Through Three Rooms by Sven Elvestad - Translated by Lucy Moffatt - Intro by Nils Nordberg - #bookreview @LucyTranslator.

One winter evening some three years ago, Asbjorn Krag was sitting by the fireplace in his apartment, leafing through a huge folder of documents he had received from one of his clients. The lamp cast a sharp light on the papers, which were many and various - yellowed letters, diverse accounts, numerous telegrams. Suddenly the detective gave a start: a ring at the doorbell.

Krag put down the papers. A man's voice was audible in the hall.

Surmising that the new arrival was a client, the detective quickly stood up, dimmed and then doused the lamp...

***

When an old school friend whisks private detective, Asbjørn Krag away by train to an isolated snow-covered manor house, his curiosity is aroused.

John Aakerholm, a wealthy landowner with peculiar tastes, refuses to disclose why he is utterly terrified. Every evening at midnight he retires to bed, locking himself within three different chambers - and access is strictly forbidden. When a shocking murder takes place, Krag must use his sharp wit and skills to uncover the killer before he strikes again.

A brilliantly ingenious story, Through Three Rooms amply displays Elvestad's gift for storytelling and style. Available in English for the very first time, this book will delight fans of vintage crime fiction. This new translation features an introduction by Nils Nordberg, radio drama producer and Norwegian authority on crime fiction.

***

This novella is part of a series in the Asbjorn Krag mysteries. Originally published in Norway in 1915, this is the first time it has been translated into English.

It is a country house murder mystery whose main character, John Aakerholm, fears for his life. It is a clever story and the mystery surrounding Aakerholm's bedroom which can only be accessed via three different locked rooms kept me guessing until the end.

However, I did guess who the murderer was but not the reason behind it. It is very much dialogue led and I could easily envisage this as a play script. 

Being so short, it moved along at a brisk pace. This could easily be read in a single sitting and was both enjoyable and entertaining.

It has been expertly tranlated by Lucy Moffatt and includes an interesting and informative introduction by Nils Nordberg.

This will delight fans of the traditional crime story. The publisher, Kabaty Press, have several other of this series in their catalogue and I would love to read more of them.

ISBN:  978 8396616623

Publisher:  Kabaty Press

Formats:  e-book, hardback and paperback

No. of Pages:  140 (paperback)

About the Author:

Sven Elvestad (1884-1934) was born Kristoffer Elvestad Svendsen and also wrote under the pseudonym Stein Riverton. During a golden age for Norwegian crime fiction, Elvestad reigned supreme as the King of Crime in northern Europe. He wrote close to 100 books, with several published in as many as 17 languages. His masterpiece The Iron Chariot, published in 1909, anticipated by 16 years a twist later used by Agatha Christie in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.

​Elvestad became an international celebrity. With a tall and distinct appearance, as well as a passion for food, drink and tobacco, he was popular with painters and cartoonists. He changed his name after being caught embezzling from his employer as a young man and took up a second career as a journalist. He was the first foreign journalist to interview Adolf Hitler and often played a colourful part in his own stories, once spending a day in a circus lion’s cage.

Although reprints of his books have been few and far between in the years since, his pseudonym inspired the name of the Norwegian Crime Writers’ Association, Rivertonklubben, the Riverton Club, a society for the cultivation and improvement of crime writing. A special honorary Riverton prize is reserved for distinguished service for Norwegian crime fiction. There is also an honorary international Riverton prize which is given out occasionally, among its recipients are PD James, Maj Sjöwall and Henning Mankell.

About the Translator:

Lucy Moffatt is an award-winning translator (Norwegian and Spanish into English). She won a 2014 John Dryden Prize for her translation of an excerpt of a novella by Hans Herbjørnsrud and she was awarded the NORLA Translator’s Award in 2020.

 

(Book, photos and all author/translator bio info courtesy of the publicist)