Gripping from the very start, the story’s surprising chain of events keep the reader in suspense.

Rosa, a young woman living with her sick mother in a village in 17th Century Iceland, agrees to marry Jon, a wealthy man from a faraway community, because he will send food and supplies to her family when they marry. Even though she loves Pall, a childhood friend, she goes to live with her husband, who works hard and is very stern and secretive. Rosa is afraid of her husband and Petur, Jon’s helper. She knows that Jon’s first wife Anna has died mysteriously, and becomes suspicious. She becomes even more anxious when she hears strange noises coming from the loft.

“The sky was a wide blue eye above her. When it paled, near midnight, the sun would skim below the edge of the horizon, then resurface in a blink, shedding a milky half-light.”
“We walked back to the croft in silence. The witnessing moon sailed above, wide-eyed and watchful.”

Quotes from the book.

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• Readings: “This is a great historical mystery that uses Iceland’s pastoral landscape to its advantage. As the snow builds so does the mystery, and it is only when the ice melts that the truth is revealed.”