{"product_id":"the-cold-song-isbn-9781635425093","title":"The Cold Song","description":"\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e Notable Book of the Year, this subtle psychological thriller explores the gray areas between innocence and guilt, truth and lies.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSiri Brodal, a chef and restaurant owner, is married to Jon Dreyer, a famous novelist plagued by writer’s block. Siri and Jon have two daughters, and together they spend their summers on the coast of Norway, in a mansion belonging to Jenny Brodal, Siri’s stylish and unforgiving mother.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSiri and Jon’s marriage is loving but difficult, and troubled by painful secrets. They have a strained relationship with their elder daughter, Alma, who struggles to find her place in the family constellation. When Milla is hired as a nanny to allow Siri to work her long hours at the restaurant and Jon to supposedly meet the deadline on his book, life in the idyllic summer community takes a dire turn. One rainy July night, Milla disappears without a trace. After her remains are discovered and a suspect is identified, everyone who had any connection with her feels implicated in her tragedy and haunted by what they could have done to prevent it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMore than an absorbing mystery, \u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e is a story about telling stories and about how life is continually invented and reinvented.“Ullmann’s voice on the page is a lean, tough-minded thing, scrubbed and scoured of sentimentality straight through to the final, Carveresque pages, in which she pulls off an 11th- hour radiance, a tonal shift from minor to major key. The novel’s charm lies in these idiosyncratic glints, these glimmers of queer wit, uncensored scorn or sudden, unstinting sympathy.” —\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Ullmann is very good at evoking the peculiar, charged stasis of a household in which mentally active and intellectually vital people are resolutely failing to communicate with each other—the loneliness of communality, in short. She is a very exact writer, who is unsparing of her characters: a tonic, sharp, lyrical, intelligent novelist who deserves to be better-known in English.” —\u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker Page-Turner Blog\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Ullmann’s rural Norway is an unfussy place, eloquent for its starkness, much like the spare language she paints it with. Her stage is less about physical place than mood and one’s place in the familial symmetry. While much happens in this novel, the events feel secondary. The prose is taut, yet the pace is languid as summer in that before-the-storm tension…The real achievement of this novel is Ullmann’s gift to imbue the tension of a thriller via the unease of the mundane…Yes, a murder occurs, but \u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e is more a mystery in the way most families tend to be mysteries unto themselves.” —\u003ci\u003eMinneapolis Star Tribune\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e“\u003c\/i\u003eDisturbingly tangled and riveting Norwegian fiction…Linn Ullmann’s \u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song \u003c\/i\u003ereads like a cross between a psychological thriller and a grim fairy tale, the kind that takes place in a big house haunted by angry parents, lonely children and secrets ranging from the ordinary to the catastrophic.” —\u003ci\u003eMore \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e“\u003c\/i\u003e[A] dark, lyrical novel with a firecracker of a beginning...Ullmann...is a forceful, exquisite talent.” —\u003ci\u003eOprah.com\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e“\u003c\/i\u003eThe fifth novel by an award-winning Norwegian author and critic deserves to win her a much larger stateside readership.” —\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews \u003c\/i\u003e(starred review)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e“\u003c\/i\u003eIntriguing...Ullmann teeters between dark comedy of manners and genuine psychological thriller, but she consistently captures the telling moments in everyday encounters, and writes seductively complex characters.” —\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A deeply moving story of troubled relationships and unsettled memories.” —\u003ci\u003eBooklist.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song \u003c\/i\u003edoesn't so much unfold as it \u003ci\u003erevolves\u003c\/i\u003e, around the sudden disappearance of Milla, the young and beautiful summer nanny hired to take care of Siri and Jon's two children. The real ‘meat’ of the novel rests in its keen and unflinching exposure of the inner lives of its characters, revealed in brief spurts of narrative that shift back and forth in time. The result is riveting.” —\u003ci\u003eBookpage \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Ullmann deftly slips beneath the skin of her characters, depicting their wounds and worries in subtle gradations of tone and texture. \u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e remains a captivating, hybrid book.” —\u003ci\u003eSFGate.com\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“In her latest heart-stopper, internationally bestselling author Ullmann, (who lives in Oslo), combines a mysterious murder with a razor-sharp eye for family relationships.” —\u003ci\u003eReader’s Digest\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“In \u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song, \u003c\/i\u003eLinn Ullmann explores the events surrounding a young woman’s murder in brief, haunting flashes that imbue the intimacies and betrayals of family life with the brooding magic of a Grimm’s fairy tale. This delicate, mesmerizing work attests to Ullmann's vast storytelling powers.” —Jennifer Egan, winner of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the 2010 National Book Critics Circle Award\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Contrary to popular belief, a death is not merely an end but the beginning of a story. The death in \u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e opens a Pandora’s box of human emotions, conflicts and deceptions. Readers of this novel will be reminded of the joys and complexities of living. Memories, laughter, gestures, trivialities—everything casts a shadow, and nothing leaves us safe. Linn Ullmann has mastered the art of seeing into the dark mysteries that make us who we are.” —Yiyun Li, award-winning author of \u003ci\u003eThe Vagrants \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eKinder Than Solitude\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e“The Cold Song \u003c\/i\u003eis a fluid, shape-shifting novel, a family saga that turns into an erotically charged drama and then takes a darker turn into the terrain of a murder mystery. Linn Ullmann is an unusually talented and sympathetic writer, able to inhabit a wide range of characters and bring them all vividly to life.” —Tom Perrotta, author of \u003ci\u003eNine Inches: Stories \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThe Leftovers\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e is a wonderful book, like a family album made by a photographer who really cares for his subjects…The book has the light but also the weight of a Bergman film. It doesn't offer easy solutions but still has a kind of healing power.” —Peter Stamm, finalist for the Man Booker International Prize 2013 and author of \u003ci\u003eWe’re Flying \u003c\/i\u003eand\u003ci\u003e Seven Years\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e recounts the unfolding of a large tragedy that has already happened—the mysterious disappearance of Milla, an adolescent girl—while also showing the smaller tragedy of a faltering marriage. Combining the tension of a whodunit with the subtlety of a domestic drama, Ullmann’s riveting novel is measured, impeccably observed, and utterly chilling.” —Rebecca Mead, author of \u003ci\u003eMy Life in Middlemarch\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Linn Ullmann’s \u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song \u003c\/i\u003eis a haunting novel about all the ways we endeavor to love and be loved, and the many mistakes we can make while trying. It's suspenseful and beautifully written and so absorbing that I could not put it down. When I finished reading it, I remained in a state of awe.” —Vendela Vida, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Lovers \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eLet the Northern Lights Erase Your Name\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“[\u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e is] a psychological tour de force—not a beat wrong. The ending crept up on me, so quiet and unexpected. It’s a brilliant scene, with everybody locked in character—in the \u003ci\u003ehuit clos\u003c\/i\u003e finality of character—and it hits you the minute you put the book down. I stayed up half last night finishing it, and now I’m sitting bleary-eyed at my desk, paying for the pleasure.” —Jane Kramer, author of \u003ci\u003eEuropeans \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThe Politics of Memory\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eThe Cold Song\u003c\/i\u003e is a superb psychological mystery and a must for anyone who enjoys the genre. The writing is excellent. The switches between the time of the murder, the discovery of the body, and subsequent developments are many, but they fit together seamlessly. Highly recommended.” —John A. Broussard, \u003ci\u003eI Love A Mystery\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eLinn Ullmann \u003c\/b\u003eis an award-winning author, journalist, and literary critic. She has published five other novels in thirty-three languages, all of them critically acclaimed international bestsellers: \u003ci\u003eBefore You Sleep\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eStella Descending\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eGrace\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eA Blessed Child\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eUnquiet\u003c\/i\u003e. Ullmann is a cofounder and former artistic director of the international artist residency foundation of The Bergman Estate on Fårö. She lives in Oslo with her husband and children.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBarbara J. Haveland\u003c\/b\u003e translates fiction, poetry, and drama by leading Danish and Norwegian writers such as Peter Høeg, Ib Michael, and Jan Kjærstad. Recent projects include new translations of Ibsen’s \u003ci\u003eThe Master Builder\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLittle Eyolf\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eA Doll’s House\u003c\/i\u003e. She lives in Denmark.But something was wrong. Siri held her breath. It had to do with Milla. Or something else. But Milla definitely had something to do with it. Her presence here at Mailund. The slightly lumpish body, the long dark hair (long dark hairs on the kitchen counter, in the bathroom sink, between the sofa and the sofa cushions, on the base-boards and doorframes), her face, sometimes pretty, sometimes not, beseeching eyes.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e More and more Siri found herself having to concentrate in order to keep herself in check—was that the expression? Keep oneself in check? Be one. One body, one voice, one mouth, one thread, and not fall apart, dissolve, collapse in a heap.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Your main responsibility,” Siri said, “will be to look after Liv for five hours or so every day. But we’d be grateful if you’d keep an eye on Alma as well. Alma’s twelve. She’s”—Siri searched for the right word —“a bit of a loner.”\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Milla laughed hesitantly, brushed the hair back from her pretty moon face and said that she thought it all sounded really great.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e It was a mild, bright day in May and Siri had invited Milla to the house in Oslo. The idea was for them to get to know each other a little better before the summer. Alma was at school, Liv was at nursery school, and Jon had gone for a long walk with Leopold. Something about a chapter he was having trouble writing.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e Milla had replied to the ad on the Internet for a summer job and Siri had been taken with her application. In her e-mail she came across as a happy, friendly, reliable girl. \u003ci\u003eIt would be fantastic to get to know all of you and be able to be part of your family this summer. If I get the job I’ll do my best to be a good “big sister” to your daughters so that you and your husband won’t have to worry when you’re at work.\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"Other Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48233642983653,"sku":"NP9781635425093","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781635425093.jpg?v=1767738727","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/the-cold-song-isbn-9781635425093","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}