Murder Tide (Stella Blomkvist Book Three) by Stella Blomkvist

 

Murder Tide (Stella Blomkvist Book Three) by Stella Blomkvist.

Translated by Quentin Bates.

Published 4th July 2025 by Corylus Books.

From the cover of the book:

The ruthless businessman left to drown by the rising tide at the dock by Reykjavik's Grotta lighthouse had never been short of enemies. The police have their suspect, and he calls in Stella Blomkvist to fight his corner as he furiously protests his innocence. Yet this angry fisherman had more reason than many to bear the dead man a grudge.

It's a busy summer for razor-tongued, no-nonsense lawyer Stella. A young woman looking for a long-lost parent finds more than she bargained for. An old adversary calls from prison, looking for Stella to broker a dangerous deal with the police to put one of the city's untouchable crime lords behind bars at long last.

Is the mysterious medium right, warning that deep waters are waiting for Stella as well?

***********

A ruthless businessman is found drowned, tied to the dock beside Reykjavik's Grotta lighthouse, after having been left at the mercy of the rising tide. The police believe he is the victim of someone with a very personal grudge. When their eyes are directed to an angry fisherman with good reason to dislike him, he asks no nonsense lawyer Stella Blomkvist to help him prove his innocence - a task that will not be easy given the weight of evidence against him.

Meanwhile, Stella has two other challenging cases to deal with - a young woman keen to discover the identity of her father, who discovers a lot more about her family connections than she is prepared for; and a career criminal with dubious intentions, who wants Stella to act as a negotiator for him in a drug trafficking investigation, despite their troubled history.

As Stellla gets to grips with the investigations she sniffs out the stink of corruption in worrying places. She is used to operating in the grey areas, but when a medium contacts her with a warning, Stella begins to wonder if the risks she is taking might drag her down to her doom. 

Ballsy lawyer Stella Blomkvist is back in her third gripping adventure to be published in English by the excellent Corylus Books - courtesy of one of my favourite translators, Quentin Bates, who does an excellent job once again. The mystery behind the identity of the author, masquerading as a real life Stella Blomkvist, continues to add an intriguing thrill to the whole Nordic Noir proceedings.

As ever, Stella is up to her eyes wading through complex investigations on behalf of clients attracted by her devil may care reputation, and true to form she is ruffling feathers left, right and centre from the off. Three seemingly very different cases put her up against a choice selection of dodgy opponents on both sides of the law, and as the threads of the story become entangled, Stella finds herself in serious danger. Stella being Stella, she confronts her problems head-on in her characteristically unapologetic way, which makes the story very enjoyable. 

The pace is fast and furious, with twisting storylines that pivot on some very juicy reveals, and there is more tension than you can throw a russett-brown briefcase at (if you know, you know). Blomkvist uses unfathomable depths and shifting currents well in this book, mixing in the extra spice of police corruption, crime families at war, and a religious cult made up of criminals. There is a lovely thread about fathers and daughters too, which runs through the whole story, and touches on Stella's own life.

This is definitely my favourite of the series so far.  I love Stella's 'wily lawyer meets classic noir private investigator' persona, which has developed nicely over the three books in the series. This time we also get to see some surprising aspects of her character, with some interesting developments in her personal life. I cannot wait to see what happens next!

Murder Tide is available to buy now in paperback and ebook formats.

Thank you to Corylus Books for sending me an ecopy of this book in return for an honest review, and to Ewa Sherman for inviting me to be part of this log tour.

About the author:

Stella Blomkvist has been a bestseller in Iceland since the first books appeared in the 1990s, and has attracted an international audience since the TV series starring Heida Reed aired. The books feature unforgiving, razor-tongued, Reykjavik lawyer Stella Blomkvist, with her taste for neat whiskey, a liking for easy money and a moral compass all of her own - and who is at home in the corridors of power as in the city's darkest nightspots.

The books have been published under a pseudonym that still hasn't been cracked. The question of Stella Blomkvist's identity is one that crops up regularly, but it looks like it's going to remain a mystery...

About the translator:

Quentin Bates escaped English suburbia as a teenager, jumping at the chance of a gap year working in Iceland. For a variety of reasons, the gap year stretched to become a gap decade, during which time he went native in the north of Iceland, acquiring a new language a new profession as a seaman and a family, before decamping en masse for England. He worked as a truck driver, teacher, netmaker and trawlerman at various times before falling into journalism, largely by accident.

He is the author of a series of crime novels set in present-day Iceland (Frozen Out, Cold Steal, Chilled to the Bone, Winterlude, Cold Comfort and Thin Ice which have been published worldwide.

He has translated all of Ragnar Jónasson’s Dark Iceland series.