The Katherina Code is an entertaining “Scandinavia-noir” cold case mystery. It’s relatively slow paced, but cuts between Wisting, an officer obsessed with an old case, a younger cold case office and wisting’s daughter, a journalist.

There’s a building tension as events come to a head, and it fair flew by.

It’s not a great literary masterpiece and doesn’t pretend to be. An enjoyable few hours read.

Norwegian noir detective thriller which is a slow-burner but nicely conceived

This novel involves Inspector William Wisting working on cold cases about two separate disappearances of young women. An investigation is opened which uncovers new evidence leading to revelations and those responsible. The plot slowly unwinds and it also involves Witting's journalist daughter, Line, doing her own investigating. The characters are well-developed and the concept is reasonably original.

Recommended to all lovers of detective fiction, I read it over a few days. Well worthwhile. I received a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I have read several books in the William Wisting series and I love it! If this is the first time you have ever heard of this series, then I encourage you to go out and find any books you can read. This series by Jørn Lier Horst is excellent and you can without any problem read any of the books as stand alone.

THE KATHARINA CODE starts off with William Wisting going through the Katharina investigation. He does it every year on the same day. The day Katarina disappeared. However, this year will prove to be a bit different. Katharina's husband Martin Haugan goes missing. Could there be a connection between Martin's disappearance and Katharina's?

I loved the beginning of the book. As a big cold case fan was this book thrilling to read. Especially when you start to get a feeling that all the pieces are starting to come together. Another thing that I love about this series that you also get William Wisting's Lina's POV. She's a journalist, and she too gets involved into working this case, although from a journalist POV and without knowing that her father is also working the case.

THE KATHARINA CODE is a fabulous book and I recommend it and the whole series warmly!

What a fantastic book that was to read. It really kept you in suspense all through the book and you were quite unsure what was going to happen. Highly recommend it!

A really well written novel. I really loved the descriptive landscapes. It gave me a picture of Iceland in my mind. The story was gripping and an enjoyable read until the end. Really disappointed. Felt like it was a bit of a lazy end to the story.

Thank you to net galley for the ARC of this novel in return for an honest review.

Wisting, a senior police officer in the Norwegian police is obsessed with a case from almost a century ago. The disappearance of Katharina and the coded message she left has haunted almost his every waking moment. A visit from an Officer belonging to a "closed case" squad reopens a similar disappearance from the year before. The visiting officer uses manipulation to involve both Wisting and his journalist daughter in unravelling what went on. The majority of reviews about this book land somewhere between 3 and 4 stars and I agree that such ratings are appropriate. For me it failed to fully carry me along with the story line despite having some parts of real interest. The characters were, in my opinion, not fully formed - in that they all seemed somewhat one-sided. There was a great storyline that just got lost within unnecessary detail at times. I loved the way the reveal played out at the cabin and back in town. The mix of old fashioned policing and modern journalism also worked well.I felt there was an overdose of detail about the baby Amelie in particular that was unnecessary to the storyline and I was deeply unsatisfied with the ending

I did have some problems with formatting which may be due to this being an ARC and have not factored them into my review. I would try other books by this author

Bit of a slow starter building methodically into a classy what really happened thriller as two long term friends are caught on opposite sides of a double murder mystery.

Katharina Code a four-star read that may leave you cold. This was a good read and it has some great points and the police/investigation side of everything was very well done, the characters were great and had aspects of them that you fell in love with and hated some other aspects making them true characters and rounded people. That being said this did miss something, the plot was interesting, but it didn’t hook me and make me feel compelled to keep reading. I had to start this a couple of times and wasn’t sure at one point if I would finish it, but I did and I’m glad I did in the end.

The Katharina Code is a typical Scandinavian thriller. Placed in a beautiful setting and slowly evolving. Working on the disappearing of Katharina Haugen since she went missing 26 years ago, Wisting hopes that he finally has some new leads to solve the case. He gets help of the new cold case group and slowly a picture begins to emerge and all of a sudden everything in the old case folder makes sense. I really liked the book and will definitely read some more of this author.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin UK!

Like the adagio of a symphony, The Katharina Code is beautifully written. A slow movement that spans twenty-five years as chief inspector William Wisting revisits the file on missing Katharina Haugen, every year on the anniversary of her disappearance. Wisting and Katharina's husband Martin have become well acquainted over the years, but searches of Martin's house have led them no closer to an answer. Steinar Vassvik lived immediately opposite; he was the closest the police had come to a suspect in the case - the last person to have seen Katharina.

The case becomes more involved when Adrian Stiller arrives from the National Criminal Investigation Service based in Oslo. He is working on another case: the Nadia Krogh kidnapping that occurred in the late eighties. One of the most notorious cases in Norwegian crime history. Both events occurred in close proximity.

And there we have two plots that intertwine as police and suspects circle each other. As Wisting comes to realise that the answer had been hidden in plain sight for so many years...

Comparisons with Wallander are inevitable (although he was Swedish). Jørn Lier Horst is certainly the equal of Henning Mankell, writing in perfect prose, the perfect slow-burning thriller.

My thanks to Michael Joseph and NetGalley for my ARC of The Katharina Code.

This is the first book I have read by this author although I understand he has written many books. The main character Wisting would therefore be a comfortable and familiar character to readers of Horst's books. It did not matter that I had not read earlier books, this book stands on its own. I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It is a gentle read, very much on the Wallender style. The plot is clever, the unfolding of a cold case and the relationships between the characters is very well done. This particular unsolved case has troubled Wisting for many years. There is an element of young buck/old stag with the introduction of a young ambitious member of Kripos (Scotland Yard of Norway) and this adds an additional element to the story. Would highly recommend and will be looking to read more books by this author

Katharina Haugen went missing 20 years ago and, each year on the anniversary of disappearance, Chief Inspector William Wisting visits her husband, Martin. This year when Wisting arrives, Martin is not at the house but when Wisting returns to work he is met by a visitor from Kripos who tells him that there might be a reason for that. They are re-opening an old kidnapping case and they have evidence that Martin was involved. Will Wisting go undercover and finally crack the Katharina Code?

I am a great fan of Scandinavian fiction - Wallander and Hole being the most obvious but clearly only leading many other fine characters. I have, though, never met William Wisting before. This will, I think, be an error that I may well need to rectify.

Wisting and his family are interesting characters and certainly drew me into the novel. Although this is the first book about them I have read, I didn't feel that I was dropping into the middle of something, more that I had always been there.

Obviously there are some characters particular to the specific novel and Martin Haugen, the main protagonist was also a complex character about whom I wanted to learn. It was interesting have snippets of Wisting's true feelings towards Martin revealed gradually throughout the novel and I do think the suspense held up well. The peripheral characters such as Line add much to the story and I could not have predicted the end before it happened which is always a bonus.

All in all, an enjoyable novel to add to the list of well written Scandi Noir - I shall certainly be looking for Wisting again in the future.

Twenty-five years ago, Katharina Haugen went missing leaving behind a packed suitcase, and a mysterious note, a kind of treasure map of lines and numbers which even the best cryptologists could not decipher – the Katherina Code. This case has become Chief Inspector Wisting’s bete noire. There had only ever been one person in the frame, her husband Martin. Each year on the anniversary of her disappearance Wisting spends time with Martin, hoping that eventually something will slip.

Co-incidentally a new investigator (Stiller) from Kripos is re-examining a cold case involving the disappearance of a woman a year before Katharina and he is convinced that the cases are linked and that Martin is the man responsible. He even manipulates the situation so that Wisting’s daughter (a journalist) is brought into play to discover the truth.

As this police procedural’s plot develops we witness the interaction between Wisting and Martin and also with his colleagues. The relationship between Wisting and Martin is very interesting, it is developed very slowly and subtly and sometimes makes for uncomfortable reading. Set in Norway, the description of the landscape, terrain and weather although well-written embodies the story with a certain heaviness, as though the actual place is an accomplice to the disappearance of these women.

So, did I enjoy the book? I would have to say yes, despite the feeling of wading through the landscape, seeking out inconsistencies, burdened by the mystery. Perhaps, that is the author’s idea, to make the reader an accomplice, to fully engage in the long haul – twenty-five years to decipher a code and find a killer – or not. Very accomplished indeed.

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

This is a really good read. This is the first book that I have read by Jorn Lier Horst and I will definitely be looking out for more books by this author. I really like Wisting as a character. He is so well described I could visualise him. He is really believable. I would definitely watch this as a television series.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

This is the first book I have read by Jørn Lier Horst, though I believe he is a prolific writer in his native Norway. This reads as a stand-alone novel, in spite of previous novels that include his main character - Chief Inspector Wisting.

Wisting is no doubt semi-autobiographical as the author was formerly a police officer and head of investigations, prior to becoming a writer. That results in a realistic police procedural murder mystery.

There are short, punchy chapters that keep the book moving at a rapid pace - I flew through it in a few nights. It was also well-written with interesting characters. The premise itself - the solving of a cold case in Norway was interesting because it used to be the case that there was a statute of limitations on murder in that country, meaning someone could not be pursued once 25 years had passed since they committed the crime. According to Wikipedia, "The statute of limitations on murder was abolished by a change in law on 1 July 2014, causing any murders committed after 1 July 1989 to have no statute of limitations. This led to the national police force implementing a new investigation group for old cases called the "Cold Case" group." So, the premise of this novel is entirely feasible.

There were a few choices that were made that were unusual in the book - Wisting was sent in to search a house and to follow a suspect with whom he was supposed to be building trust. If he'd been spotted - plan over. I'm also not sure how much this was intended, but I felt extremely sorry for the murderer and felt less sympathetic with the position Wisting took at the end of the novel. I can't say more without giving the end away.

I will certainly be looking for more books by this author.

With thanks to NetGalley, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph and Jørn Lier Horst for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for a review copy of The Katharina Code, the first novel in a quartet of cold cases for Norwegian detective William Wisting.

24 years ago Katharina Haugen disappeared, leaving behind a partially packed suitcase and a list of numbers nobody can decipher. Wisting never gave up on the case, keeps the files at home and regularly visits her husband, Martin on the anniversary of her disappearance. Now, Kripos, the National Police, have linked the case to another and are re-opening both cases.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Katharina case which is another great read. I have been reading this series since the publication of Dregs many years ago and every one is a winner. It may not suit all readers as it is a bit of a slow burner but it is a meticulously crafted procedural with a great mix of the aforementioned procedure and investigation. The reveals come at regular intervals and there is a fair amount of misdirection in the character's intentions and actions. In a sense it is a cat and mouse novel with the police trying to find the evidence, difficult after so many years, to press charges. Mr Horst's experience as a police officer gives the novel some extra authenticity and I was amazed at some of the things they are allowed to do.

The novel has three main points of view, Wisting himself, his daughter, Line a journalist covering the investigation and the enigmatic Kripos Chief Inspector Adrian Stiller. It works well, giving each character room to live and breathe and giving the reader a more rounded view of events as each has a different agenda and sees events differently. Stiller fulfils every preconception of the National Police, secretive, manipulative and results oriented and the man with the toys. Line and her father are more interested in the truth and are smart enough to work it out.

The Katharina Code is a good read which held my attention from start to finish so I have no hesitation in recommending it.

I really enjoyed The Katharina Code and the way that the author set up a seemingly impenetrable mystery right from the outset. The circumstances of Katharina's disappearance and the clues around the house plus several red herrings kept the book engaging and interesting for me as a reader. I felt the pacing was fair, and reflective of the older age group that several characters seemed to belong to. Whilst the small talk and fishing between two older men isn't exactly gripping, I did appreciate the realistic writing style and established relationship between them. Adrian Stiller, both the character and his unorthodox methods did jar a bit with me. I also found Wisting's son to be a complete non entity throughout the entire book. I would probably be interested in revisiting these characters again.

This is a gripping and page turning right to the end. A Norwegian detective William Wistling has tried to solve a disappearance of a woman for 24 years and in that time has developed a friendship with her husband but this unsolved disappearance has always bothered him. So when it appeared another cold case was being reopened there were too many coincidences that brought him to a conclusion that involved both cases. Without a doubt a very enjoyable read.

This was a well written detective story. It is slightly different to others I have read in this genre and in joyed the characters. Recommended.

Every year on the 9th October Chief Inspector William Wisting carefully scrutinises the cold case files on Katharina Haugen. This is an unsolved missing person case that has come to haunt him. So here he is again 24 years later picking through the evidence, the witness statements, and the code that was discovered in Katharina’s home in her handwriting. Even expert code breakers have been unable to solve it.

Over the years, Wisting and Katharina’s husband Martin have become friends, but there’s still a reticence on Wisting’s part, something he can’t quite put his finger on, after all, Martin was cleared of any involvement in Katharina’s disappearance, being 8 hours away at work with colleagues confirming his attendance

Young, ambitious detective Adrian Stiller is brought in to investigate another cold case, the disappearance of a wealthy businessman’s daughter, just before Katharina went missing. Stiller believes Martin Haugen had something to do with it, and he hopes to link both cases to him.

There’s a problem though, because Martin Haugen has now gone missing too!

The author of The Katharina Code is a former Senior Investigating Officer with the Norwegian police force, so it goes without saying that this is a great police procedural.

The characters came fully fleshed, and I loved Wisting, loved the fact that even after 24 years he still hadn’t given up on this case, to give some closure to Katharina’s husband. The plot was well thought out with a great mystery at it’s heart, and quite honestly I was completely gripped! If (like me) you haven’t read Jørn Lier Horst, well what are you waiting for, such a great read!

* I was invited to read The Katharina Code by the publisher and have given an honest unbiased review in exchange *