A very Scandinavian thriller that accurately describes a society still largely tied to the myths of the past, for which modernity is just a smokescreen that allows it to appear homologous to the rest of the world while preserving its secrets. It is in this claustrophobic environment that, years apart, strange disappearances occur, and finally a suicide that soon shows itself to be a crime. Immersed in a suffocating atmosphere, well represented by the obscure interior of the stave church where the mysterious statue of St Nikuls is kept, Max Fjellanger, at the time of the first disappearance a police colleague of the last victim, and Tirill Vesterli, whose job as a librarian is not enough, investigate. A really enjoyable read, even if with a little too much haste in the ending.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

I am reading everything I can find by this author now. The book was well paced and I enjoyed the protagonist very much. Will be looking forward to more in this series.

Vidar Sundstøl takes readers on a wild ride with The Devil's Wedding Ring. That's the simplest way to put it. And the best. This novel, one of the first Nordic noirs I've read - and I plan to read more after this, is a ride.

Sundstøl's novel centers on ancient, pre-Christian folklore in the Telemark region of Norway, a place I now very much want to go - despite the cultish murders described in this work of fiction. The Telemark, as the author describes it, is very rural. Tiny villages, old superstitions, families with centuries of bad blood between them... it's all the setting for a very rich narrative that picks a reader up and carries her onward into the heart of Telemark.

The cast of characters is led by Max Fjellanger, a newly widowed former cop from the area who has spent nearly twenty-five years as a private detective in Florida, and Tirill Vesterli, a young single mother and university librarian obsessed with crime stories (who is honestly one of the best female leads in a murder mystery I've read in a very long time... I really do adore Tirill!). They are an unlikely duo but they work together with incredible chemistry. I would absolutely read more books about them solving cases together, in part because romance seems unlikely.

The supporting cast is a strong circle of candidates who might be behind one of the murders (there are three in the span of the story) that Max and Tirill set out to solve. Motive abounds, questions hang in the air, personalities click and clash with rapid changes.

The only flaws in the novel might be down to the translation, maybe some deeper meaning got lost in a few places when the story went from Norwegian to English, and in a few key scenes that were awkward (for example - the only time anyone uses a swear word, f***, is in the single sex scene, where it's used four times in a row) and threw off the flow of things. That's all forgivable because it's the plot of an ancient, murderous cult being uncovered by a pair of unlikely allies that makes the story.

A wonderfully written, smart, and moody crime novel. I am so excited to have a new voice in Nordic Noir brought to my attention.

Enjoyable murder mystery set around the intersection of early Christian and preChristian history in Norway.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.

This book was a quick, enjoyable read. The story was suspenseful enough to be interesting without making me look over my shoulder. I like reading before bed, and appreciate a book that keeps me engaged without causing nightmares.

I had previously read the books in the Minnesota Trilogy by the same author. While I enjoyed the story, I found the pace to be too slow, almost abandoning them in the middle. I was pleased that the plot developed much faster in The Devil’s Wedding Ring.

I also loved the fact that some elements of the story are true since I was wondering whether the places described were real or imaginary. My only regret about the book is the wrap up. The author snuck in a scene where the perpetrators offered explanation of their actions before trying to kill the main character, which generally seems like an implausible scenario. However, the explanation left a lot of loose ends, and I feel that part could have been stronger.

Overall, I enjoyed reading the book and am now mourning its completion (as I do with all books I like).

3.5 stars. I'm enjoying the current popularity of Scandinavian literature. This one is a detective story set in Norway. The main character is a former Norwegian police officer who has been living in the US for years, but goes back to Norway for a colleague's funeral. The deceased apparently committed suicide, but Max realizes there is something off about it and begins investigating. We get some current Norwegian culture and atmosphere and some older culture as well. The mystery is sufficiently complex and there are some well-done secondary characters. The biggest drawback for me was that some things seemed rather implausible to me, but it didn't prevent me from enjoying the story.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me a free e-ARC of this book.

I received an advance copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited to receive an advanced copy of this novel since I hopped on the Scandinavian mystery train awhile ago and I can't seem to get my fill. I've never read anything from Norway though, so this was really a treat for me. That being said, I enjoyed it, but I didn't love it. But would that stop me from checking out more works by the author? Absolutely not!
I really enjoyed the descriptions of the people and the places even though at times they got confusing. I find Nordic names a bit hard to keep track of and there was a long list of characters. I also thought that some things may not have translated over properly but I generally got the gist of things. I enjoyed the lead character, Max, but not so much his side kick Tirill, I think because I didn't really find her believable. The local folklore and myth captured in the novel was very interesting but I got lost at some points (again, I think due to translation).
It started off extremely fast paced and then seemed to drag a bit at the end. Overall impression though, if you're in to Nordic noir, give this one a shot. And better yet if you can read it in the original language.

Always enjoy the Scandinavian settings.. Enjoyable read that stays believable.

When I saw this title and cover on NetGalley I knew I had to request it. It just has that creepy vibe I dig but sadly for me the cover is the best part of this novel. This was just an okay mystery. Kind of boring and definitely not suspenseful. I guess I was hoping that this was going to be a little darker and a little more atmospheric than it was. Not poorly written but I did think it was confusing in some spots but that could be due to the translation too.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was such a pleasant surprise! I requested it from NetGalley on a whim, i was intrigued by the title and i liked the cover and the summary promised a good story, which was exactly what i got.

A 13th century stave church in a village in Norway. A sacred ritual continued for hundred of years. Mysterieous disappearances 30 years apart happening on Mid summer Eve. A suspicious suicide. A librarian in love with crime stories. And a detecive from California with a 30 years old burden.
What can possibly be the link between all these elements?! Well the answer is quite simple in fact, it's the Devil's Wedding Ring of course!

As i already said, i was not expecting to enjoy this book so much. I found myself caught in the story from the beginning, with Max Fjellanger, a private detective, coming all the way from California to attend the funeral of his old partner, whom he did not see or talk to for almost 30 years. Max wanted answers about his friend's death, and these answers were surprinsigly linked to what happened 30 years ago when he was working with the Sheriff of Telemark on a disappearance case. The same case that made him abandon his career in Norway and go all the way to the states.

I loved the setting of this story. The village, with this stave church, full of old traditions, supersitions, legends, ghost stories, cults and people devoted to all of these. I think it was this particular setting that made me really enjoy the story more than anything else.
The characters were interesting, some of them intriguing and i couldn't tell for sure where to stand with each of them, if they really were what they pretended to be.
The end did not come as a surprise, as we already prepared for it, more the implication it brought, and the way it affected the lives of many characters.

Overall i enjoyed this book a lot and i would recommend it.

When I came across this book, I really did not have any expectations. Once I knew the book was considered Nordic Noir, I did not need more convincing to give it a try. Happily my optimism was rewarded and I discovered a great book and a new author to add to my list of favorites. The Devils Wedding Ring is a character rich twisty tale filled with myths, folklore, and long kept secrets.
The story takes place in the Telemark region of Norway. I had never heard of this region so I checked to see if Telemark was a real place in Norway and it is indeed a real place. The real names of the towns within the region are mentioned frequently throughout the book. I looked at images of the region and it looks to be just what I pictured, rolling hills, mountains, old barns, isolated roads, and lakes that mirror its surroundings. Along with the descriptions in the book, these images allowed me to fully picture myself in Telemark as I was reading.
The book is filled with tales of the past residents of this region; tales of love, death, and betrayal. These stories allowed me to get a full picture of the people and the culture of this region. These are people who acknowledge and respect their past; many still paid tribute to the characters in the legends.
Max Fjellanger returns to the Telemark region of Norway for the funeral of a former colleague and friend, Knut Abrahamsen. The cause of death is ruled a suicide but Max is not convinced. Instead of returning to the U.S. and his private investigation firm; Max stays in Norway to conduct his own investigation into the death of his friend. During his investigation he meets Tirill Vesterli, a librarian and single mother. Max and Tirill discover they have shared interests and both set off to investigate Knut’s death.
I enjoyed getting to know the main characters. Upon his return to Norway Max is filled with feelings of guilt and regret. When he was a young police officer in Telemark, a young man disappeared while hiking. Max was assigned to the search for the young man, but he knows he should have done more to find the lost hiker. He is ashamed of his lack of courage. Max believes the death of his former colleague and the missing hiker are connected. Max is now determined to find resolution to his friend’s death and the disappearance of the young man he believed he failed years ago.
Tirill Vesterli, Max’s right hand lady, was my favorite character. I loved her role as Max’s voice of reason. She basically forces herself into Max’s life and the investigation; I found her determination admirable. As a child she often felt out of place among her peers. She mimicked their behavior in an attempt to fit in. Now as a mother she is determined to be her true self, she wants to be someone her son can respect. Tirill is also an avid reader of detective stories; in her mind she calls herself Detective Vesterli. When she first meets Max she quickly figures out where he is from, where he lives, and his marital status through deductive reasoning. She immediately became my favorite character.
The author provides more character development by giving the reader insight into the characters dreams. While conducting their investigation Max and Tirill talk to relatives of victims and witnesses. Upon meeting some of these people, they sometimes recall a dream they once had. The dream is conjured up by a look on the person’s face or the feeling they got when the stepped in the room. The descriptions of these dreams made the pair seem more authentic.
The mystery at the core of the book surrounds a cult, religious rituals, and folklore. In the past I have found books with this type of central mystery difficult to follow and typically after finishing the book I would feel let down with the ending. Thankfully this was not the case with this book. The plot was not weighed down with religious customs and superstitions. The Devil’s Wedding Ring was a wonderful atmospheric read. I was completely caught up in the region and the characters. If you are looking for a Nordic Noir read for the Halloween season make sure to pick up The Devil’s Wedding Ring.

Murder and Moore Rating:
4 ½ out of 5 Stars

This is book is my favorite genre, so of course I couldn't wait to read it. One of the best books I have read so far this year, and I read a lot!

A Dark Scandinavian Mystery

Max, a private detective and former Norwegian police officer, learns of the suicide of his former colleague, Kurt. Although the men worked together thirty years ago, Max has trouble believing that his friend would commit suicide. When he arrives in Norway and learns more about the death, he decides to investigate.

People have a habit of disappearing around Midsummer Eve. Thirty years ago, a researcher disappeared. In the last year another researcher also disappeared. The disappearances seem to be related to pagan rituals. When Max is gathering material about the death and the history of the area, he meets a librarian, Tirill, who wants to be involved. She loves mysteries and has visions of being an investigator. As the pair come closer to the truth, someone or several people try to stop them.

If you like dark mysteries, you will enjoy this book. The characters, particularly Tirill, are engaging. The scenery is magnificent, and the dark aura of magic and occult rituals is creepy, but intriguing. I particularly enjoyed learning about the Stave Church, a relic from earlier times when pagan rituals were being replaced by enforced Christian worship.

The writing is good although sometimes the translation seemed awkward to me. However, I recommend this book once you start, it’s hard to put down.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

3 stars--I liked the book. (Warning for some mild sexual violence.)

This is a Scandinavian mystery novel that not only includes a modern crime, but an ancient cult and its practices as well. This combination of traditional folk practices and modern who-dun-it is right up my alley, and I enjoyed the plot quite a bit.

I probably would have given this 4 stars, but the translation seemed a bit dry to me. (Or maybe the original writing? It's hard to tell.)

Still, if you like Scandinavian crime--or books about pre-Christian religion--give this a read.

I received this review copy from the publisher on NetGalley. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review; I appreciate it!

This Nordic thriller is full of the dark humor you would expect from that area. There must be a new genre called Nordic Noir. The story flows so well it is hard to believe it is a translation. The main character, a widower and former policeman, is a tortured soul who travels to the funeral of a former coworker on a whim and stays in Sweden to investigate the circumstances of the death. He meets a number of weird characters as he pursues his investigation. A ritual associated with pagan gods from centuries ago is at the heart of his interest, and he picks up a fellow investigator who is a librarian at the local university. Each of the main characters is hiding something, and taken together they create a strange cast for the detective to deal with. A cloud of death seems to hang over the local area and the families that live there. The narrative is heavy with suspense and surprise. I found it impossible to put the book down once I started reading. Definitely a great book.

I received an electronic copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love mystery stories that revolve around folklore. I was excited to read this one, as I had not read any Norwegian fiction prior to this.

I must say, I was surprised at the release price for the Kindle book - $18.45 is a steep price for a book that will probably not see a lot of demand nor approach bestseller status.

I'm sorry to say, I found the plot and story merely adequate, and in places, less than plausible. The reasons for the "cult" - an ancient wooden statue with a prominent erection and the ritualistic sex - are hardly worth killing three people over. The most interesting bit of folklore concerned the supposed devil's wedding ring and a local family.

I liked the main characters well enough, until the weak romance aspect played out with a badly written obligatory sex scene. I don't mind sex in books, but as it played out here, it came off (no pun intended) as a bizarre excuse for triple homicide.

Oh, and I forgot the sleazy informant with the porno walls. Now that I think about it, a lot of this book is concerned with weird sex at strange moments.

Witches have danced naked under moonlight forever, and pagan fertility gods are present in most cultures. It's just hard too picture it as a motive for three murders spanning thirty years, as well as the careers of two law enforcement officials.

The picture of the stave church included in the ARC is really the most interesting and creepy aspect of this novel, and it appears to be missing in the sample of the finished book I downloaded out of curiosity on publication day.

All in all, disappointed in this one. If you are from the Telemark region in Norway, this might be more interesting. I wish foreign translations could include a pronunciation guide so those of us who are clueless to foreign dialects could at least attempt to approximate names we otherwise butcher in our hapless ignorance.

Otherwise, I can't see anyone paying $18.45 for this novel.

The title of this book caught my eye, then the premise had me very interested. Nordic noir, mysterious disappearances, pagan rituals...I definitely wanted to read this one! Overall it was good but not as good as I had hoped. The storyline was fantastic but it ended up getting quite convoluted. The pacing was a little slow at times and the multiple characters and places were hard to keep up with. I thought the best part of the book was Tirill, the librarian who becomes the main character Max's sidekick. She was interesting and well written whereas I thought Max was a bit boring in comparison. This book certainly had its moments that I enjoyed but the parts that I didn't enjoy so much ended up balancing this out to a 3 star read for me.

As a side note, there were a few parts that came across as rather sexist; they didn't add anything to the story or create a discussion so I'm not really sure why they were there. One example: "He studied her backside as she headed toward the house. He couldn't help himself, and no doubt she knew that." That just came across as unnecessary and creepy. Another example: "Johannes soon had the table set as nicely as any housewife would have done." I mean, really? It's 2017 for crying out loud.

Max Fjellanger left Norway and the Norwegian Police force 30 years ago, ashamed of a decision he made which he knew then was a cowardly act and which he has spent his life regretting. He immigrated to Florida where he set up a detective agency, which has now grown sufficiently to enable him to simply oversee work, rather than get his hands dirty.
In Florida he met and married his wife Anne, but he is recently widowed. When Max hears of the death of his former colleague, Knut Abrahamsen, he decides to return to Norway and attend the funeral.
Both Max and Knut had been involved in the search for Peter Schram, a folklore researcher who disappeared on Midsummer Eve. Schram was never found and this is the case that has followed and haunted Max ever since. When he meets Knut’s wife his suspicions about Knut’s cause of death are aroused and he decides to stick around to see what he can find out.
Vidar Sundstøl is not a writer I know of, but his story had me hooked in from the beginning. Richly atmospheric, with a real sense of place and small town life, his book is populated with characters you want to know more about.
He expertly takes the core of the town’s folk legend and weaves it into the heart of his crime thriller. Here we find the stories of ancient Norse gods worshipped by the townspeople for centuries; traditions steeped in mythology and legend and very real, contemporary crimes.
In a small town, it is hard to stay under the radar, and Max soon begins to realise that he is the target of some hostility, but whether because he is poking his nose in where it doesn’t belong, or because he is stirring up unwelcome truths is not clear to begin with.
Early in his enquiries, he meets Tirill Vesteri, a single mother to Magnus and an avid crime reader. Tirill has her own theories about a woman who disappeared in the town around midsummer; theories which the police have roundly dismissed. But when Max encounters Tirill at her work in the local library, he realises that his two cases have something in common with the third disappearance, that of Cecilie Weiborg.
Together they begin to piece together the different stories. Max uses his research and investigative skills and Tirill puts into practice what she has learned from years of studying detective fiction. Here the reader can so easily put themselves in Tirrill’s place, and work side by side with her detective. They work pretty well together and their various skills enable them to bounce ideas off each other on the way to solving the mystery. These are fascinating characters with whom it is easy to identify and together they make a formidable team.
The action takes place in the Telemark region of Norway, where the main source of income is farming, and central to the story is the old stave church. A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church whose name derives from the buildings' structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts are called stafr in Old Norse.
The stave church of Eidsborg is a real place with hundreds of years of history, folklore and culture in its eaves. It was easy to imagine that tales of ghostly monks and walking statues would have permeated the town and I loved the way that stories of pagan rituals entwined with academic study to create a fascinating, taut and suspenseful tale.
I was engrossed in the story and really enjoyed the characters of Max and Tirill as they struggle to make sense of what they know.

Highly recommended and a quite different take on my usual Nordic Noir fare.

I’m a huge fan of Nordic Noir and The Devil’s Wedding Ring by Vidar Sundstøl is a perfect example. Dark, edgy and brilliantly plotted, this novel captures your attention and holds it through to its very satisfying conclusion.

When Knut Abrahamson, a Police Officer is found a victim of apparent suicide, his former partner Max Fjellanger returns from the US to pay his respects but finds that all is not what it seems. Max, now a private investigator in Florida, doesn’t believe Knut would choose to end his life especially when the pieces surrounding his death don’t seem to fit. Thirty years ago the last case Knut and Max investigated, the mysterious disappearance of Peter Schram, a case that would drive Max from the force and still seems to still weigh heavily on Max’s soul. In 1985, Schram a folklore researcher writing about Pagan rituals and the Stave Church in Eidsborg disappears without a trace on Midsummer Eve, an important date in Pagan culture. The Stave Church is a tourist stop, although a Christian Church today was notorious for its Pagan history and rumours of a ghostly Monk who walks the grounds. The case of Schram’s disappearance remained unsolved but when Knut’s death looks like it is possibly related to the disappearance of a young grad student, Cecilie Weiborg as well as Schram, a shocking mystery begins to unravel. With the help of a quirky young librarian and mystery buff, Tirill Vesterli, Max sets out to solve the mystery but not before putting his and Tirill’s life in danger.

This story has it all, mystery, murder, Norse myths and the mysterious ghostly Monk. Vidar Sundstøl ( Translated by Tiina Nunnally) has written a story that is fast paced, well written and contains multi faceted characters. It has that great atmosphere that is indicative of Nordic Noir. I would definitely recommend this read to anyone looking for an exciting Nordic Noir thriller that perfectly blends murder and mythology.