Yule Island by Johana Gustawsson

I got this book in one of my book subscriptions (that was from the UK and is closing it's book part, I am DEVESTATED). It might be one of my top reads of the year. The book I received has sprayed edges and is signed by the author. It also comes with a letter from the author. This version has been translated into English, and the translation is wonderful, not stilted at all. 

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Title: Yule Island
Author: Johana Gustawsson
Page Number: 256 (hardcover)
Genre: fiction, mystery, gothic
Publisher: Orenda Books
Year: 2023

Queen of French Noir Johana Gustawsson returns with a dark, terrifying historical thriller, based on a true story. Storholmen, an island of the Swedish archipelago, is shaken by a new horrific murder nine years after a first victim was found hanging on the estate of the famous Gussman manor.

​A young art expert, on the island to draw up an inventory of the Gussman’s precious artwork teams up with a detective, in a case that takes them back to a past – and a shocking personal link to the island. A chilling and captivating thriller rooted in Viking rites and Scandinavia’s deepest, darkest winter.

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Our main character is Emma Lindahl, an art expert that's been hired by the wealthy Gussman family to catalog the estate. The family is odd, only letting Emma in the house during certain times. Rooms are locked and staff are mysterious. The Gussman family do not socialize with anyone else on the island. 

Nine years before Emma arrives, a young woman was murdered by a tree in a ritualized way that worried the Swedish police, but since nothing happened since, worries about the killer faded into the background. Until a second body is discovered in the icy island waters, the other main character, Detective Karl Rosen, arrives to the island to investigate. He links the two murders together as the ritual is similar. 

Both Emma and Karl have sad pasts that they're working through during the story. Karl's wife is his source of sadness. Emma's family is also a source for her. 

Emma returns to the bright city with loving a fun friends, which is the polar opposite of the oppressed vibe of the icy island. 

I don't want to give too much away, so there's some aspect of the plot that just cannot be divulged. 

The ending it superb. I was not expecting it and I thought it was such a good wrap up. 

The writing and the translation are fantastic. For me, this was a five star read.