SILENCE OF THE GRAVE by Arnaldur Indridason - SIGNED FIRST EDITION BOOK

In Icelandic writer Arnaldur Indridason's follow-up to 2005's critically acclaimed Jar City, melancholic Reykjavik detective Erlendur investigates the remains of a decades-old skeleton found buried at a building site, even as his own personal life slowly unravels…

The story begins with a horrific scene: At a birthday party in a neighborhood on the outskirts of Reykjavik, amid the balloons and streamers, a baby is found gnawing on a human bone. Further investigation leads police to a nearby construction site where a new residential development is being built. As forensic scientists meticulously unearth the skeleton, police inspector Erlendur and his team try to unravel the 60-year-old mystery. Gruesome details surface about an Icelandic family that lived in a nearby chalet during WWII, as Erlendur faces his own tragedy. His estranged drug-addicted daughter, seven months pregnant, desperately reaches out to him for help…

To call Silence of the Grave (which won the British Crime Writers' Association's prestigious Golden Dagger Award for Best Crime Novel of 2005) an emotionally charged novel would be an understatement. Indridason's dark, introspective prose mirrors the cold, bleak setting of Reykjavik, and the intimate exploration of numerous unsavory themes (domestic violence, drug addiction, etc.) will leave readers chilled to the bone. This top-notch psychological thriller is a masterfully plotted historical whodunit and, above all, a powerfully moving commentary concerning the cycles of violence in families. In a word: Unforgettable.