THE ICE COVEN

A Helsinki detective fights personal demons as she attempts to crack a string of murders.

Jessica Niemi still hasn’t recovered from the loss of her boss and mentor in The Witch Hunter (2020), and she’s still keeping big secrets from her fellow homicide squad members. The only survivor of a family car crash, Jessica inherited a large fortune, but she doesn't want her colleagues to know that she lives in her family's mansion, or that her dead mother often appears to her there—so she meets with them in a tiny apartment in an adjoining building. A talented detective, Jessica has a tenuous relationship with all her teammates except for Yusuf, her partner. Though her ambitious new boss dislikes her, she assigns her the case of Lisa Yamamoto and Jason Nervander, missing influencers who have huge social media followings. Lisa vanished after attending a party for a pop star. Her apartment is filled with her artwork, manga-style drawings of young girls dressed in school uniforms. Her roommate, Essi, claims to have no clue where she might be. So when a dead body dressed as a schoolgirl is found in the water with no obvious cause of death, Jessica has to wonder if there’s a connection. Every bit of technical wizardry and evidence from interviews suggest a link to a prostitution ring rife with sadomasochism. But Jessica refuses to give up even though her life’s in danger and she fears that her mental problems could force her to resign.

A disturbing mystery whose complex heroine’s internal struggles only enhance the storyline.