Arnaldur Indridason worked for many years as a journalist and critic before he began writing novels. His books have since sold over 20 million copies worldwide. Outside Iceland, he is best known for his crime novels featuring Erlendur and Sigurdur Óli, which are consistent bestsellers across Europe. The series has won numerous awards, including the Nordic Glass Key and the CWA Gold Dagger. The Shadow District – the first book in the Reykjavík Wartime Mystery series – won the Premio RBA de Novela Negra, the world’s most lucrative crime fiction prize.Victoria Cribb studied and worked in Iceland for many years. She has translated more than 25 novels from the Icelandic and, in 2017, she received the Orðstír honourary translation award for services to Icelandic literature.Victoria Cribb has spent the last twenty-five years immersed in Iceland's language and literature. After reading Old Icelandic at Cambridge, she took an MA in Scandinavian Studies at University College London and a BPhil in Icelandic at the University of Iceland, before working in Iceland for a number of years as a publisher, journalist and translator. Since 2002 she has lived in London, working as a freelance translator, and currently also teaches Icelandic at University College London and in Cambridge. Her translations include The Blue Fox by Sjón and three novels in collaboration with Olaf Olafsson, as well as countless other works of fiction and non-fiction, published in books, anthologies and magazines. At present she is translating the latest crime novel by Arnaldur Indridason.

"What is it with those Scandinavians? For many years they have been producing crime novels of the most chilling and engrossing nature. However, one man stands out for his sense of highly believable drama, suspense and an almost effortlessly simple, yet captivating delivery. He is Arnaldur Indridason... one of the brightest sparks on the international crime writing circuit ****" Mirror "An utterly absorbing detective story. In Erlendur - morose, grouchy, but hugely likeable all the same - Indridason has created a character in the Morse/Rebus mould who could stand comparison with either" Scotsman "Trenchantly written...stripped-down, sinewy prose" Independent "Indridason is as interested in exploring the personalities and the relationships between them as he is in unravelling the mystery...a rounded, suprerior example of the genre" Sunday Telegraph "Its humanity and insight make it truly memorable" Sunday Times