A cleverly constructed thriller ... not for the faint-hearted.

A compelling read.

With Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore, Matthew Sullivan has written – with great panache and suspense – a smart, twisty crime novel filled with compelling characters set in a world that book-lovers will adore.

A page-turner featuring a heroine bookseller who solves a cold case with clues from books – what is not to love?

This book ticked all the boxes for me: an engaging heroine, an intriguing premise, interesting characters and a plot that involved books, readers and the very darkest human passions. A fantastic, assured debut.

There is a clever, erudite puzzle plot in this bookish mystery, along with whip-smart writing. Matthew Sullivan’s debut is stylish and entertaining.

A superb and eminently readable novel … an intoxicating mix of horrific murders, suicide, and the withdrawn and introspective individuals who people the Bright Ideas Book Store in Denver, Colorado.

Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore is a heart-pounding mystery that perfectly captures the intellect and eccentricity of the bookstore milieu.

I have been looking forward to this title for a while now and it was without doubt just as good or even better than hoped. I had such a great time reading Midnight At The Bright Ideas Bookstore and the two mysteries/puzzles that are included are both fascinating and well executed. The bookish elements are a true delight and I had a great time discovering more about Joey and Lydia, their past and their development. The writing is wonderful as well and made me fly through the pages… All in all I can highly recommend this title.

Deliciously twisty page turner.

Terrific

A dark, complex and visceral read

The story-telling is little short of brilliant

Perfect plotting, great characterisation, and the kind of payoff that a thriller of this calibre deserves

So many twists and surprises

Thrilling

Emily Ruskovich can communicate a world in a sentence

Eerie story about what the heart is capable of fathoming and what the hand is capable of executing... mesmerizing

Haunting, propulsive and gorgeously written, this is a debut not to be missed

A dark and poignant debut

Fans of lush, psychological dramas like Top of the Lake or Broadchurch have their winter reading cut out for them. A provocative first novel filled to the brim with dazzling language, mystery, and a profound belief in the human capacity to love and seek forgiveness

Shocking and heartbreaking, Ruskovich has crafted a remarkable love story and a narrative that will stay with readers

With lovely language and piercing pathos, Idaho focuses on the power of love and the possibilities of forgiveness and memory. This debut novel deals blows as large as life

In Emily Ruskovich's wizardly vision, Idaho is both a place and an emotional dimension. Haunted, haunting, her novel winds through time, braiding events and their consequences in the most unexpected and moving ways

A novel written like music… a chorus of rich and beautiful voices woven deep in the Idaho woods, each trying to come to their own understanding of a terrible tragedy

Emily Ruskovich has written a poem in prose, a beautiful and intricate homage to place, and a celebration of the defeats and triumphs of love. Beautifully crafted, emotionally evocative, and psychologically astute, Idaho is one of the best books I have read in a long time

Exquisitely crafted

Idaho begins with a rusted truck and ends up places you couldn’t imagine. Its language is an enchantment, its vision brutal and sublime

Beautiful, brutal and incandescent

A strange, uncanny novel, bewitching and heady

Richly rendered characters, with a well-delineated supporting cast and a strong sense of place. A debut of astonishing maturity.

This beautifully written and poetic novel is fascinating and disturbing… This is a novel which stays in the mind.

A powerful debut novel.

I kept flipping back, over and over, rereading pages and saying ‘Oh my God’ to myself.

Ragnar Jónasson writes with a chilling, poetic beauty - a must-read addition to the growing canon of Iceland Noir

His clues are traditional and beautifully finessed - and he keeps you turning the pages

Distinctive blend of Nordic noir and golden age detective fiction...atmospheric...economical and evocative prose

Seductive ... an old-fashioned murder mystery with a strong central character and the fascinating background of a small Icelandic town cut off by snow. Ragnar does claustrophobia beautifully

The ending hits the reader like a kick in the stomach

Jonasson's books have breathed new life into Nordic noir ...all the skilful plotting of an old-fashioned whodunit although it feels bitingly contemporary in setting and tone

The threads lie in various places, the plot is well woven and the pieces in the puzzle come together well in the end. The structure is good, the main characters are believable, the story flows well, everyone is a suspect á la Agatha Christie and the solution unveils the mystery and leads the readers to the truth. But not all the truth, as some things are better left hidden

Hulda Hermannsdottir is a welcome addition to the selection of Icelandic crime fiction protagonists . . . It is almost impossible to put the book down until the last word has been read

Out of all of Ragnar's books, this is the one I like the most . . . The book of his which reminds me most of Agatha Christie

A very good book, gripping and interesting, with all the threads carefully managed. Hopefully the author will publish as many books as possible with lead character Hulda

Praise for Ragnar Jónasson

No country associated with the label Nordic noir is as bleak, cold, snowy and empty as Iceland. And no crime writer portrays those elements as evocatively and scarily as Ragnar Jonasson

A classic crime story seen through a uniquely Icelandic lens... first rate and highly recommended

A modern take on Agatha Christie-­-style mystery, as twisty as any slalom . . .

Ragnar Jónasson writes with a chilling, poetic beauty - a must-read addition to the growing canon of Iceland Noir

Distinctive blend of Nordic noir and golden age detective fiction...atmospheric...economical and evocative prose

Seductive ... an old-fashioned murder mystery with a strong central character and the fascinating background of a small Icelandic town cut off by snow. Ragnar does claustrophobia beautifully

The ending hits the reader like a kick in the stomach

Jonasson's books have breathed new life into Nordic noir ...all the skilful plotting of an old-fashioned whodunit although it feels bitingly contemporary in setting and tone

Hulda Hermannsdottir is a welcome addition to the selection of Icelandic crime fiction protagonists . . . It is almost impossible to put the book down until the last word has been read

Out of all of Ragnar's books, this is the one I like the most . . . The book of his which reminds me most of Agatha Christie

The threads lie in various places, the plot is well woven and the pieces in the puzzle come together well in the end. The structure is good, the main characters are believable, the story flows well, everyone is a suspect á la Agatha Christie and the solution unveils the mystery and leads the readers to the truth. But not all the truth, as some things are better left hidden

A very good book, gripping and interesting, with all the threads carefully managed. Hopefully the author will publish as many books as possible with lead character Hulda