Blog Tour: Fallen Angels

FALLEN ANGELS | Gunnar Staalesen
(Varg Veum #8)
11.12.2020 | Orenda Books
Rating: 4/5 stars

Private Investigator Varg Veum finds himself at a funeral of a former classmate, which becomes much more than he bargained for on this occasion. The funeral turns into a sort of reunion for Varg with several classmates, namely his old friend Jakob. This rekindled friendship is immediately thrown into turmoil after Varg’s discovery of a brutal murder. This murder leads Varg down a path into the past and his adolescence. He must explore some of his darkest memories in order to find a killer.

Gunnar Staalesen transports readers straight into Norway to follow along with Private Investigator Varg Veum as he investigates a case linked to his youth. I was a bit worried when I realized that this was the 8th installment in a series centered on Varg, however, I was instantly able to pick up the plotline and had no issues with the flow of this story.

One of the key aspects that makes this book work so well as a standalone installment is the focus on Varg’s adolescence. I love when books link two timelines together in order to solve a crime or murder. Staalesen effortlesses melds together Varg’s past and present to be one cohesive and fascinating story! I loved both of the timelines and how easy it was to flow back and forth between the two. Instead of awkward transitions or jumps the reader is able to reflect back on specific events with Varg the same way you reminiscence about your past regularly.

Staalesen has a true knack for not just transporting the reader to another time, but also another place. I truly felt the city of Bergen come to life while I was reading FALLEN ANGELS and tagging along with Varg. Talk about wanderlust! It speaks a great testament to a storyteller when you start to research places from their books while reading them in the hopes that one day (ya know, post-pandemic) you might be able to go exploring there!

FALLEN ANGELS is an excellent addition to any TBR in search of a slow-burn Nordic Noir story to cozy up with in the colder months!

Please be sure to check out all of the amazing bloggers heading up this tour!

This book is available to buy from: Amazon | Book Depository

A huge thank you to Orenda Books for my gifted copy!

Disclosure: What Jess Reads is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This in no way influences my opinion of the above book.