By: Melissa Larsen
Narrator: Saskia Maarleveld
Macmillan Audio
ISBN: 9781250332875
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Minotaur Books
Publication Date: 01/14/2025
Format: Other
My Rating: 4.5 Stars (ARC) (ALC)
In Melissa Larsen's The Lost House comes the mesmerizing story of a young woman with a haunting past who returns to her ancestral home in Iceland to investigate a gruesome murder in her family.
Forty years ago, a young woman and her infant daughter were found buried in the cold Icelandic snow, lying together as peacefully as though sleeping. Except the mother’s throat had been slashed and the infant drowned. The case was never solved. There were no arrests, no conviction. Just a suspicion turned into a certainty: the husband did it. When he took his son and fled halfway across the world to California, it was proof enough of his guilt.
Now, nearly half a century later and a year after his death, his granddaughter, Agnes, is ready to clear her grandfather’s name once and for all. Still recovering from his death and a devastating injury, Agnes wants nothing more than an excuse to escape the shambles of her once-stable life—which is why she so readily accepts true crime expert Nora Carver’s invitation to be interviewed for her popular podcast. Agnes packs a bag and hops on a last-minute flight to the remote town of Bifröst, Iceland, where Nora is staying, where Agnes’s father grew up, and where, supposedly, her grandfather slaughtered his wife and infant daughter.
Is it merely coincidence that a local girl goes missing the very same weekend Agnes arrives? Suddenly, Agnes and Nora’s investigation is turned upside down, and everyone in the small Icelandic town is once again a suspect. Seeking to unearth old and new truths alike, Agnes finds herself drawn into a web of secrets that threaten the redemption she is hell-bent on delivering, and even her life—discovering how far a person will go to protect their family, their safety, and their secrets.
Set against an unforgiving Icelandic winter landscape, The Lost House is a chilling and razor-sharp thriller packed with jaw-dropping twists that will leave you breathless.
My Review
From the stunning front cover, to page one, and throughout, author Melissa Larsen, creates an atmospheric, chilling Nordic Noir set in a small Icelandic town, THE LOST HOUSE—A story of a young woman haunted by her past returns to Iceland to investigate a gruesome murder in her family and to clear her grandfather's name (a cold case) covering over four decades.
The author deftly explores generational trauma with true-crime culture twists (podcast) while cleverly uncovering buried family dark secrets that threaten the present and the lengths they will go to keep those secrets.
Audiobook...
I had the honor of reading an e-book and listening to the audiobook narrated by the talented Saskia Maarleveld (a favorite), elevating the story while building suspense and mystery, with darkness and menace lurking, making the characters come in this eerie atmospheric, spine-chilling setting—a spellbinding performance!
About...
Forty years ago, a young woman and her infant daughter were found buried in the cold Icelandic snow, lying together—a gruesome, brutal murder of mother and infant.
The case went cold, and there were no arrests. However, the suspicions turned to the husband, who fled to California with his son.
Now, the granddaughter, Agnes, wants to clear her grandfather's name after his death. She also has experienced an injury and decides to fly to the remote town of Bifröst, Iceland, where her father lived, to meet up with Nora Carver (podcaster) to be interviewed for her popular podcast —return to the scene of the crime of 40 years ago and the gruesome murder. This stirs up many unsettled feelings in the town from the past.
Now, a local girl goes missing, and Agnes finds herself drawn into a web of secrets stirred up when she discovers how far a person will go to protect their family and secrets.
My thoughts...
THE LOST HOUSE is an emotionally compelling and captivating Icelandic noir with a literary lyrical twist that explores grief, pain, trauma, loneliness, loss, self-discovery, and survival while delivering an intriguing murder mystery set in an atmospheric, chilling setting. The author brilliantly captures the time and place with both timelines in this haunting whodunit.
Hauntingly beautiful, dark, and gritty, Larsen creates complex, well-developed, vividly drawn characters with stunning, evocative prose that keeps you glued to the pages and earbuds. This is my first book by the author, and I look forward to seeing what comes next.
Recs...
THE LOST HOUSE is for fans of Ragnar Jónasson, Alice Hoffman, Sara Blaedel, Hannah Morrisey, Ruth Ware, Carol Goodman, and Jennifer McMahon and those who enjoy well-written psychological suspense, mysteries, noirs, and literary fiction. Movie (Trapped 2015).
Thanks to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for an ARC and ALC via NetGalley for an honest review. #CoverCrush
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
Pub Date: Jan 14, 2025
Praise
*Indie Next Pick, January 2025*
LGBTQ Reads, Most Anticipated Adult Fiction of 2025
"Superb... The characters are all conflicted and vividly drawn, the milieu is pitch-perfect and the resolution is by turns heartbreaking and strangely uplifting. The Lost House is the first must-read thriller of 2025."
―BookPage, starred review
"This atmospheric, slow-paced suspense from Larsen will appeal to readers who enjoy descriptive crime novels set in isolated Nordic countries."
―Library Journal
“With its measured pace, psychological depth, and vivid portraits of people and places, Larsen’s atmospheric thriller resembles Nordic noir… A haunting whodunit with effective undertones of menace.”
―Kirkus Reviews
"Atmospheric...Larsen seamlessly interweaves Agnes’s path toward self-discovery with her and Nora’s investigation."
―Publishers Weekly
“Larsen strikes the right notes here for fans of Scandinavian thrillers, contrasting the forbidding environment with intense relationships and revealing the village’s crimes through the lenses of loneliness and family dysfunction. A winning recommendation for readers seeking a snowy thriller with LGBTQ+ themes and a satisfying, redemptive ending.” ―Booklist
"A chilling meditation on the human ramifications of the true crime industry, Melissa Larsen turns her piercing gaze to Icelandic noir. The Lost House explores inheritance, pain, loneliness, and survival, with a breathless murder mystery like an icy current running through. With this masterful novel, Larsen positions herself to become a giant of literary suspense."
—Danya Kukafka, bestselling author of Notes on an Execution
"A notorious long-ago crime and an unfolding new one converge in the isolated confines of small-town Iceland, in a riveting story that's at once chilling and warmhearted and scary and sexy. A great read."
—Chris Pavone, New York Times bestselling author of Two Nights in Lisbon
“The Lost House is a deeply atmospheric, layered thriller in which long-buried secrets threaten to overturn the present. With uncompromising intelligence and empathy, Melissa Larsen crafts complex characters and explores what happens when real people become caught in sensational true-crime tales—all amid a mesmerizing, unforgiving Icelandic winter.”
—Clémence Michallon, internationally bestselling author of The Quiet Tenant
"A chilling suspense that will keep you up through the long Icelandic night. Melissa Larsen’s prose is as sharp as an ice-pick and her story will thaw your heart."
—Carol Goodman, Two-time winner of the Mary Higgins Clark Award and author of Return to Wyldcliffe Heights
"An atmospheric stunner of a novel, an addictive and deeply considered excavation of family secrets and silence. Larsen’s novel is a thing of wonder. I didn’t want it to ever end.”
—Danielle Trussoni, New York Times bestselling author of The Puzzle Master
"A trip down memory lane but make it murdery. ‘Chilling’ doesn’t scratch the surface of Melissa Larsen’s Icelandic mystery where one family’s ancestral secrets are even harsher than the elements. A triumph by a true talent."
—Hannah Morrissey, author of Hello, Transcriber
“Full of sweeping landscapes and chilling details, The Lost House is replete with family secrets, dark legacies, and the terrifying depths humans will go to in order to keep what’s theirs. For fans of Ragnar Jonasson and Patricia Highsmith, The Lost House is not to be missed!”
—Jennifer Herrera, author of The Hunter
"Readers will love exploring the icy surfaces and compelling depths of Melissa Larsen’s gorgeously written suspense novel, The Lost House. Set in moody and mysterious Iceland, this propulsive read features a heartfelt look at generational trauma with true crime culture twists and an expertly crafted exploration of uncovering family secrets buried in the snow."
—Vanessa Lillie, USA Today bestselling author of Blood Sisters
"Tightly plotted, rich with heart and heft, Melissa Larsen's smart and suspenseful The Lost House examines how you can deeply love someone and still not truly know them—how searching for the truth can both enliven and unravel a person. A book so beautifully written and full of atmosphere, I was instantly transported to the haunted, ethereal landscapes of rural Iceland, to a town where secrets are laid bare and sins of the past come into sharp relief. A brilliant, thrilling read."
—Samantha Jayne Allen, author of Pay Dirt Road
About the Author
Melissa Larsen grew up in the Bay Area in a family of writers, believing she was the weird one for not writing. This didn’t last long. Her debut novel, Shutter, was published in June 2021 by Berkley, an imprint of Penguin Random House. It has been featured in The New York Times Book Review and named a “Most Anticipated Novel” by PopSugar, Bustle, Buzzfeed, and CrimeReads. Melissa received her M.F.A. from Columbia University and her B.A. from New York University. When she isn’t traveling somewhere to research her next novel—and somehow hurting herself in the process—she lives in New York City and teaches creative writing. Her next novel, The Lost House, is set to be published by Minotaur, an imprint of Macmillan, in January 2025. WEBSITE
