“The night before he died he didn’t sleep much. Or did he sleep at all? Didn’t his dream mean that he had slept? Or wasn’t it a dream? When he woke up, the fear was still tangible. If he woke up. If he had indeed slept. The corpse was unrecognizable. At any rate, he couldn’t identify it at first glance.”

All three of them had been awaiting this day and dreaded its coming. She will try, against the odds, to keep her promise. He doubts that the truth will set them free. Frida insists the secret that shattered their lives will be revealed.

Arni Thorarinsson strikes out on a new path in his writing career with this novel, a chiselled and haunting story about twenty-four fateful hours in the life of a family.

Chapters in English available

• Prix des Lecteurs at the Festival du Polar de Villeneuve – Lez – Avignon

“Unforgettable characters that wrestle with
an unbearable fate. Masterfully written.”
ARNI MATTHIASSON /MORGUNBLADID

“Here Arni Thorarinsson shows a new side where his mastery
of narrative skills is displayed to the full. A gripping story.”
KATRIN JAKOBSDOTTIR, PRIME MINISTER OF ICELAND