We’re delighted to be sharing Elena’s thoughts about the Last One Alive by Karin Nordin.
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- Publisher : HQ Digital (11 Nov. 2021)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 384 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0008462054
- ISBN-13 : 978-0008462055
They survived once. Can he save them this time?
When Detective Kjeld Nygaard is called to the discovery of a body in the burnt-out shell of a house, his heart sinks. He never wanted to see this house again. The house of a notorious serial killer. The house where he rescued Louisa Karlsson from being murdered.
But when they discover the body is in fact Louisa, the mystery deepens. It can’t be the old serial killer. He’s dead.
Then another body is found, again killed in the exact place where Kjeld saved them from another murderer. Another survivor dead.
With the clock ticking Kjeld and his partner Detective Esme Jansson are desperate to stop any more survivors from being murdered. But every clue they find leads to a dead end. Why is the killer picking off people Kjeld rescued? Could it be connected to another of his previous cases?
When Kjeld’s daughter is kidnapped – it’s a race against time to save her life. Can Kjeld stop the killer without paying the ultimate price or will he be the last one alive?
A heart-stopping and gripping crime thriller that will keep you up all night! Perfect for fans of Helen Phifer, Lisa Regan and D.K. Hood.
Book Review
Last One Alive is the second book featuring detective Kjeld Nygaard after ‘Where Ravens Roost’ which is an outstanding debut from the author Karin Nordin. After reading the first book and loving it I was excited to read this.
Louisa Karlsson was nearly murdered years before at a house at the hands of a serial killer. Saved by Kjeld, she thought her ordeal was over but she is led to the property once more and is killed. Kjeld is heartbroken that she has been murdered but the whole thing is puzzling as the murderer who attempted to kill her years before died while in prison so it couldn’t be him.
When more murders are committed they seem to have a chilling link – the victims are people who Kjeld had previously saved and when his daughter Tove is kidnapped it becomes a race against time to save her, the most important person in Kjeld’s life.
I loved revisiting Kjeld’s world again. He’s flawed and complex but as a reader I really care about him. He seems to be his own worst enemy and the only thing he seems to care about most in the world is his daughter Tove, who lives with his ex Bengt. He has a tricky relationship with his ex husband who now has a new partner, Liam, who Kjeld takes an instant dislike to. His partner at work is Esme and together they make a fantastic team as they balance each other out. I really liked her character who appears so much more ‘together’ than Kjeld!
The suspense in Last One Alive is fantastic and I read it hungrily wanting to find out how it all concludes. It’s thrilling and dark, with some shocking moments and lots of guesswork but I enjoyed every page! I feel like I know Kjeld personally after two books.
I can’t wait to read book number three in this series, and go back to Gothenburg and Kjeld’s world. A brilliant read.
Karin Nordin has been a compulsive reader of thrilling stories since childhood and discovered her love of Scandinavian crime fiction during summers spent visiting family in Norway and Sweden. She has worked in healthcare and education, including as a pharmacy technician, karate instructor, and an English language teacher for the Dutch military. She completed the Creative Writing MSc from the University of Edinburgh with Distinction in 2019 and also holds an MA in Scandinavian Literary Studies from the University of Amsterdam. Born in ‘The Biggest Little City in the World’ and raised in America’s Rust Belt, she now lives in the Netherlands.
