The Reckoning is the stunning follow-up to The Legacy, which was the start of a thrilling new series that Booklist (starred) recommends for fans of Tana French. 

Vaka sits, regretting her choice of coat, on the cold steps of her new school. Her father appears to have forgotten to pick her up, her mother has forgotten to give her this week’s pocket money, and the school is already locked for the day. Grownups, she decides, are useless.

With no way to call home, she resigns herself to waiting on the steps until her father remembers her. When a girl approaches, Vaka recognizes her immediately from class, and from her unusual appearance: two of her fingers are missing. The girl lives at the back of the school, on the other side of a high fence, and Vaka asks to call her father from the girl’s house. That afternoon is the last time anyone sees Vaka.

Detective Huldar and child psychologist Freyja are called in. Soon, they find themselves at the heart of another shocking case.

From the international number one-bestselling author of The Silence of the Sea, winner of the 2015 Petrona Award for Best Scandinavian Crime Novel Yrsa Sigurdardottir returns with the follow-up to The Legacy.

Series:

Children's House

Book 2

Can be read as a standalone

Book Type:

Thriller

Review: The Reckoning

Yrsa Sigurdardóttir delivers another superb, edge-of-your seat dark thriller with tinges of horror sure to keep you up at night.

THE RECKONING—the second installment in the Children’s House series following THE LEGACY, picks right back up with the now demoted Huldar. He’s investigating a 2016 letter found in a time capsule that predicts the deaths of six people denoted only by initials. It’s probably nothing—nonsensical writings of an angry kid—but Huldar consults with child psychologist Freya, who he’s worked with (and spent the night with) before.

But as fate would have it, it does mean something. Severed limbs are discovered, threatening emails are showing up, and soon a man is killed. Ties to the letter begin to tighten as a horrific case takes shape, with the certainty that more deaths will follow.

Sigurdardóttir tackles multiple themes in this novel. First, she probes the lasting effects of trauma, and how anger and helplessness can morph into something altogether darker. The story opens with a young girl, Vaka, who waits to be picked up from school. Her father is late and so she decides to use the phone of a classmate who lives nearby. Vaka is never seen again.

We also see Sigurdardóttir take on a government who time and again fails to believe and protect children who seek help. What does that do to a child? How does it shape who they are? Who they will be? And what should become of those in power who fail them year after year?

What is so brilliant about Yrsa Sigurdardóttir’s storytelling is that she’s able to balance horrible, dark deeds unflinchingly, with profound moments/messages that serve as emotional underpinnings to her work. In addition, with threads of romance, there’s a sense that everything is thoughtfully crafted and paced with never a dull moment. And to make it all the more impressive, her characters are nuanced, flawed and intriguing.

I can’t wait to read more in this series and from this author. With proven work that’s all at once chilling and compelling, gritty and emotional, atmospheric and fast paced, she’s a must-read author who continues to get better and better.

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