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Absolution
In his spellbinding first novel, acclaimed Icelandic author Olaf Olafsson takes us inside the mind of a man haunted by the crime he willed half a century earlier.
Expatriate businessman Peter Peterson left behind the trappings of a seemingly charmed a vast fortune, two children, and a stately Park Avenue address. But he also left behind another a secret from long ago that shadowed his accomplishments and estranged him from his loved ones—a crime of passion, committed in the throes of unrequited love, that became a lifetime’s burden. Yet when Peter is forced to confront the consequences of his actions, an unexpected turn of events shakes the very foundation of his past. Spanning a boyhood in Iceland to the Nazi occupation of Denmark to modern-day Manhattan, Absolution calls up Dostoevsky and Ibsen as it masterfully plumbs the darkest corners of a sinister mind and a wounded heart.
Expatriate businessman Peter Peterson left behind the trappings of a seemingly charmed a vast fortune, two children, and a stately Park Avenue address. But he also left behind another a secret from long ago that shadowed his accomplishments and estranged him from his loved ones—a crime of passion, committed in the throes of unrequited love, that became a lifetime’s burden. Yet when Peter is forced to confront the consequences of his actions, an unexpected turn of events shakes the very foundation of his past. Spanning a boyhood in Iceland to the Nazi occupation of Denmark to modern-day Manhattan, Absolution calls up Dostoevsky and Ibsen as it masterfully plumbs the darkest corners of a sinister mind and a wounded heart.
272 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1991
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About the author
Olaf Olafsson
28 books320 followersOlaf Olafsson was born in Reykjavik, Iceland in 1962. He studied physics as a Wien Scholar at Brandeis University. He is the author of three previous novels, The Journey Home, Absolution and Walking Into the Night, and a story collection, Valentines. His books have been published to critical acclaim in more than twenty languages. He is the recipient of the O. Henry Award and the Icelandic Literary Award, was shortlisted for the Frank O’Connor Prize, and has twice been nominated for the IMPAC Award. He is the Executive Vice President of Time Warner and he lives in New York City with his wife and three children.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
December 27, 2023
Thoroughly enjoyed this clever little novel. Guilt is such a corrosive thing and it does not allow absolution.
I did not think I could have kept reading the life of such flawed evil man without the dysfunction with his wives and children being so fleshed out.
The parallel life of his manuscript transcriber was also interesting.
The novel encompasses a lot with the different nationalities and historic events. Petersons paranoia and mental illness sits alongside the Nazi occupation in Denmark.
The ending made the book positively satisfying.
I did not think I could have kept reading the life of such flawed evil man without the dysfunction with his wives and children being so fleshed out.
The parallel life of his manuscript transcriber was also interesting.
The novel encompasses a lot with the different nationalities and historic events. Petersons paranoia and mental illness sits alongside the Nazi occupation in Denmark.
The ending made the book positively satisfying.
April 11, 2019
Told in the first person by a very old and dying Pétur Pétursson, an Icelandic immigrant to NYC who goes by the anglicized name of, yeah, Peter Peterson.
It's a remorseful flashback to unrequited love in Nazi-occupied Copenhagen where his jealousy gets the better of him.
He's a lying, cheating, greedy bastard. And yet sharp and conniving. And you hate him and you somehow pull for him at times and hate yourself for it.
While he recounts his evil plots, he does the deeds in totally different ways so you're still surprised, or he faces unforeseen obstacles and keeps you totally engaged until the very last turn and twist on the very last page.
I thought it started a little slow but it picked up speed and ran full sprint through the finish line. Wow.
It's a remorseful flashback to unrequited love in Nazi-occupied Copenhagen where his jealousy gets the better of him.
He's a lying, cheating, greedy bastard. And yet sharp and conniving. And you hate him and you somehow pull for him at times and hate yourself for it.
While he recounts his evil plots, he does the deeds in totally different ways so you're still surprised, or he faces unforeseen obstacles and keeps you totally engaged until the very last turn and twist on the very last page.
I thought it started a little slow but it picked up speed and ran full sprint through the finish line. Wow.
September 6, 2015
Sometimes I get in the mood for what I think of as a Nordic novel: brief, bleak, yet beautifully told. This absolutely fit the bill (though I doubt an Icelander would like to be thought of as Nordic).
This is one of those tales in which you find out what happened in the past when the narrator is ready to face up to the truth of it. Along the way, you're treated to an examination of the person's psychology, examples of the ways he or she has dealt with The Thing in the Past, or how it continues to haunt, and so on. In this case, our narrator is an aging/dying businessman who insists at the outset what he wants no absolution, that the things people say he did are either lies or things he was justified in doing, he is a strong man who takes pride in his strength, and everybody else can go to hell. Over time, the wages of aging and his memories and nightmares and the act of writing down his crimes take their toll until he sees what we have seen beneath his tough veneer for a long time: that he really does want absolution, that he was troubled by his "little crime" then and is still troubled by it now, that he regrets alienating so many people from his life.
The writing style is clear and direct, while the narrator is full of self-justification and bombast, so that what seems very simple on the surface quickly becomes something more complex. The transition the narrator makes from denying what he feels to admitting his need for absolution seems a little abrupt, but perhaps since we have been waiting for it for a long time, it may not be.
The one major problem I encountered was a passage in which he recounts a shooting. There is some suggestion that it may have only been a nightmare, but sometimes his nightmares are memories or very close to memories, so it is not clear. It is only later when he recounts his actual crime that it becomes clear that there was no shooting, and the actual crime seems less weighty by comparison. However, it was rather brilliant that after his description of his overnight encounter with "you," he describes it as the night when she attacked him. Totally in keeping with his habit of self-justification. There, we know what happened, and we can see his twisted take on it, so there is no confusion to the reader, only clarity in spite of his dissembling.
As a P.S. Since the narrator is a businessman, and the author is also described as such -- President of the Sony Electronic Publishing Company in NYC -- I have to wonder if any of the business practices Peter describes are ones the author has seen others do, or if he has engaged in such practices himself. Found this article about him, from 1994. His final quotation rings true with me, who is no fan of e-books: "The last thing I want is to read a novel off a computer screen!"
https://books.google.com/books?id=lcA...
This is one of those tales in which you find out what happened in the past when the narrator is ready to face up to the truth of it. Along the way, you're treated to an examination of the person's psychology, examples of the ways he or she has dealt with The Thing in the Past, or how it continues to haunt, and so on. In this case, our narrator is an aging/dying businessman who insists at the outset what he wants no absolution, that the things people say he did are either lies or things he was justified in doing, he is a strong man who takes pride in his strength, and everybody else can go to hell. Over time, the wages of aging and his memories and nightmares and the act of writing down his crimes take their toll until he sees what we have seen beneath his tough veneer for a long time: that he really does want absolution, that he was troubled by his "little crime" then and is still troubled by it now, that he regrets alienating so many people from his life.
The writing style is clear and direct, while the narrator is full of self-justification and bombast, so that what seems very simple on the surface quickly becomes something more complex. The transition the narrator makes from denying what he feels to admitting his need for absolution seems a little abrupt, but perhaps since we have been waiting for it for a long time, it may not be.
The one major problem I encountered was a passage in which he recounts a shooting. There is some suggestion that it may have only been a nightmare, but sometimes his nightmares are memories or very close to memories, so it is not clear. It is only later when he recounts his actual crime that it becomes clear that there was no shooting, and the actual crime seems less weighty by comparison. However, it was rather brilliant that after his description of his overnight encounter with "you," he describes it as the night when she attacked him. Totally in keeping with his habit of self-justification. There, we know what happened, and we can see his twisted take on it, so there is no confusion to the reader, only clarity in spite of his dissembling.
As a P.S. Since the narrator is a businessman, and the author is also described as such -- President of the Sony Electronic Publishing Company in NYC -- I have to wonder if any of the business practices Peter describes are ones the author has seen others do, or if he has engaged in such practices himself. Found this article about him, from 1994. His final quotation rings true with me, who is no fan of e-books: "The last thing I want is to read a novel off a computer screen!"
https://books.google.com/books?id=lcA...
August 6, 2019
A book by Olaf Olafson about Pétur Péturson might be thought likely to be Nordic or Scandi Noir, but while this story is partially set in Iceland and Denmark its theme is international. This is the story of a life lived badly, the story of man who was materially successful but whose soul was lost.
I can say only a little in a book review, as to reveal too much would mar the experience for a future reader. Suffice to say it starts at the end of Pétur Péturson's life. He has died wealthy and alone and left a manuscript detailing how a "little crime" in his youth has followed and burdened him throughout his life.
This aspect of the book is gripping. It reads like a thriller as we try to work out the crime, the victim and the motive. As he gradually reveals the history of his life we start to know what crimes he has committed and these are not only those that he confesses; in his braggadocio he reveals crimes that he does not recognize as his responsibility. As a non-believer he reports that he seeks no absolution and sees no need for atonement but his desire and need for both become apparent to the reader as the story progresses.
As we try to understand the nature of Pétur and his crime we become aware of a very black-hearted individual riven with jealousy, lust and anger and this is where the power of the novel lies. Although it concerns a lying, cheating, greedy man who is almost the epitome of a bastard, it is written in such a way that we can understand these feelings and even see part of ourselves in them. We may dislike Pétur, but we don't hate him and by the end understand him a little and hopefully also may have gained a little insight to where some of our own less gallant emotions arise. It is all very well to read about heroes and heroines, but we also need to know where our faults lie and what may be making us poorer people than we could be.
Those of you who are without sin, and have no baser aspects of character that need addressing, can still enjoy this novel as a gripping mystery. There is much that will hold your attention through to the end, where even the last pages may surprise you.
July 4, 2012
An unhappy elderly New York businessman is reflecting on his life in a series of papers intended for Gudrun, the woman who spurned his obsessive love when they were in college in Copenhagen at the beginning of WWIi. In chapters that alternate between the present and the past, Icelandic author Olaf Olafsson's paints a portrait of Peter Peterson, a miserable Scooge-like character who has mistreated his wives, children and business associates all in the pursuit of money. Gradually (perhaps too gradually) the reader learns that his unhappiness stems from the long ago betrayal and his revenge, "my little crime." Readers willing to put up with Peterson's increasingly paranoid and depressed behavior will be rewarded with a surprise ending befitting the book's title.
May 27, 2015
I think this book is a very well-written character study. Olafsson is to be commended for his writing and psychological insight: and many would rate it more highly than I did here. It is fairly nihilistic however, and personally I did not enjoy this aspect. Reading it was a similar experience for me as watching De Niro in "Taxi Driver," except not pulled off quite as brilliantly as Scorsese/Schrader.
March 17, 2015
Not my favorite among the Olafsson that I have already read, but an interesting read none-the-less.
June 2, 2024
I mean….what happened?! This is one of those endings that drive me nuts. Did he actually kill someone or didn’t he?! Someone tell me what you think!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 26, 2018
A strange and ultimately unsatisfying book by an Icelandic author (who happens to be an very successful businessman who has lived in the US most of his adult life.) An elderly man has left a manuscript written in Icelandic that is discovered upon his death and translated. This man, Peter Peterson, left Iceland in the late 1930's for Denmark to continue his schooling and to follow a girl who is/was the love of his life. When we meet him he is an ill, angry old man, critical of his family and everyone around him. Peterson is very hostile and his life is full of anger; he recounts a terrible crime he committed in Denmark, a crime that may - or may not - have really been committed. I do not feel compelled to read other books by Olafsson.
October 18, 2023
Decent story of an old Icelandic businessman's memory of a crime he committed while living in occupied Denmark during WW2. The story, full of short chapters, jumps from decade to decade, as more information is revealed and the narrator becomes more uncomfortable, and at times delirious.
The narrator is an almost unbelievable asshole - this was one detraction I have. He is fixated on his "one crime", his repentance, guilt - while ignoring his clear irascibility, rudeness, and manipulation in all other aspects of his life. To write this requires a delicate balance. Olafsson did not always succeed.
The narrator is an almost unbelievable asshole - this was one detraction I have. He is fixated on his "one crime", his repentance, guilt - while ignoring his clear irascibility, rudeness, and manipulation in all other aspects of his life. To write this requires a delicate balance. Olafsson did not always succeed.
November 17, 2025
Beautifully written, the writer is talented that is undeniable. I don’t always like the characters and don’t find I need to, in order to enjoy the book—but the main character is such a piece of work, and you spend so much time inside his head.
Well done, to write such a POS. He doesn’t even refer to his lover by name ever.
To make me hate a character, you sometimes have to be a good writer.
However I can’t give it more than 3 stars as I can’t say I enjoyed the book enough overall to give it more.
Well done, to write such a POS. He doesn’t even refer to his lover by name ever.
To make me hate a character, you sometimes have to be a good writer.
However I can’t give it more than 3 stars as I can’t say I enjoyed the book enough overall to give it more.
January 20, 2023
Á kaffistofunni um daginn sótti ég hart að Ólafi Jóhanni þegar mjúkir kollegar mínir fóru að mæra Snertingu. Þá vatt sér upp að mér góður maður sem mælti með þessari hér og sagði þessa vera gjörólíka henni. Það var auðvitað rétt og þetta er fínasta bók um glæp og refsingu og lýsingar góðar. Ég er líka pínu sökker fyrir Reykvísku borgarastéttinni.
February 20, 2021
I really liked the writing in this book. I thought he did well on the skips back and forth in time.
March 11, 2018
A man wrestles with a long ago crime.
Fave quote: "Because I lacked roots, every sign of stability was desirable, however ordinary it might have been."
Fave quote: "Because I lacked roots, every sign of stability was desirable, however ordinary it might have been."
October 14, 2019
Old man’s dying reflections on his life. Don’t normally like Icelandic authors but this one is well done.
October 3, 2020
A dark book and wondering if I understood what really happened.
January 12, 2021
Finished in Malindi after a day at Luwa in Mayungu. A dark and emotional read with a twist at the end.
March 8, 2013
A semi mystery. Through the entire book, the main character is telling his story of leaving Iceland, living in Denmark during WWWII, coming to America,etc. and some horrendous thing which no one else knows that he did. It appears that he killed someone, but we must wait until almost the last chaper to find out exactly what happened. As to why the actual author hid the manuscript which tells the story and thinks it should be hidden, I have yet to figure out.
April 7, 2013
Not quite sure what to say......found it a bit hard to follow the storyline at times (and I've read many books that jump back and forth between the present and the past) and found the reading to feel "plodding along" in a way. Have other books O.O. has written and will at some point pick each of them up to read.
November 28, 2010
Apparently it's the first book in English for this Icelandic author, and it's written so beautifully. Haunting and suspensful, but also just a really good character study of the making of a bitter old man. Olafsson manages to make me simultaneously despise and sympathize with this total asshole.
March 3, 2012
This story kept me wondering what happened, what was his "little crime", until I started to worry about the narrator's mental health, then... Can't say any more. It was an unusual and very interesting read - hoping to find more books by this author to add to my reading list!
August 10, 2012
Excellent writing. This was his first (in US) so clearly not as mature a novel as his most recent, but very good. Very lyrical really, and a poignant look at the way a misunderstood incident can shape a whole life of guilt, paranoia, selfishness, and regret.
February 23, 2013
Compulsive reading it says on the front cover blurb. And it's true. This book held my attention from beginning to end. So many emotions, so many puzzles, so many twists and turns. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
May 16, 2015
'At sea, people are neither as they were at home nor as they will be at the end of the journey. The mind is altered. Those waving goodbye from a ship are transformed the moment they vanish from sight.'
July 6, 2013
very well written. Mysterious, at times depressing.
October 21, 2016
Couldn't get into it
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews