Book Review: Until Thy Wrath Be Past by Asa Larsson PLUS GIVEAWAY!!

In the first thaw of spring the body of a young woman surfaces in the River Thorne in the far north of Sweden. Rebecka Martinsson is working as a prosecutor in nearby Kiruna. Her sleep has been disturbed by haunting visions of a shadowy, accusing figure. Could the body belong to the ghost in her dreams? 

Joining forces with Police Inspector Anna-Maria Mella, Martinsson is drawn into an investigation that focuses on old rumours about the disappearance of a plane carrying supplies for the Wehrmacht in 1943. Shame and secrecy shroud the locals' memories of the war, with Sweden's early collaboration with the Germans still a raw wound. And on the windswept shore of a frozen  lake lurks a killer who will kill again to keep the past buried for ever beneath half a century's ice and snow.

This book was so good! A lot of Swedish crime books carry the comparison of being as good as Henning Mankell and many of them simply aren't. However, I actually thought that this was better than Mankell's books and I am very excited to have found another new crime writer to enjoy.
Until Thy Wrath Be Past focuses on the disappearance of Wilma and Simon, a young  couple who went diving and never returned until Wilma's body is discovered in the water. Prosecutor Rebecka Martinsson is involved from the very beginning and she just knows that the deaths were not accidental but who would want to kill two young, innocent people? Anna-Maria Mella is the detective in charge and she too is convinced that she is dealing with a double murder.
There are many mysteries and secrets surrounding Wilma and Simon's disappearance and Rebecka and Mella have to battle to get anyone to talk as it seems they are afraid to divulge anything. Both women are persistent though and pieces of the puzzle start fitting together. Neither woman thought that this investigation would lead them back to the Second World War but people did all kinds of things during that time, events from the past that they would do anything to keep hidden.
Asa Larsson weaves an extremely intricate plot and we view the actions directly from several different characters including the deceased Wilma. This allows the plot and mystery to build up gradually but even then I wasn't expecting the twists and turns at the very end. I think that Until Thy Wrath Be Past is a particularly clever book, I made several assumptions about characters and was proved wrong on several occasions. I felt like I was continually trying to work it all out which is so much better than some crime novels where the end is easily predicted about half way through. There are three previous books in this series which I shall certainly be adding to my wish list.

Many thanks to Quercus for sending me a copy of the book to review.

Dot Scribbles Rating: 5/5

The lovely people at Quercus have sent me a hardback copy of the book as well as a proof so if you would like to win the hardback then just leave a comment on this post and include your email address. This competition is only open to people in the UK and entries will only be entered into the draw if an email address has been included. Entries will be included up until midnight on Tuesday, August 30th. Good luck!!