Kalmann

Kalmann Óðinsson is the self-proclaimed sheriff of a dying village in the northernmost tip of Iceland. People think the cogs in his head sometimes turn backwards, but he pays them no mind. He was raised in Raufarhöfn by his grandfather, who taught him all the important things in life, like how to dress when it’s raining, how to move silently through nature, and how not to fall out of a boat into the sea.

 Day after day, Kalmann roams the surrounding plains hunting Arctic foxes. In the sea, he lays bait for sharks, whose meat he ferments to make the second-best hákarl on the entire island. One frosty day, he discovers a fresh pool of blood in the snow. At the same time, local tycoon Róbert McKenzie, the “King of Raufarhöfn”, hotelier and owner of all the fishing quotas, is reported missing. Could it be murder? And while the police search for clues, journalists hunt for a sensation, and the Lithuanian mafia gets involved, Kalmann is determined to uncover the truth at all costs – armed with his cowboy hat, sheriff’s star, and an old Mauser rifle. With his simple wisdom and the courage of a pure heart, he can turn the tide on all evil. This is one Icelandic Fargo you won’t forget in a hurry!

Joachim B. Schmidt

Born in 1981 to a farmer's family in the Swiss canton of Graubünden, he later moved to Iceland and has lived with his family in Reykjavík since 2007. He is the author of several novels and short stories, runs a travel blog, and works as a tourist guide in Iceland. His novel Kalmann (PROSTOR 2023) was a huge success with readers and has received numerous prestigious awards, including the German Crime Cologne Award.

 Schmidt's previous prose is also set in Iceland and is rich in suspense and dark humour: Close to the Coast (In Küstennähe, 2013), A Soldier Sits at the Table (Am Tisch sitzt ein Soldat, 2014), and Moss Whisper (Moosflüstern, 2017).

 The author's latest work to date, Tell (2022), is a modern retelling of the myth of the Swiss folk hero William Tell.