Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

I remember a lot of my classmates were assigned this book at some point in elementary school. Our class never read it, but I'm glad I picked it up now! This is a great fictional introduction to World War II for younger readers. While it avoids any sort of graphic images, it does still portray the fear and violence civilians faced during the conflict. I also learned a bit of history I didn't know about-the mass resistance of Danes by sneaking most Jews out of their country to Sweden. This book is really good, for any age!

137 pages

Read Harder Challenge Task #20

The Girl in the Ice; a Konrad Simonsen Thriller by Lotte and Soren Hammer

This is the second novel featuring Konrad Simonsen, a sharp but somewhat jaded Danish detective.  The novel begins with the discovery of a gruesome murder, a female victim who was strangled and buried in the ice in Greenland, who is only discovered because of melting due to global warming.  This victim's discovery leads Simonsen and his unit to reexamine some earlier cases, and a chase for a very psychotic serial killer ensues.  This is fast-paced, with good plot twists.  While set in Denmark, there is not very much feeling for the locale.  Translated, 435 pages.

The Purity of Vengeance: A Department Q Novel, By Jussi Adler-Olsen

In this Department Q novel, Detective Carl Mørck is presented the case of a brothel owner, Rita, who went missing in the 1980s.  His assistants, Assad and Rose uncover evidence that several people went missing during the same weekend, which arouses Carl's interest in the case. Like peeling an onion, the uncover layer upon layer of evidence, and the case brings them closer and closer to Curt Wad, who was once a young surgeon involved in a movement to sterilize young women, and who is now leader of a political movement calling for racial purity.  It is an intriguing case that nearly costs Assad and Carl their own lives.
528 pages, translated from Danish