A favorite genre plot of mine! Group of people become isolated, usually due to a combo of nefarious intentions and unexpected weather or emergency, and then secrets get exposed, someone or lots of someone's are murdered and the killers identity is revealed when only a few are still alive!

The "Outside" is described as such a plot in the book's summary. It started well, continued on with an adequate ramping of tension for almost three quarters. Then splat!

Unfortunately, the depth of the connection between the characters is never given life. When the circumstances as to why this is happening begin to reveal themselves, I couldn't get into the emotional reasoning. Some back stories were included. However, they were very brief and their inclusion was always at a point that felt inconvenient or too late to be useful.

The last quarter, full honesty, went completely sideways for me. I am still confused about the reasons everything occured. I am utterly still confused about the conclusion. I admit I thought perhaps my DRC was missing the last chapters.

This was a great premise. An intriguing read for over half the book. Then unfortunately, the last part, filled with confusion, lacking intensity as well as, if not missing altogether, a decent conclusion.

This was a difficult review. There was much potential within this book. I would still consider giving the author's next release a try, and hope it all comes together.

**Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, for the advanced digital review copy.

Review of Outside by Ragnar Jonasson

My thanks to Minotaur Books for the Uncorrected Digital Galley of this book.

I have a thing for Icelandic and Norwegian crime fiction novels, so I was happy to be offered Outside. I would classify this novel more a psychological thriller than murder mystery. There are certainly murders involved, but the background and emotions surrounding these murders are what held my interest throughout.

Jonasson does a great job of the slow build. The story begins with a group of friends (Armann, Helena, Daniel, and Gunnlaugur) setting out on a ptarmigan-hunting expedition in the remote Iceland countryside in the wintertime. What were they thinking? Of course, the weather turns ugly, and the situation for everyone becomes dire. Slowly, Jonasson gives the reader small clues that there is something else going on with not only this hunt but with the entire setup of the expedition. The group makes their way to a small hunting cabin for protection from the storm. Inside is a stranger. The stranger is armed with a rifle and silently sitting in the corner of the cabin. The stranger never says a word. Spooky, indeed. Things go badly, but my lips are frozen shut. ;-)

The story includes memories of another friend’s death (Vikingur…Helena’s partner and Daniel’s best friend). These memories become more and more important as the story unfolds. The memories are worked in nicely and unobtrusively. The reader finally realizes that this expedition is all about avenging Vikingur’s death.

I enjoyed this book until the very end. Suddenly, it was over. After the slow build, the end was rushed. I am not sure what I expected at the end, but it seemed abrupt and lacking something. I wanted more. Maybe there will be a follow-up book from Jonasson.

Jonasson has eight other novels. I am off to seek and find.

Star rating: 3.5 - 4 stars (due to the abrupt ending)

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a E-ARC copy of Outside by Ragnar Jonasson in return for an honest opinion of the book.

Outside is the story of a group of four friends who go on an annual trip in their home country of Iceland. Unfortunately, the trip does not go as planned when a deadly winter storm hits the mountains and the group finds a strange man within the only shelter in their surrounding area. The question is, will they survive until they are able to get back into civilization?

Like many reviewers, I was brought in by the thought of a horror novel set in a snowy isolated area. Not to mention it seemed like the novel was going to be similar to the video game Until Dawn where a group of friends got together for a trip to the mountains and bad things start to happen. However, unlike Until Dawn, Outside does not portray the plot as well as I would have hoped. The bouncing of time lines between the multiple view points of the characters often do not match up and it feels like a guessing game of where they are in relation to the plot. I honestly believe that if there was a section for each character, but then had a focal point to wrap all sections for the ending it would have been a bit easier to understand what was going on.

I would be interested in reading other novels by Ragnar Jonasson as he seems to be popular, but for this particular novel I wasn’t a huge fan of.

I certainly wanted to love this book, but alas, not! The premise is ridiculous and the one saving grace was that it’s a short story at three hours or so to read. Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the arc.

I loved the idea of remote Iceland in a blizzard and four friends who get caught up in a murder, each with a secret past. But this fell flat in the end for me. I couldn’t get into the story or the backstory of the characters and the plot dragged some. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

** Thank you to the publisher for giving me this book in exchange for an honest review**

The premise of this book sounded so spooky to me! The freezing 🥶 cold ❄️ snowy elements sounded so delightful!

I think I was expecting this to be more of a horror book based on the cover. I thought the tracks in the snow were going to come from a monster or creature 👹. (Which btw leads me to say that I loved the cover of this book!)

This can be classified more of a isolated thriller rather than horror. It’s my first read by this author and I will say I loved his element descriptions. This is perfect for a winter read. I loved the setting and I liked the character’s stories.

In this book we follow 4 friends who take a trip together to go do some sort of hunting. Things go eerily wrong when they don’t plan on hiking through a massive winter storm blaring though the mountainside they are at. They come across a shelter cabin and are shocked to find a man sitting on the floor with a rifle. Who is this man and why is he just sitting there staring at them?

2 of the friends go back out into the storm to seek assistance and that’s when all of their troubles come to fruition. They hold heavy grudges and resentment against one another. Turns out they weren’t the best of friends after all.

The story does have suspense and some eerie moments especially if your reading it in the dark alone like I did one night. And again I loved the winter vibes. My only complaint is that I wish the climax would have been more dramatic than what it was. Overall though it was a good read.

This is a novel about revenge, pure and simple. A group of friends decide to go hunting in the Icelandic wilderness. An unexpected storm, forces the group to shelter in a hut. Unfortunately, when they arrive at the hut, they have difficulty getting in as it’s unexpectedly locked and then there is an unexpected stranger already staying there. Things continue to go sideways from there and the ulterior motives of the group come to light.

Unfortunately this book could have been so much better. The characters didn’t have much depth and none of them were likeable. I also didn’t find the story as interesting or suspenseful as it could have been.

I do like some other books by this author though. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What made the four friends cry out in shock when they entered the isolated hut, seeking shelter from an unexpected snowstorm?

It was supposed to be their annual vacation, a Ptarmigan hunt this year, organized by Armann, who often acts as a guide in the area.

Armann, Helena, Daniel and Gunnlauger will begin the trek through the bone chilling, Icelandic highlands.

One won’t survive the night.

There is no cell phone service where they are going-and no way to call for help-when they discover they are not alone.

As the night darkens, and fears intensify, they should be turning to each other, instead of turning away from each other and playing the blame game, if they hope to survive-but that isn’t what transpires in this suspenseful little tale! I just wish it hadn’t ended so abruptly as the ending leaves much to the imagination.

Ragnar Jonasson has sold three million copies, Worldwide and he began his career from the age of 17, translating 14. Agatha Christie novels into Icelandic!! Known for writing Nordic Noir, also known as Scandi Noir, which is crime fiction which takes place in Scandinavia or Nordic countries.

Although often written from a Police point of view, this one was written from the point of views from each of the four friends instead. These stories are also known for gloomy, chilling atmosphere, flawed protagonists and dark narratives which this book had in spades!

I recently discovered this sub-genre, when I read the author’s “The Girl Who Died” , when it was translated from Icelandic to English last year. Although I preferred that one to this one, I look forward to reading more from this author as additional titles become available in the US. (This book had sneak peek chapters for two additional books at the end of the story)

The Girl Who Died review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3846405996

This title will be available on June 28, 2022.

Thank You to Minotaur Books for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley. It was my pleasure to offer a candid review!

A survival story where you don’t know if the biggest danger is the blizzard storming outside or the people you are sheltering shoulder to shoulder with.
A very entertaining, fast-paced read that’s perfect for a cold night curled up by a warm fire.

This was my first Ragnar Jonasson book and it won't be my last--in no small part due to the cliffhanger that the book ends on. This was a brilliant take on the locked-room scenario with interesting and characters with ambiguous moral codes. Nothing is what it seems, relationships aren't clear, and alliances are constantly in flux. This was a book that kept me on the edge of my seat.

Outside by Ragnar Jonasson is the least favorite book I have read by this author. Four "friends" plan a winter trip in Iceland with the objective of shooting game birds. Each person has secrets, and there is an underlying current of revenge, and mistrust among the group. They become stranded in a blizzard and unexpected events happen to each of the four friends during the two days. As the story progresses the reader finds there is a lack of actual friendship among the four.
I did not feel sympathy for any of the characters. I read the book but did not enjoy the story, it was miserable!
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for the opportunity to read this book.
Publication Date: June 28, 2022

Outside by Ragnar Jónasson—is a brilliantly suspenseful standalone from one of the world's best contemporary crime writers, but the ending is frustratingly mediocre.

I rarely read reviews from others for books I plan to read to review myself as I like to form and offer my own original opinions untainted by those of other reviewers. But as one of the most successful crime writers on the planet, with over three million copies of his books sold worldwide, it's hard to avoid running into reviews of the latest Ragnar Jónasson (Dark Iceland and Hulda series) offering even when you try.

Shockingly, the few reviews I couldn't avoid all advised giving Outside a miss as it wasn't up to the high expectations Jónasson's fabulous writing has conditioned readers to have. I've been a Jónasson fan since picking up and reading his first book from the Dark Iceland series, and I didn't want what I'd heard to be true. Of course, no one wants to read a disappointing book from one of their favorite authors. But that didn't sway me from wanting to read the book. So, when the publisher offered me an advanced review copy, I accepted. Yet it's fair to say that I approached this one with almost as much trepidation as eagerness because of the negative reviews.

As he typically does, Jónasson begins with a prologue that sets the tone of the novel—four friends on a weekend hunting excursion make a shocking discovery inside a remote cabin they take refuge in from a sudden Icelandic blizzard. Then he takes us back to the beginning of the story. The hunting party, three men and a woman, have been longtime friends since their university days. All have dark secrets, which eventually put them on a collision course when fear and the elements push them to their limits.

As I expected from past Jónasson books, he introduces us to four interesting, well-drawn, realistic characters with major character flaws. The interesting thing about the characters is while you get all the details that make them seem like real people, I never felt any particular attachment to any of them. None were the type of characters I felt like rooting for since none are particularly pleasant people. Still, I was curious to see how things turned out for them.

As with his other books, the author incorporates the harsh Icelandic winter coupled with the desolate landscape almost as another character. Even before we know much about the story, Jónasson expertly instills a sense of foreboding in the reader from the start. You know something bad is about to happen. You just aren't sure what. Like the other Jónasson novels I've read, the author quickly builds the suspense and continues pouring it on until it grows almost unbearable by the climax.

Halfway through the book, I couldn't understand what the negative reviews I'd read were about at all. Outside has the usual crisp writing, imagery, and tight plotting Jónasson is known for. It was another shivery delight. I couldn't put it down and sailed through the book in a single sitting. But then I came to the end, and I discovered the fly in the ointment. It was beyond disappointing. Well, maybe more like irritating. I turned the last page expecting the start of a final chapter but found I'd already read the last chapter. And it read like the final chapter an author might use as a hook for the next book in a series. Obviously, that didn't work here since Outside is a standalone. It left me feeling I'd just spent the better part of a day reading an unfinished novel. It wasn't that the ending wasn't what I'd expected or wanted. The story just ends after the mysteries are revealed.

After ignoring the critics and reading Outside for myself, I agree you might want to give this one a miss. Unfortunately, I can't recommend this book because if it was the first Ragnar Jónasson novel someone read, it might very well be their last. And that would be a shame because he is such a brilliant author who has written so many wonderfully entertaining books.

I have read other Ragnar Jónasson books before and I enjoyed them but, sadly, this book was a real miss for me.

The story is told from the viewpoints of the four "suspects" and unfolds slowly as each character reveals a bit more. You begin to see that each character has probable cause and I began to settle in to allow the mystery to unfold in this manner.... and then suddenly it ended. I mean the book ended... not the story. I am wondering if the ARC does not have the actual ending... because I am left feeling very confused.

I would encourage you to read any other Jónasson book and give this one a pass.

I would like to thank Netgalley, St. Martin's Press, and Minotaur for the ARC.

Four friends become trapped in a snowstorm. What happens next is chilling and thrilling. The reader quickly feels like they are trapped with the friends as the story unfolds through all the characters eyes.

Ragnar Jonasson returns in this utterly gripping and at times frightening story where trapped in an isolated location with no hope of rescue, four friends must come together in a battle for survival, but where old sins and buried secrets are just waiting to emerge.
Armann, Helena, Daniel and Gunnlaugur are old friends who have been reunited and returning to there home in Iceland decide to celebrate there reunion in a trip to the highlands, but when the weather takes a turn for the worse and a blizzard moves in the four friends are forced to seek shelter in a aid station miles from anywhere until the storm passes, however they are surprised to find they are not alone. Trapped in a isolated location with the outside world turned against them, the friends find there sanctuary already has a occupant. Another lost traveler who says not a word but is armed and who's very presence fills the group with dread. Before long old memories begin to rise and long forgotten sins threaten to tear our friends apart and one terrible decision changes everything forever.
Outside is a wonderfully gripping story that had me hooked from the very beginning. Each of its four characters are well crafted and interesting, each with there own backstories and secrets which under the pressure of captivity are just waiting to explode in devastating ways. With the outside world turned against you and no hope of rescue, who can you really trust when even your oldest friends friends turn against you and the battle for survival begins.
A self contained and isolated story with only a small group of fascinating characters, Outside is an enjoyable and at times moving story which will have you guessing to the very end. Great story and highly recommended!

Hunting trips into Eastern Regions of Iceland can bring about calamities of all sorts. The rugged terrain, as one character puts it, is “…a reindeer-haunted wilderness of mountains and moors…with hardy farmers, fishermen and hunters”. Hidden and unexpected perils can thwart the best of plans of even the most seasoned outdoors-people. When the trek includes “friends” who carry secrets and grudges, tensions can rise as the temperature drops, making you wonder who—or what—is really being hunted.

In Ragnar Jonasson’s latest book, the Icelandic winter is as cruel and unpredictable as ever. For our foursome, this means an unexpected winter storm brings high winds, low temperatures, and a blizzard. Only two of the expeditioners have any experience with the terrain. As Armann--the leader of the hunt--says, “I’m in my element here.” The others—Helena, Daniel, and Gunnlaugur—must trust him once they get lost in the whiteout. However, each one of them may have reasons to be dubious as they are finally led to a small shack in this unforgiving terrain.

Claustrophobic situations can be found on almost every page of this thrilling novel. First, you have the type that comes from bodies in too close proximity exasperated by the storm. Even as they hike through the vast back country, they are insular. They must stay close in order to survive. Second, once they reach the hut, it is tiny and cold: a confining cell not meant for four adults. Third, there is the group dynamic that breeds a pervasive and oppressive tension that cannot be escaped. Fourth—and last—there are their thoughts that they cannot avoid or share. They wrap the characters in paranoia and fear.

To say I liked this book is an understatement. I am a big fan of Nordic stories and writers. There is a sparseness to the prose that allows me to be swallowed up; to be immersed in the white areas between the words. I can experience what the author has not said, and become enmeshed with the characters.
If you like your psychological books to simmer on low, twist, and turn the characters inside-out, this book is for you.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Penguin for the opportunity to read and review this outstanding novel.

Not my favorite title from Jonasson but it was okay. Kind of a weird premise. I would not rush to get this title, but worth an eventual read,

I started reading "Outside" in the morning and I kept on reading it till I was finished. I read it like it was a short story. It was really captivating, you never knew what was going to happen. Ragnar was on top of his story and I could see this happening. It was a fight between Daniel and Helena and that's all I will say.

Four friends are on a wilderness hike in Iceland when a strange encounter in a warming hut reopens old wounds from the past.

The momentum of this standalone thriller is propelled by the unusual format of very short chapters switching quickly among the four perspectives, keeping the reader off balance and making for a fast-paced read. There's not really anyone to root for in the bunch, but the story is suspenseful with some surprises.

The ARC I received also contained an odd little story called Party of Two, which will hopefully be more clearly labeled in the final version since it's easily mistaken for an epilogue, especially since there is also an excerpt for a forthcoming book appended.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy.

This book drew me in right from the first page. Imagine going hunting in Iceland with longtime friends and in the middle of a snow storm. You take shelter in an unheated hut and a non responsive creepy man with a rifle sitting in the corner. The four friends have secrets all intertwined. There are plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. I was confused by the ending and will go back and read it again. I loved Mr. Jonassons style of writing. This was my first time reading this author and will not be the last.