The Fires: Love & Other Disasters

This fiercely wrought thriller from Björnsdóttir (Island) perfectly balances science and psychology. Anna Arnardóttir, Iceland’s foremost volcanologist, has been married 20-some years to her “dear husband,” a tax accountant, and is the devoted mother of a 23-year-old son and an eight-year-old daughter, but personal and professional troubles loom. In 2020, both Anna’s long-suppressed emotions and the Reykjanes Ridge, “built up over time along the plate boundary of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge,” are in danger of erupting. The ridge has been quaking for three weeks when Anna meets Tómas Adler, a freelance photographer. Sparks begin to fly between them as Iceland’s Scientific Council is revamped to include bureaucrats who insist volcanic eruptions are vitally lucrative tourist attractions. Though Anna suspects a major eruption threatens Reykjavík, she fails to issue a disaster warning; meanwhile, she yields to lust for Tómas, with devastating consequences. Björnsdóttir smoothly integrates geological and historical information about Iceland’s volcanos into the action. This explosive tale of adulterous passion is not just for Scandi noir fans. Agent: Sophia Hersi Smith, Copenhagen Literary (Denmark). (Jan.)