North of Boston

Year''s Best Crime Novels: 2014, Booklist

Dennis Lehane meets Smilla''s Sense of Snow: a big discovery in the world of female suspense, about an edgy young woman with the rare ability to withstand extreme conditions

Elisabeth Elo''s debut novel introduces Pirio Kasparov, a Boston-bred tough-talking girl with an acerbic wit and a moral compass that points due north.

Pirio Kasparov finds herself abandoned in the North Atlantic when the fishing boat she''s on is rammed by a freighter. She somehow survives for nearly four hours in the freezing water before being rescued, but Pirio''s friend, Ned, is not so lucky. He disappears without a trace. Pirio can''t shake the suspicion that the boat''s sinking was no accident, and begins to unravel a lethal plot that takes her to Northern Canada and the ice-cold waters of Baffin Bay. To survive, she must overcome a deadly betrayal from someone in her past, and, most importantly, learn to trust her own instincts above all else.

Elisabeth Elo''s mesmerising novel follows a dark and treacherous quest that brings to light some horrifying truths.