Crime & thriller

The Parchment

Gert Nygårdshaug

The Norwegian professor and cryptologist Linus Lindehage is found murdered in an Oslo apartment on the very evening he is scheduled to deliver a lecture at the prestigious scientific institution, The Royal Society in London—where he is set to make a sensational revelation regarding the contents of a mysterious medieval manuscript known as the Voynich manuscript. It is the eccentric KRIPOS investigator Skarphedin Olsen who inadvertently stumbles upon the professor’s body, landing a case that soon proves to have sinister ramifications. The detective and his team are faced with a near-insoluble criminal puzzle that ultimately builds to a highly dramatic and surprising conclusion. And back in time, in the 15th century, a monk sits writing in a monastery in Italy... "The Parchment is delightfully playful, a book that satisfies every expectation I could have for an intelligent, well-written crime story (…) It is superb both in the minute details, across the wide cast of characters—and in the truly grand strokes."Adresseavisen "The Parchment contains some nods to other books in the same genre, such as Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code and the works of Tom Egeland, yet it sets itself apart because it is so unpretentious and astute all at once. Pure enjoyment."Oppland Arbeiderblad "It is an absolute pleasure to read a crime story told this elegantly (…) Much like a well-composed feast, The Parchment will surely leave the reader both sated and delighted."VG