Reykjavik Literary Agency

In 1945, a German bomber crash-lands in Iceland during a blizzard. Puzzlingly, there are both German and American officers on board. One of the senior German officers claims that their best chance of survival is to try to walk to the nearest farm. He sets off, a briefcase handcuffed to his wrist, only to disappear into the white vastness… Flash forward to the present. The U.S. Army is clandestinely trying to remove the wreck of an airplane from an Icelandic glacier. A young Icelander, Elías, inadvertently stumbles upon the excavation and then promptly disappears. But before he vanishes, he manages to contact his sister, Kristín. She embarks on a thrilling and perilous adventure, determined to discover the truth of her brother's fate—and solve the riddle of Operation Napoleon.

R E V I E W S

Reviews

“Remarkable...another top-notch story from Indridason.”

KIRKUS REVIEWS (starred review)

“Slick . . . and with enough chases to keep the reader turning the pages.”

THE INDEPENDENT

“I’ve come to believe Arnaldur Indridason has given himself the task of reminding us that Iceland’s perspective is unique in the world. And I’m glad he’s taken on the job. He’s really good at it.”

LESLIE GILBERT ELMAN, CRIMINALELEMENT.COM

“Classic mystery fiction, both compassionate and thrilling. Indridason is about to become one of the brightest stars in the genre's dark skies.”

JOHN CONNOLLY

“… a thriller in an international setting, the CIA is involved as well as old secrets from World War II. Indridason works on in the tradition of the Swedish couple Sjöwall and Wahlöö who put forward a purposeful social criticism in their crime novels, while he is not as radical as they were. His novels also remind us of the hard-boiled American detective novel where corruption is often found in high places.”

KATRIN JAKOBSDOTTIR, NORDIC LITERATURE MAGAZINE

“With his third action-adventure story, Arnaldur Indridason has placed himself firmly among the first rank of Icelandic thriller writers. Operation Napoleon is a thoroughbred action story with the emphasis on fast-paced plotting. … The plot is well thought out and the author handles his material with a sure touch. Never before have I read such an effortlessly and capably plotted example of the genre by an Icelandic author. … The narrative shifts quickly from scene to scene, “cutting” from one incident to the next, with the story unfolding simultaneously in different places; a well-known device for increasing narrative pace and suspense.”

MORGUNBLADID DAILY

“Gripping. ... As political thrillers go, Operation Napoleon–its frozen secrets, ruthless killers, hapless victims and reluctant heroes–is about the best you can get.”

TELEGRAPH-JOURNAL

“Indriðason, one of the new breed of bestselling Scandinavian crime writers, has written another gripping thriller set in his native Iceland.”

THE PETERBOROUGH EXAMINER

“Rather than using excessive language and unnecessary description, Indriðason chooses a minimal style, which drip-feeds the details and keeps the reader guessing… Operation Napoleon is an intriguing novel, bleak and harsh in its description of cold, military narratives.”

SOPHIE GORDON, AESTHETICA

“The tense plot follows Kristin as she challenges the Americans in an effort to find out what happened to her brother, leading her on an arduous journey to learn the facts of Operation Napoleon. The descriptions of the various elements of the story are overwhelming: the freezing weather, the subterfuge of the Americans, the divergent views of Icelanders vis-à-vis relations with United States authorities, and other conflicts. Written with a sharpness to which we have become accustomed from this author, the novel is highly recommended.”

THEODORE FEIT, SPINETINGLER MAGAZINE, UK

“Operation Napoleon is a fast-paced thriller that is quite enjoyable. It has that certain something which makes Arnaldur Indridason such a great writer ... The plot is interesting with some neat twists... quite entertaining.”

SCANDINAVIANBOOKS.COM

Operation Napoleon (1999)

Reviews

Rights Sold