The Reckoning

(Children’s House #2)

by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Release date: February 12th, 2018

The Reckoning Cover

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I received a complimentary ARC copy The Reckoning (Children’s House #2)
by Yrsa Sigurdardottir from NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books in order to read and give an honest review.

Yrsa Sigurdardottir the Queen of Nordic noir does it again with the dark and intricately plotted follow up to the Legacy…

Yrsa Sigurdardottir has definitely earned the nickname “Queen of Nordic noir”. True to form, Yrsa has produced yet another dark, clever, incredibly gruesome and deliciously deceptive Nordic noir novel. The Reckoning is the second book in the Children’s House series. Although this book would work as a stand-alone reading the Legacy first just adds to the story.

When a local school opens a time capsule they discover a letter spewing anger, claiming revenge and containing a list composed of just initials of those who will meet their end in 2016. When a gruesome discovery is made that appears to have a connection to the list an investigation is launched. In this book we have disgraced detective Huldar biding his time hoping that the events that occurred in the previous installment will soon blow over. At the beginning of the book, he is at his all-time low and relegated to boring meaningless cases. His former partner and shunned admirer Erla is now his boss which makes for definite tension and an interesting predicament.

When the investigation heats up and the leads point to a past case involving a murdered child, Huldar turns Freyja at the Children’s House for help. Once connections are made involving the release of a former pedophile and murderer there is a manhunt and a race to find and save the next on the list.
The book builds at a breakneck speed culminating in a shocking but fantastic ending. This is not recommended for those with a squeamish stomach, there are parts that are incredibly gruesome, although not bad enough for me to put down the book. The only downside for me in this book was although there is character development, I wish there was a little bit more, especially between Freyja and Huldar, the relationship storylines fell a little flat for me.

All-in-all a fantastic book in a fantastic series! Yrsa Sigurdardottir “the Queen of Nordic noir” does it again with the dark and intricately plotted follow up to the Legacy. A definite must-read for fans of Nordic Noir