Stigma by Jorn Lier Holst and Thomas Enger #Review #Giveaway

 Today we have another brilliant crime thriller from Jorn Lier Horst and Thomas Enger, with another in their Blix and Ramm series, Stigma. Published in paperback on 12th October by Orenda Books, I have a great giveaway for you with the chance to win a print copy! Details on how to enter are at the foot of this post.

Alexander Blix is a broken man. Convicted for avenging his daughter’s death, he is now being held in one of Norway’s high-security prisons. Inside, the other prisoners take every opportunity to challenge and humiliate the former police investigator.
 
On the outside, Blix’s former colleagues have begun the hunt for a terrifying killer. Walter Kroos has escaped from prison in Germany and is making his way north. The only lead established by the police is that Kroos has a friend in Blix’s prison ward. And now they need Blix’s help.

Journalist Emma Ramm is one of Blix’s few visitors, and she becomes his ally as he struggles to connect the link between past and present, between the world inside and outside the prison walls.
 
And as he begins to piece things together, he identifies a woodland community in Norway where deeply scarred inhabitants foster deadly secrets... secrets that maybe the unravelling of everyone involved…
 
Two of Nordic Noir's finest writers return with the emotive, breath-holdingly intense and searingly tense fourth book in the number-one bestselling Blix & Ramm series.

My Thoughts

We are treated again to some masterly thriller writing with intriguing characters and a fast paced plot which weaves together strands from the past with current events. The tension ramps up towards the end which results in a cliffhanger and left me wanting book five to appear, fast!

Blix is in a vulnerable position at the start. A policeman turned prisoner, he is living a terrible existence stuck behind bars. You always have sympathy for him, remembering the circumstances of his prosecution. Emma is a great foil for him and we see all her courage and determination again. You have to know their past to understand their relationship and the link between them. This is an inventive piece of writing with a range of characters, red herrings galore and the feeling that the past cannot be escaped.

In short: Nordic noir to savour

 

About the Authors

Jørn Lier Horst and Thomas Enger are both internationally bestselling Norwegian authors. 

Jørn Lier Horst first rose to literary fame with his no. 1 bestselling William Wisting series. A former investigator in the Norwegian police, Horst imbues all his works with an unparalleled realism and suspense. 

 

 

Thomas Enger is the journalist-turned-author behind the internationally acclaimed Henning Juul series. Enger’s trademark is his dark, gritty voice paired with key social messages and tight plotting. Besides writing fiction for both adults and young adults, Enger also works as a music composer.  

Death Deserved, the first book in the bestselling Blix and Ramm series, was Jørn Lier Horst and Thomas Enger’s first co-written thriller and was followed by Smoke Screen and Unhinged.

You can follow the authors here:

John Lier Horst: Twitter   |  Website

 

 Thomas Enger:  Twitter   |  Website

 

Book links: Amazon UK 

 

Thanks to John Lier Horst,Thomas Enger, Karen Sullivan and Anne Cater of Orenda Books for a copy of the book and a place on the blog tour.   

 

 Giveaway (UK)

 

To win a print copy of Stigma just Follow and Retweet the pinned tweet at @bookslifethings and good luck!

 

Closing date is October 17th 2023 and there is one winner.    

 

*Terms and Conditions – UK only.  The winner will be selected at random via a random retweet selector such as,Tweetdraw from all valid entries and will be notified by X (Twitter) and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.