American By Day

By Derek B. Miller

A gripping and timely novel that follows Sigrid—the dry-witted detective from Derek B. Miller’s best-selling debut Norwegian by Night—from Oslo to the United States on a quest to find her missing brother.

She knew it was a weird place. She’d heard the stories, seen the movies, read the books. But now police Chief Inspector Sigrid Ødegård has to leave her native Norway and actually go there; to that land across the Atlantic where her missing brother is implicated in the mysterious death of a prominent African American academic—America.

Sigrid is plunged into a United States where race and identity, politics and promise, reverberate in every aspect of daily life. Working with—or, if necessary, against—the police, she must negotiate the local political minefields and navigate the backwoods of the Adirondacks to uncover the truth before events escalate further.

Refreshingly funny, slyly perceptive, American by Day is “a superb novel on all levels” (Times, UK).

“Ingenious. Humorous. Wonderful.”—Lee Child

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Apr 3, 2018
• ISBN: 9781328876737

Derek B. Miller

Derek B. Miller is an American novelist, who worked in international affairs before turning to writing full-time. He is the author of five previous novels, all highly acclaimed: Norwegian by Night, The Girl in Green, American by Day, Radio Life and Quiet Time (an Audible Original). His work has been shortlisted for many awards, with Norwegian by Night winning the CWA John Creasey Dagger Award for best first crime novel, an eDunnit Award and the Goldsboro Last Laugh Award. How to Find Your Way in the Dark was a Finalist for the National Jewish Book Award and a New York Times best mystery of 2021.  Derek B. Miller is a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College (BA), Georgetown (MA) and he earned his Ph.D. summa cum laude in international relations from The Graduate Institute in Geneva with post-graduate work at Oxford. He is currently connected to numerous peace and security research and policy centers in North America, Europe and Africa, and he worked with the United Nations for over a decade. He has lived abroad for over twenty-five years in Israel, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Switzerland, Norway and Spain.

Reviews for American By Day

[deltaqueen50 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thoroughly enjoyed American By Day as it reacquainted us with Sigrid Odegard, the detective in Norwegian by Night as she embarks on a quest to America to locate her missing brother in upstate New York. She arrives and meets with the local sheriff, Irving Wylie, who is also trying to find her brother, Marcus, as he is implicated in the mysterious death of a black American professor. The story is less of a mystery and more of a slyly perceptive lesson in American history in the area of race and identity, politics and police procedures. Sigrid knows her brother is innocent, but she must uncover the truth before the events escalate into gun-play. Working both with and against the police at various times she nevertheless manages to make a solid link with Irv Wylie and together they make a formidable pair.The author uses humor to make his point and move this imaginative and entertaining story along. I found American By Day an enjoyable read that made some very valid points about freedom, race, grief and individuality.

[auntieg0412 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In this follow-up to Norwegian by Night, Miller writes about some tough issues with grace and a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor. It’s a pleasant read.

[annbury_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is an interesting novel, following on the wonderful "Norwegian By Night". Norwegian cop Sigrid Odegard goes to the US to find her brother, who has disappeared under mysterious circumstances. What she finds and who she finds it with is an absorbing journey. The novel explores America's deepest issues -- race and "Americanness" -- which become entwined in the story. The characters are compelling and multidimensional, and at times very funny. At times, the discussion of what's peculiar about America can be distracting, but it is genuinely thought provoking. A good novel.

[carolfoisset · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is even better than Norwegian by Night- engrossing story line and characters that you hope to hear more about. I immediately checked to see if he is writing another book - good news yes, but a little disappointed that it is going back in time and features a character from Norwegian. I did enjoy Sheldon, but I really got attached to characters from this book (Irv, and Sigrids whole family) yet I'm sure that Miller wont disappoint in his next book.

[judithrs · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

American by Day. Derek B. Miller. 2018. This almost sequel to Norwegian by Night is lighter than the usual Norse Noir. Most of it takes place in upstate New York. Chief Inspector Sigrid Odegard goes home to her father’s farm to recover emotionally from having killed a man in the line of duty (Actually the man she killed is the main character in Norwegian by Night.). Her father has plan ticket for her, and sends her to New York State to find her brother, Marcus, who has disappeared. Sheriff Irving Wylie is looking for Marcus to question him about the mysterious death of his Marcus’ lover an African-American and a professor of race relations at the local college. Sigrid and Irv take turns out smarting each other and eventually find Marcus and clear him of his lover’s death. Irving Wylie is a delightful character. He has a master’s degree in theology and sprinkles his police jargon with quotes from the Bible, Thomas Aquinas, and Augustine. Differences between police procedures and race relations in Norway and the U.S.; America during the Obama/McCain campaign; and comparisons between American and Norwegian fast food, clothing, and weather are interspersed with witty repartee between Sigrid and Irv. It isn’t necessary to have read Norwegian by Night before reading this but it was a great book too! My copy is and Advance Reading copy and is full of typos.

[jetangen4571 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

punfest, snark-fest, mystery, murder-investigation, twisty -----*She is foreign, he can't place the accent though. The three most common foreign accents up here in upstate New York are French Canadian, Mexican, and Brooklyn, and she doesn't sound like any of the three. *That should give a clue about the humor! The mystery itself is quite well done, the suspense is fueled by red herrings, and plot twists, and each of the characters certainly are. The publisher's blurb gives hints and there is no need for spoilers, but the humor and godawful puns will keep you chortling long after the read is finished!I received a free copy in a Goodreads Giveaway. PS. We are Norsk.

[atticusfinch1048 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

American by Day – A touch of class.Derek B. Miller follows up his highly successful debut with a touch of class, in this brilliant thriller with a nod to Scandi Noir, American By Day. The prose flows like water and is as smooth as silk, this could easily be placed amongst literary thrillers as it crosses both genres easily and at no time do you feel being preached at.While we must work out whodunnit, we are given a psychological study of small town American policing, boarding on the paramilitary. While asking how a white police officer can shoot a child who is playing with his friends and then not be brought up on a charge. Drilling down into how united the United States really is when there are clear dividing lines between rich and poor, black and white. This is a book reflecting on society while there is a story of two foreigners out of their depth.Chief Inspector Sigrid Ødegård is taking a well-deserved holiday, especially after recent events, when she had to shoot an offender. She needs to rest and get herself back together and the best place for that is her father’s farm in Northern Norway. When she gets there, she finds her father is worried about her older brother, Markus, who has gone missing. He wants Sigrid to find him and has bought a flight ticket to America to find him.When Sigrid eventually arrives at Markus’ house he is long gone and needs to find the local sheriff, which she does. Sheriff Irving Wylie, could have come straight from central casting, a god fearing, cowboy boot wearing, sheriff to serve Jefferson County, New York. Both are suspicious of each other and their motives in Marcus’ case. To Americans he is a wanted murderer, who should be shot on site, to Sigrid he is her brother and there may be more to this than meets the eye.Eventually a strange partnership between Irv and Sigrid, seems to work the case, while respecting each other. Irv who is trying to control the forces that wish to crack a nut with a sledgehammer while recognising this will not actually solve anything.This is a brilliant book as you look at the American psyche during the 2008 election and the dividing lines in American life. With touches of comedy relieving the tension and aimed at the right characters just simply adds to the story. This is simply a crime story you will want everyone to read and enjoy, while opening their minds, and sometimes not charging in like a bull in a china shop really is the best option.

[cathyskye · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

American by Day is loosely connected with Derek B. Miller's Norwegian by Night, a book that I loved. Sigrid was the police officer in charge of tracking down octogenarian Sheldon Horowitz, and now she has her own story. She's still recuperating from how that last investigation turned out, and in many ways, she's not ready to conduct another manhunt, but the missing man is her brother, and so she must. Sigrid is a deep thinker. For example, she wonders if she would've done the same thing in her (Norwegian by Night) investigation if the knife-wielding man had been a native Norwegian. As she tries to find her brother in the United States shortly before Barack Obama is elected president in 2008, she also finds herself thinking, "What would Sheldon do?" Her American counterpart is another deep thinker, Sheriff Irving Wylie, and their philosophical talks touch upon many subjects like race and guns. The sheriff finds this particular Norwegian to be fascinating and unusual. At first, he even wonders if she has Asperger's Syndrome, and when Sigrid says things like "It's hard to ignore the moose sitting on your waffle," he's just plain baffled. But he's enjoying himself because he's not your usual bumpkin country cop.American by Day is a good story, and I liked the interaction between Sigrid and the sheriff, but-- probably because I've been paying too much attention to the present state of this country-- those philosophical talks about race and gun control dragged the story down for me. Miller wanted his book to be more than a simple mystery about tracking down an alleged killer. He had some important things to say, and he said them. Unfortunately, I was more in the mood for a simple mystery. If you're in the right mood, I think this is a book you could really enjoy.

[beamis12 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

We last left Sigrid in [book:Norwegian by Night|15775210], after the end of a case that seriously impacted her professionally and personally. In this outing Sigrid comes to Jefferson County in search of her brother, at the request of her father. She finds her brother wanted by the police in the mysterious death of a black woman. She meets Irving Wiley, former divinity student, now elected Sheriff of the County where the death occurred. She also gets a first hand look at race relations and other oddities of a country that shares little with her home country of Norway.I love this author's writing style, amusing at times, witty, but incredibly insightful. His characters are well rounded, very different people, and Wiley is one of the best new characters invented in my many reads. He is honest, can quote scripture with the best of them and can be impassioned in his arguments, but he is also able to balance his communities needs, finding novel ways to tamper down tensions. Using Sigrid, the author shows us the many ways Norway differs from the USA., Showing us how little some of the things happening here make little sense. I liked this aspect of the novel, but can see where some readers might not. Sigrid herself is loyal, clever, and not above voicing her opinion.This a a great mix of story and character. Will appeal to those who do not like mysteries, simply because this is so much more. It is also character driven and somewhat of a social commentary. This is an author I have come to love, all three of his books for me have been fantastic reading experiences.Can't wait to see where he takes us next.ARC from Netgalley.

[sleahey_3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the welcome follow-up of Norway by Night and continues the story of Sigrid Odegard, the detective from the earlier book, although it certainly stands alone. Sigrid is having a difficult time recovering from the violent outcome of her earlier case and is on a leave of absence from her job. This is fortunate, because her brother Marcus has gone missing in the United States, and her father has bought her a plane ticket to go find him. Sigrid learns that her brother disappeared following the suspicious death of his girlfriend, a PhD African American professor in upstate New York, and in fact Marcus is the prime suspect in her murder. Along the way, Sigrid meets the local sheriff, and after a rocky start the two of them work together to try to find Marcus in the wilderness before an over-zealous swat team does. The detective work and suspense in this book make it a page-turner, the procedural insights add a fascinating dimension, and the character development and fine writing elevate it to literary fiction. Readers will be eager for the next installment.