Of Darkness and Light (Soli Hansen Mysteries)
A cleaning woman is found dead behind an art dealer’s shop, a piece of paper bearing the word “chiaroscuro” in her hand. A group of Resistance fighters enlists the expertise of the art dealer’s assistant, Soli Hansen. A nondescript painting hides a priceless work by Caravaggio, known as the father of chiaroscuro, the treatment of light and shadow in painting.
Of Darkness and Light is set in 1944 Norway, while the country is occupied by Nazi Germany and operatives are actively seeking and confiscating artworks for Hitler’s planned Leader’s Museum in Austria. The plot flashes back to 1608 when master painter Caravaggio becomes infatuated with the subject of a portrait, Fabiola Ruber, a Jewess.
The novel is the first in a planned series of Soli Hansen historical mysteries. Eljarbo is author of two historical novels featuring Clara Dahl, follower of witchcraft and witch hunting in 1660s Norway.
f Darkness and Light is brisk and straightforward. Soli moves quickly from murder investigation to initiation in a Norwegian underground group that ironically meets in a crypt. She interacts with a mysterious police investigator, Nikolai Lange, and German officer and art collector Heinz Walter, and anxiously seeks information about her missing brother Sverre.
The plot lacks nuance and atmosphere, however. Few bottlenecks stand in Soli’s way; opportunities appear to fall in her lap. Except for curfews, life in Oslo appears ordinary, with none of the layers of intrigue or paranoia one might expect under occupation by a foreign power. As a result, the palette leans too much toward the light, leaving little in the way of shadow.
