LF061 Murder, They Read: "Norwegian by Night," by Derek Miller

Norwegian by Night by Derek B. Miller, was awarded the 2013 Crime Writers' Association John Creasey Dagger award, and was picked by the Guardian newspaper as one of the best crime and thriller novels of 2013. The story follows 82-year-old Sheldon Horowitz, a recently widowed American ex-Marine, who moves to Oslo, Norway, to live with his granddaughter Rhea and her Norwegian husband, Lars. He’s grappling with the cultural dislocation posed by the move, along with the memories and regrets of a long life. When a violent crime is committed in his apartment building, Sheldon rescues a young boy threatened by the events and goes on the run through Norway with him, evading the Oslo police as well as the murderer and his cohort.

The novel follows the separate trajectories of the 3 groups as they pursue their separate goals. We get to know police Chief Inspector Sigrid Ødegård, a wise and discerning woman, as she directs her team in search of the murderer and of Sheldon and the child he’s saved. And we learn a bit about the perpetrator of the crime and his associates, and gain some perspective on the forces that have shaped them.

The story is humorous and deeply moving, often at the same time, mixing suspense with clever dialog, dark humor, and observations on Norwegian culture, aging, guilt and memory.

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