A Darker Water

A shroud of grey fog envelops the wetland. The water below is still and clear, its surface barely disturbed by the faint ripples. Standing motionless with her eyes closed, a bitter taste fills her mouth as the gravity of their deed bears down on her. Their unspoken pact looms heavily in the air, forever binding them to secrecy as unyieldingly as the stillness of the water.

In the bustling oil city of Stavanger in the Southwest reaches of Norway, where towering mountains meet endless shores, a woman has vanished under mysterious circumstances following a work event. Tasked with investigating the disappearance is the young and emotionally guarded police officer Martha Krogh, whose late father was a respected police officer in the Stavanger force. Determined to uphold his legacy, Martha dives headfirst into the case.

In another part of the region, small-town officer Erik Gjerde responds to a report of a suspected break-in at a cabin. Erik, annoyed with the mundane task, initially assumes it’s just a vacationer who forgot to lock their door. As he surveys the cabin and lets his gaze slide over the kitchen table, he freezes. A vicious liquid, dried up and blackened. Blood. Lots of it. Whose blood is it, and what has happened here?

It turns out that the cabin belongs to the missing woman, Ada Rosendal, and the alarm bells begin to ring. Ada is successful and lives on the wealthy side of the city with her loving family. She leads a seemingly normal life, so who would want to hurt her? Martha and Erik must quickly join forces to unravel the truth behind Ada’s disappearance. As the investigation progresses, Martha and Erik realize that there is more to the case than they first thought. At the same time, a bond forms between the two, and Martha’s walls begin to crumble.

Soon, Ada’s intricate web of secrets unfurls, revealing threatening letters and mysterious money transactions. It seems as if her disappearance is but a thread in a larger, more sinister fabric – one where the morals of figures of authority and law enforcement are tainted. Has Ada’s past finally ensnared her in its grasp, and what binds her disappearance to the unresolved mysteries connected to Martha’s father’s final investigation?

A Darker Water is an elegantly crafted crime novel set in the middle of the unruly Norwegian landscapes. With a deft hand and a graceful prose, Kaja Nygaard creates a suspenseful narrative that keeps the readers on their toes until the very last page. As a true Scandinavian staple, A Darker Water explores the dark secrets lurking beneath a seemingly polished surface and navigates the maze of human relationships with finesse, while introducing a new, compelling protagonist.