I'm not always a fan of this type of book, but I really got into this read. The hostile environment was as much a character as the people, and played a big part in what went on. It did seem obvious from the start that there was more at play than sheer circumstance, but what was behind it was teased as the story unfolded. A good enough read, it kept me hooked. #netgalley #outside

Thank you to #NetGalley for my advance copy of Outside by Ragnar Jónasson
I found this book so boring and longwinded. I haven’t read much scandi fiction and now I remember why.
It’s to dark with very little action or excitement. Dread to think what the film will be like.

Ármann, Helena, Gunnlaugur and Daníel are four old friends who met at college. They have gone their separate ways but get together sporadically. Ármann runs a successful tourist business in their native Iceland & He proposes that this time they should go on a ptarmigan hunt. The group set off but the weather takes a turn for the worst & Daniel & Gunnlaugur are not really up to the trek. Ármann says there is a mountain hut close by where they can take shelter but a frightening discovery inside the hut soon makes the trip even more perilous.

Written from the perspective of each character & in short chapters this is a fairly quick read. The descriptions of the setting & the weather were excellent- had me reaching for a blanket! However the characters were all pretty dislikeable which meant I didn't really care about what happened to anyone. Overall it was a bit of a disappointment. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

A disappointing read as I did not feel Outside was up to Jonasson's usual standard. Four friends go on a shoot for ptarmigans in November on Iceland's moors. As the story unfolds is becomes incredulous that two of the friends would go in the first place. The first half of the book is very slow trying to build up the atmosphere and show the imperfect lives of the friends. I felt the tension never really happened but I read on for the big surprise. The surprise just created more unbelievable reactions from the four. I was just grateful for the final reveal followed by a hurried ending. Hopefully it will translate to a better film.
This is an honest review of a complementary ARC

Ragnar Jónasson is a master when it comes to create dark, oppressive and disturbing environments when out in nature, and Outside is another great example. The claustrophobic feel he manages to convey during the whiteout far exceeds what you could experience in a closed space.

Daniel, Armann, Helena and Gunnlaugur are four friends spending a weekend together hunting in the Eastern Highlands of Iceland when a sudden whiteout forced them to seek refuge in the middle of nowhere. But in the midst of isolation they’ll soon find out they’re not alone and maybe not all of them will survive the night.

With just four characters, one setting and events taking place in a couple of days, Jónasson proves those elements are more than enough to craft a really haunting story. The situation they encounter inside the hut was so disturbing I think I felt the same anxiety they did.

The characters are not likeable at all, but that’s the way it should be. As tensions arise, their relationship will start to crack, showing their true nature, turning as cold as the weather they’re going through. Secrets long time buried will be unveiled and those could be the downfall of some of them.

The ending felt a bit abrupt although I guess that was the most realistic thing possible. My ARC had a last chapter called “Party of two” that I still don’t know how it relates to the story and that left me completely dumbfounded! Is it part of it or from another book? Can anyone help? Please?? 😅

Now that the weather is getting warmer, maybe you’re in the mood to feel some cold, both in nature and in human relationships so, if that’s the case, Outside is a must.

Thanks to NetGalley and Michael Joseph UK for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Outside by Ragnar Jónasson is a cold dark twisty thriller that will leave you suitably chilled.

Four friends who have known each other for a long time arrange to go on a hunting trip to east Iceland led by Armann who has made a profitable business running tours for tourists. A storm arrives and hampers their plans putting them in a situation where they all find out quite a bit more about each other than they already knew. What unfolds is totally unpredictable and unexpected.

There is a real sense of isolation, chill and claustrophobia in this story which is not as expansive as those I have previously read by the same author.

Another excellent read from Ragnar Jonasson, the cold drips from the pages of his novels both in the action and the landscape. A perfect read for any Scandi fans.

I put this book on my 'Nordic noir' shelf because it is indeed very dark. It's dark outside, on the plains of Iceland, and dark inside the cabin where four 'friends' have to spend some time. What beats me is why in heaven's name these people came together and why we have to read about what happens. I read the whole book waiting for something interesting to happen, for something that would explain the whole existence of the story.
It never came.
I like Jónasson's books, but this was rather disappointing. It was well-written but it lacked characterization and an engaging plot.
I hope the movie will be better.

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin for this review copy.

This is the fifth book by this author that I have read so I do have a feel for his writing style. The setting descriptive work is brilliant with the knack of making you feel cold and lost. However the part I couldn’t get over is the ‘shocking finding’ that is very key to the whole story. I can’t say too much without giving the plot away but suffice to say I wasn’t convinced by how they all behaved as a direct result and as the premise of the story hinged on 5is it was a bit of a negative.
Loved the way the characters were developed by giving them all a voice in alternating chapters. Found the ending very flat and unsatisfactory. Still enjoyed the overall read though.

The scenario of a group of friends getting stranded on a trip and their relationships and humanity gradually unravelling is a popular trope. This book's unique factor is the vividly depicted setting that becomes integral to the story and the characters' fate. Psychological suspense intertwines with Icelandic noir in a resonating way. It's hard to feel empathy for the characters, but the reader is intrigued to see what secrets they are hiding and what the outcome will be.

I received a copy of this book from Penguin Books UK -. Michael Joseph Publishing

Four friends go away for a weekend to the Icelandic Moors when there’s a sudden blizzard and they have little choice but to shelter in a cabin to wait out the storm. There was already tension between some of the friends at the beginning of their trip and this only increases as the night continues.

Written from the different characters’ points of view the reader slowly learns more about each of them. I loved the dramatic setting and short chapters but couldn’t really take to any of the characters. However that said, this is the first book I’ve read by this author but it won’t be the last.

My thanks to the publisher Penguin Michael Joseph and NetGalley for an arc copy in return for an honest review.

Four friends. One night. Not everyone will come out alive . . .
When a deadly snowstorm strikes the Icelandic highlands, four friends seek shelter in a small, abandoned hunting lodge.
It is in the middle of nowhere and there’s no way of communicating with the outside world.
They are isolated, but they are not alone . . .
As the night darkens, and fears intensify, an old tragedy gradually surfaces - one that forever changed the course of their friendship.
Those dark memories could hold the key to the mystery the friends now find themselves in.
And whether they will survive until morning . . .

This is absolutely gripping read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and found myself second guessing every thought I had continuously.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I was provided an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher. This is my own hone\st voluntary review.

I enjoyed this book as I have every single Ragnar Jonasson book I have read. It isn’t a typical Jonasson book,. The setting is claustrophobic with the four main characters trapped in a cabin that they have taken shelter in. There is one problem with the cabin. The man sat in a chair holding a shotgun. The characters’ stories are unravelled through flashbacks as the narrative progresses, revealing their connections and respective secrets. Interesting and different.

Four old friends meet up for an adventure in the Icelandic wilds, but once their hunting expedition gets underway the unpredictable weather takes a turn for the worse. Their only option is to seek shelter in an isolated cabin to wait out the storm, and what they find inside shocks them to the core.


As the terrified group struggles to get through the night, afraid of what lurks in the shadows, the weight of old sins ramps up the tension in the cabin, and the cracks in their relationships begin to show. Old scores demand to be settled and not everyone will come out of this little trip alive...


Outside is a gripping stand-alone from best-selling Icelandic noir crime author Ragnar Jonasson that weaves together elements of psychological thriller, hard-edged mystery, and horror story, when four friends reconnect during a supposedly fun hunting weekend. Once the trip gets underway, the mood changes pretty swiftly when the weather turns and makes it much more of a survival drama that an enjoyable escapade. There is the whisper that something bad is going to befall them right from the word go, and a slight suspicion that perhaps this situation has been contrived by one or more of the party, which hooks you at the start.


The story is told in staccato narratives from each of the four friends, gradually building up a picture of their true feelings towards each other, until all their dirty little secrets come flooding out and events spiral completely out of control. There is a lovely little story device that twists the knife from the time they enter the cabin, taken straight out of the horror playbook, that dials up the fear factor too.


This is an unabashed, heart-pounding chiller, which is an interesting departure from what usually flows from Jonasson's pen, and I think it does lack something of the subtlety and sophistication of his detective novels, but there is still plenty here for you to get your (chattering) teeth into. Once again, Jonasson displays his considerable ability to use weather and the environment to create the perfect backdrop for the murderous machinations that play out. I just love the way he is able to create the most claustrophobic of atmospheres in his books, especially by using snow to build a feeling of isolation. Throw in a remote cabin, four trigger happy 'friends' with dark secrets, and a rogue horror element that is the stuff of nightmares, and you have something that proves to be a highly entertaining page-turner. 


The ending of this book is rather abrupt, with threads left hanging, which makes me wonder if Jonasson has plans to pick this story up again. I would really like to know what happens next, as there is still a fair bit of reckoning to be accounted for, but time will tell. In any case, it has already been snapped up for a movie adaptation that sounds very promising indeed!


I do love a snowy thriller! This is a devour in a single sitting kind of book, best read in the daylight hours, and it may make you very wary of an unexpected invitation from an old friend... especially if snowy climes are involved!

Just thinking about this makes me cold!
Daniel, Gunnlaugur, Helena and Armann are all on the Icelandic wild moor in Winter when a blizzard strikes. Armann, who organised the trip says that he wasn't expecting bad weather and they need to head for one of the basic huts that provide shelter.
The view point jumps between each member of the party and it soon clear that there are tensions in the group. When they arrive at the hut, there is a strange man there, not speaking but holding a gun. They decide that two of them should try and head to another hut which will have a radio and get help.
Helena and Daniel go and that when the tension ramps up even more.
Gradually the reader sees that there are ulterior motives afoot and everything is not as it seems.
It's not a long book, and fairly easy to read, but the tension if kept up all the way through. I enjoyed it.

This is the second book by Ragnar Jónasson that I have read and I was as equally impressed with this book as I was with the first one I read. I really like Ragnar's style of writing and his books have a different element to them. They keep you wanting to read more but aren't like your everyday thriller.
Thank you to Ragnar Jónasson and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Well written and just a bit to much going on in it for me with the characters and lot of back and forth but all in all a good read ..

My first Ragnar Jonasson, and I can safely say Crime By The Book never steers wrong and I’ll be devouring the back catalogue!
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I love a a locked room scenario, especially when it’s because of natural phenomenons (like a snowstorm), and this had me racing through it to find out what happened next. Alternating between many different POV’s this gripping mystery leaves you with a very baffled mind, in just the best of ways
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Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Michael Joseph for the ARC!!

On a hunting trip, Armann, Daniel, Helena and Gunnlauger are caught in a violent snowstorm. They seek refuge in a hut and what they find, when they break in, changes their lives forever.

The story is told from the viewpoints of each character and, while they profess to be friends, there are underlying resentments and bitterness which become more profound as the story progresses. None of the characters are particularly likeable, although the dynamics between them are cleverly drawn out. As they begin to panic, in their captured state, the tension is palpable.

What features really strongly in this novel is the background and atmosphere of the violent Icelandic weather. The wind, the snow and the chill are tangible. The isolation feels real.

This is a well written, short and enjoyable read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The setting of this mystery in a deadly Icelandic snowstorm gives you the full atmosphere that runs throughout the book. A friends reunion that brings out what has been hidden behind the smiles.
The story is told from different points of view of the characters with a twist at the end. You are left with a good mystery but characters you have not really time to connect with.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher Penguin Michael Joseph UK for my arc in exchange for an honest review.