BOOK TOUR STOP x RANDOM THINGS TOURS: Scars of Silence by Johana Gustawsson

Dressed in a white tunic and adorned with candles, a teenager is found dead on the island of Lidingö, his skill smashed in. Twenty-three years earlier, a young girl was also found murdered in the same place, in the same garments, traditionally intended to celebrate Saint Lucia. At the time, the victim's boyfriend was convicted of her murder, which he has always denied.

Was he innocent? Has the real culprit struck again? But why now?

Commissioner Aleksander Storm, with the unexpected help of French policewoman Maïa Rehn who recently moved to Sweden, stubbornly attempts to untangle the bizarre case and, in the process, uncovers a long-buried secret that holds the key to a deeper, darker mystery that will put everyone at risk…

The lidingö mysteries saga continues with Gustawsson's latest offering of another atmospheric, twisted gothic crime thriller. Set against the same beautifully frozen, isolated backdrop as the prior, it has all the dark, devilish things I loved about Yule Island but has it's own standalone story, new characters and new murders to solve.

Gustawssons crime thrillers are always so very rooted in the real-life evils of men, the way people can become monsters - it's always very real but has a mystical, otherworldly feel to them that makes it rather special to experience. The stories themselves border on outlandish, with convoluted, complex plots and dramatic reveals that almost feel too much but she always manages to pull them off.

We follow Maia and Aleks as they share the narration, as they find themselves drawn into solving a brutal murder that feels somewhat familiar, mixing police procedurals, detective work and high-stakes fear as the pace slowly picks up as the plot moves along creating a real anticipation and anxiety about if they can not only solve the murder, but survive the investigation too. Both characters were beautifully written, their own personal storylines used to start carefully handled discussions about grief and loss, showcasing the way that some things are universal experiences but look different to every single one of us.

Poetic, vivid and engaging; this is an enchantingly horrifying thriller and another reason Johana is one of auto-reads.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Scars of Silence is available with Orenda Books from November 20th 2025.
This title contains potentially sensitive content including suicide, traffic accidents, loss of a child and violence.

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