THE LOST HOUSE

Obsession prompts Agnes Glin to journey from California, where she’s lived her whole life, to remote Bifröst, Iceland, in response to an offer from passionate true crime podcaster Nora Carver. Agnes’ grandfather, Einar Pálsson, was the chief suspect in one of Iceland’s most notorious unsolved cases, the murder of his wife, Marie Hvass, and their infant daughter, Agnes Einarsdóttir, immortalized in a haunting photograph as the “Frozen Madonna and Child.” This horror has cast a shadow over the Glin family for decades. Because her own near-fatal surfing accident has necessitated a long recovery and led to what Agnes considers a broken existence, Nora’s offer feels like a lifeline, as well as a chance to learn the details of her family’s past and clear her grandfather’s name. Even as Agnes adjusts to this new, utterly alien environment, the little community is rocked by another provocative mystery with echoes of the 1974 murder that branded Einar. Out for a night of heavy drinking with some friends, a local student named Ása vanishes. Nora believes that her disappearance is related to the mystery surrounding Einar. Agnes, initially worried that Nora’s interest in this new case may distract her from the 1974 crime, ends up pulled into the baffling disappearance as well. With its measured pace, psychological depth, and vivid portraits of people and places, Larsen’s atmospheric thriller resembles Nordic noir, though the author is American. The combustible combination of hard-charging Nora and skittish Agnes adds tension in a twisty novel full of surprises.