The Lost House

A Novel

By: Melissa Larsen

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

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 mystery packed with jaw-dropping twists that will leave you breathless.

A Macmillan Audio production from Minotaur Books.

©2025 Melissa Larsen (P)2025 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"Atmospheric...Larsen seamlessly interweaves Agnes’s path toward self-discovery with her and Nora’s investigation."—Publishers Weekly

“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

"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

Long and overdrawn

The narrator was good. The story was bland, the writing was bland, the characters were bland and underdeveloped. Wouldn't recommend

Lengthy but Good

The Lost House is lengthy with some parts of the story that could have been cut or at least shortened. I lost interest in these moments. Overall though I enjoyed the story and the Icelandic setting.