Synopsis
'I love the Children's House series and Yrsa delivers again with The Doll. Such engaging characters and a compelling, twisted and creepy mystery - I couldn't put it down!' SHARI LAPENA
'Yrsa is a wonderful storyteller. Her stories are atmospheric, mysterious and brilliantly plotted ... you will never see the twists coming' MARI HANNAH
'A magnificent writer' KARIN SLAUGHTER
It was meant to be a quiet family fishing trip, a chance for mother and daughter to talk. But it changes the course of their lives forever.
They catch nothing except a broken doll that gets tangled in the net. After years in the ocean, the doll a terrifying sight and the mother's first instinct is to throw it back, but she relents when her daughter pleads to keep it. This simple act of kindness proves fatal. That evening, the mother posts a picture of the doll on social media. By the morning, she is dead and the doll has disappeared.
Several years later and Detective Huldar is in his least favourite place - on a boat in rough waters, searching for possible human remains. However, identifying the skeleton they find on the seabed proves harder than initially thought, and Huldar must draw on psychologist Freyja's experience to help him. As the mystery of the unidentified body deepens, Huldar is also drawn into an investigation of a homeless drug addict's murder, and Freyja investigates a suspected case of child abuse at a foster care home.
What swiftly becomes clear is that the cases are linked through a single, missing, vulnerable witness: the young girl who wanted the doll all those years ago.
Taut, terrifying and impossible to put down, The Doll cements Yrsa Sigurdardottir's reputation as a master of storytelling tension and surprise.
Publisher information
- Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
- ISBN: 9781473693500
- Number of pages: 464
- Dimensions: 196 x 126 x 32 mm
- Weight: 323g
- Languages: English
Customer Reviews
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Too much of everything
There is too much of everything in this Icelandic saga. Too many complex themes, too many tangled plot lines, too many characters with similar names, too m... READ MORE
Abysmal
In a word...terrible. I expected so much from Yrsa Sigurdardottir having read and enjoyed The Legacy and, in so doing, meeting good characters (with the ab... READ MORE
Would translate on to tv well
"The Doll" by Yrsa Sigurdardottir started off well with a nice list of characters' names and how to pronounce them. There were also some nice scenes with ... READ MORE
Not her best
The Doll by Yrsa Sigurdardottir
I absolutely love Yrsa Sigurdardottir and the Children's House series so I was really excited about getting stuck into he... READ MORE
A Page Turner
A great ‘nordic noir’ crime fiction story set in Iceland. Dark atmosphere which befits the topic of murder. I liked the way the author describes the relat... READ MORE
I liked it!
I did like The Doll quite a bit even though it wasn’t what I expected from the synopsis. I thought it would be a supernatural story and I was not aware it ... READ MORE
The Doll review
Huldar and Freyja are back and I couldn’t be happier!
Yrsa Sigurdardottir is undoubtedly a fantastic mystery/ crime/horror teller!
This book had it a... READ MORE
An exciting and twisty noir thriller!
This is the first book I’ve read byYrsa, but having read some of the reviews of her other novels, it certainly won’t be the last!
The Doll starts with a h... READ MORE
Creepy
I thought that I would be brave reading this book as I have always had a fear of dolls from being a little girl. Believe me, after reading this book, that ... READ MORE
ARC
It was meant to be a quiet family fishing trip, a chance for mother and daughter to talk. But it changes the course of their lives forever. They catch noth... READ MORE
Great twisty story but unconvincing ending
A teenage orphan is convinced both her parents were murdered but when she starts asking questions she is murdered herself. Meanwhile body parts have been ... READ MORE
Brilliant crime thrillee
I had never heard of this author before but when I read the synopsis, I couldn't resist it. What I didn't know until I had finished the book, is that The D... READ MORE
Great read
Thanks Netgalley for this ARC.
Unfortunately I didn't realise this was part of a series when I requested it. Usually this wouldn't matter as some books r... READ MORE
Beautifully twisted and seriously intriguing.
rsa Sigurðardóttir is no stranger to the world of creepy images and somewhat evil, supernatural goings-on so it’s no surprise that a creepy, barnacle-encr... READ MORE
A mid-series story which also works as a standalone thriller
Thank you to the author, publishers Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for access to an advance review ebook. This is an honest and voluntary review.
The co... READ MORE
A complex well written story
This is quite a complex book, with lots of little stories that all get wrapped up neatly at the end. So it needs quite a bit of focus. At times I did find ... READ MORE
Must read dark crime fiction with intertwined social issues
I have been a far longer-term reader of Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, than I have been a book blogger, so let me tell you first that I have thoroughly enjoyed many ... READ MORE
Barnacle crusted doll as a bed time cuddle... yuk
Thank you NetGalley and to the publishers for allowing me to review the authors book The Doll, Yrrsa Sigurdardottir (thank goodness I don't have to pronoun... READ MORE
Not for me
I liked the premise of The Doll but I just couldn’t engage with it, the doll which the book is named after was like a character from a horror movie, often ... READ MORE
⭐️⭐️⭐️
An enjoyable thriller with an unexpected ending.
I didn’t realise until I had started reading the book that this is part of a detective series, however I... READ MORE
An absorbing and brilliant read.
I think that those disappointed at not finding this a true horror story do it a great disservice, and they may not have read to the end. This is a detectiv... READ MORE
A good read
This is the first book I have read by Yrsa so I went into this read with no knowledge of their writing style.
I normally don't go for book with a creepy d... READ MORE
Slow burner that builds nicely
The story starts with a Mother and Daughter out on a boat fishing with a colleague of the Mother. They 'catch' a doll, which is pretty manky and covered i... READ MORE
Terrific theme
I have always enjoyed Ysra's books and was a little apprehensive about this one after reading some reviews left. But I have to say that this is another ter... READ MORE
Nordic Noir
Freyja & Huldar #5
An old doll covered in barnacles, but with a locket around her neck is pulled from the sea with unintended consequences. The director ... READ MORE
A slow-burning thriller from an adept author
I had a hard time deciding on my rating for THE DOLL. There are elements to this novel I adored and there are plenty of things I did not enjoy so much. It'... READ MORE
Scandi Noir Mystery
In many tales, the eponymous doll would clearly be malevolent and probably animated by a psychotic individual or possessed by a demon (Poe, King, Barker, e... READ MORE
A cleverly written tale
A cleverly written tale carefully unravelling how several simultaneous crimes and allegations all come together. As the common factors are unveiled, the re... READ MORE
Dark and twisted tale
This is such a dark and cleverly twisted tale. Yrsa Sigurdardottir proves she is the Queen of her craft with this brilliantly written story, This story st... READ MORE
Not for me!
I’m not sure who writes the description for a book, but ‘Taut, terrifying and impossible to put down’ this definitely was not. I would describe it as ‘too... READ MORE
I loved it!
Just wow! Another brilliant story in The Children's House series.
The book has so many parts and smaller stories, that I couldn't believe it's possible t... READ MORE
Needs a TV series
"The Doll" by Yrsa Sigurdardottir started off well with a nice list of characters' names and how to pronounce them. There were also some nice scenes with ... READ MORE
A well crafted mystery that baffles until the conclusion
A complex mystery that was impossible to decipher or even piece any of the parts together. The first chapter introduces a couple , unrelated, with a young... READ MORE
It's just too much
There is too much of everything in this Icelandic saga. Too many complex themes, too many tangled plot lines, too many characters with similar names, too m... READ MORE
Very immersive story
This was a very detailed story about several murders and missing children Gradually the police and childrens' services work their way through evidence pas... READ MORE
Good premise
A hideous barnacle covered doll is caught in a fishing net by young Rosa Thrastdottir and her mother Disa. Five years on bones are found on the sea bed in ... READ MORE
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