excellent.
    • 4/5
      Back to Iceland. Clever weaving of past and present, excellent characters, always engaging. The structure of this book flips between present day, with the finding of old bones on a building site, and the current investigation of those bones, and the flashback story of a poor family and an abusive man who had lived on the site fifty years earlier. Its never quite clear whose bones are buried there, and how the deaths occurred which of course is the mystery. Past meets present when the now grown children of that family come to life and meet the hero detective. Well done.
    • 5/5
      When a skeleton was fount at a construction site detective Erlendur had to dive deep into the past to solve a dark and complicated family drama.
    • 4/5
      It was rather depressing and surprising to learn that such an interesting and remote country was beset by nasty human problems like everyone else. Detective Inspector Elendur is called to a construction site where human bones have been discovered by local children. Wisely he calls upon an archaeologist to dig up the remains who does it slowly and meticulously to allow the detective to conduct his investigation as carefully and thoroughly. The story switches from the present to the past about a family terrorized by a sadistic father.
    • 5/5
      What really made me love this book was how Inspector Erlendur struggled with his own his own tragic past (and present) while peeling back the layers of another family's horrid domestic situation during World War 2-era Iceland. Erlendur is not your average, hard-nosed gumshoe. He injects a hefty dose of humanity into the story, despite his efforts to objectively lead the criminal investigation. The outcome of Silence of the Grave offers some hope in the bleak world of domestic violence, or "soul murder," as it's described. But it is made all the more rewarding through its offer, to Erlendur, of some mercy, understanding and acceptance of past failures.

      I've become a bit obsessed with Iceland lately, and I loved getting to know the country through this book, as well as Jar City (another Erlendur novel by Arnaldur Indridason). I recognize Iceland, in general, is not as bleak as the Erlendur mysteries, but there is something mysterious about this remote island nation. The transformative effect of the UK and US occupations of Iceland during the war played a major role in this story, and their stimulatory effects on Reykjavik (and perhaps depressive effects on the countryside) were evident in the story's plot. It was fascinating to be immersed in both the modern Icelandic present, as well as 60 years in the past, when Iceland was still isolated and insulated from much of the world, all while wondering just who is buried in the plot of land at the edge of Reykjavik and how they ended up there.

      I have to move on to other things, but if I'm not careful I'll find myself plowing through the entire Inspector Erlendur series, especially if they're as good as Silence of the Grave. Well, I suppose I'd be limited to those translated into English. Then again, I could try to learn some Icelandic...
    • 2/5
      The back story was interesting, but everything about this "mystery" was very predictable. If you like genuine mysteries, skip this one.
    • 4/5
      This is the second in a series that begins with Jar City, a novel I enjoyed.

      This book has one of the creepiest opening scenes. A young man picking up his brother at a friends birthday party notices the friend's little sister chewing on something. As a medical student just having been through numerous autopsies, he recognizes the "toy" as being a human rib bone. The bone was found by the birthday boy while playing in a housing development under construction. Archaeologists and geologists are called in by the police and it's determined that the bones had been buried for about 70 years. Then other bodies start popping up.

      Erlendur, whose daughter has been a long-standing source of concern and irritation, becomes pregnant, he’s estranged from his wife and son, and he suffers from the guilt that probably every parent knows of wondering how he might have done things differently. The investigation into the identity of the skeleton continues even as the forensic anthropologists proceed with what Erlendur believes to be unconscionable deliberation.

      Indridason alternates between the view of the investigation and a woman, her abusive husband, and a soldier friend from a nearby American army base from decades earlier. The reader feels the inevitable confluence of the two threads, but not exactly what happened or who the remains belong to.

      My only regret is that I have no familiarity with Icelandic and thus stumbled over the Icelandic names. As with Jar City, the author creates a bleak environment. If you prefer sunny little cozies, and I do sometimes, this is not for you. Probably not on the list of items the Icelandic tourist bureau hands out to prospective visitors.