Father Christmas is dead

The Silence of the Grave, Indridason’s previous novel, won the three international crime-writing awards, including Britain’s Gold Dagger. It featured his Icelandic series detective, the lugubrious policeman Erlendur, who returns in Voices to investigate the murder of a doorman at one of Reykjavik’s smartest hotels. It’s just before Christmas, and the hotel management is less than co-operative for fear of scandal. The doorman, who was about to appear at a children’s party, was found stabbed in his Santa Claus outfit with his trousers around his ankles and a condom drooping from his penis.

At first sight, then, the murder looks as if it might be the consequence of a sexual encounter that turned sour. But the doorman was once a child singer who, for a few short months before his voice broke, was on the brink of international stardom. His two records are now collector’s items capable of commanding large prices.