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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
I am pleasantly surprised by The Lost House by Melissa Larsen. I went into it expecting a basic thriller - something entertaining, but maybe a bit far fetched or lacking in depth. What I got was a slow-moving, atmospheric character study of a young woman trying to make sense of her life.
Forty years ago, Agnes’ grandfather allegedly murdered his wife and their infant daughter, leaving them in the snow to be discovered by neighbors. Although he was never convicted of the crime, he was damned by public opinion and left his small town to start a new life in America. Now, in the wake of her grandfather’s recent death, Agnes comes to Iceland for the first time in her life to help contribute to a true crime podcast about her family’s darkest moment. Days before Agnes arrives, a young woman goes missing, pitching this small Icelandic town into memories of the last horrible crime that happened on their watch.
The Lost House moves slowly and really puts you into the mind of Agnes. Agnes has spent the last year recovering from a devastating leg injury that left her both vulnerable and addicted to opioids - an addiction she’s trying to break. So much of this story relies on Agnes’ internal conflicts - wrestling with her addiction while also striving to clear her grandfather’s name.
In many ways, the storytelling of this book felt reminiscent of Notes on An Execution; the crime is a big piece of the plot, but Larsen pushes readers to think more about the humanity of those impacted rather than the crime itself.
The beginning was a bit repetitive; it took me getting about 30% in before I was hooked. But once I was hooked, I couldn’t put this down. I thought the ending was superb. I could see some people not liking Agnes, but I think that’s sort of the point - she’s a complicated character dealing with different levels of trauma. I thought Larsen was masterful in the way she portrayed Agnes’ pain, both physical and mental.
Overall, I recommend this to people who like slow, character-driven mysteries.
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
slow-paced
I’ve always been fascinated by Iceland. And the thought of visiting is always in the back of my mind. After reading this, I’m not sure I would survive the cold.
Following our FMC (Agnes) back to where her grandfather and father lived in Iceland before the murder of her grandmother and aunt, we get sucked into another case of a missing girl, Asa.
There are all the lingering suspects….old and new. The question is if Agnes will make it back home in one piece? And did her grandfather (her second father) commit the murders of her grandmother and aunt?
It was a good read. I finished it in the early morning hours and was semi-surprised at the outcome.
I received an ARC of this title, all opinions are my own.
Following our FMC (Agnes) back to where her grandfather and father lived in Iceland before the murder of her grandmother and aunt, we get sucked into another case of a missing girl, Asa.
There are all the lingering suspects….old and new. The question is if Agnes will make it back home in one piece? And did her grandfather (her second father) commit the murders of her grandmother and aunt?
It was a good read. I finished it in the early morning hours and was semi-surprised at the outcome.
I received an ARC of this title, all opinions are my own.
This dark and atmospheric audiobook for The Lost House perfectly fits my winter vibes. I absolutely love Saskia Maarleveld's narration. I will listen to any book that she narrates; she is so good.
The Lost House takes place in a remote frigid part of Iceland. Where the community is small and knows everything about each other's business. Agnes’s grandfather is suspected of killing her grandmother and her infant aunt in the early 70s. Agnes believes that her grandfather didn't commit these murders and flies to Iceland to help Nora, an American podcaster, with her show about their murders. While she is there another girl goes missing from the old house who looks like her grandmother. Agnes jumps at the opportunity to help find the missing girl while also trying to prove her grandfather's innocence.
I really loved how strong Agnes was throughout the whole story. Yeah, she has her faults like being addicted to painkillers. But, she is trying to overcome her addiction while also grieving her injury and her grandfather's recent death. I loved how she dealt with the fact that her grandfather was probably the one who killed her grandmother even though she wanted so much for him to be innocent.
As the story went on, quite a few suspects jumped out at me. I liked the mix of past descendants and current students when it came to suspects. In the end, I was surprised to find out the connection between Agnes's murdered family members and the missing girl. I found the ending quite shocking.
Thanks to St. Martin's Press - Minotaur Books through Netgalley for an advance listening copy.
Please note that I received this via NetGalley. This did not affect my rating or review.
I was so hopeful on this one, but the book falls apart before it even gets going and the ending had me going okay then. I liked the idea of the Agnes going to Iceland to see if she can figure out what happened to her grandfather's wife and daughter, but it was so hamfisted and it just didn't work. I am realizing that maybe it would have been better to have the story told through the eyes of Nora Carver (the podcaster).
"The Lost House" follows Agnes traveling to Iceland to be interviewed by a true crime podcaster, Nora Carver. Agnes has dealt with her father and grandfather not talking about what happened to drive them from Iceland about 40 years earlier. All Agnes knows is that her grandmother and aunt were both found murdered and left in the snow. Many thought Agnes's grandfather did it, but she does not believe that and wants to clear his name. She agrees to stay with Nora so she can be interviewed and also see where her family is from.
Agnes was a lot. I think that Larsen had way too much happening with her to the point that I found her distracting to the central plot/story. I didn't care about her love life, the insta-love that happened in the story was just so bizarre I didn't even really get what that was about, and she was just a poor amateur investigator. I just found myself taking out of the story so much with her and I wish that Larsen had switched to Nora's POV for some of this.
The other characters are paper thin outside of Nora I thought. I found her more interesting along with her backstory and why she got involved with true crime. She also seemed to read people way better than Agnes did. I thought the podcast angle was a good one, but it just seems to be picked up and dropped off randomly in the story because of Agnes and what she was doing.
The plot was pretty basic to me because it can only be one of two things, the grandfather did it, or someone else did it. And there's not a lot there to only think one thing IMHO.
The setting of Iceland I wish had been leaned into more. It felt like most of this book took place in the rental that Agnes and Nora were at or other rooms. The beginning of the book with the descriptions showed promise though.
The ending just felt broken apart. I really want to know what happened with certain characters and was disappointed on how Larsen ended things.
I was so hopeful on this one, but the book falls apart before it even gets going and the ending had me going okay then. I liked the idea of the Agnes going to Iceland to see if she can figure out what happened to her grandfather's wife and daughter, but it was so hamfisted and it just didn't work. I am realizing that maybe it would have been better to have the story told through the eyes of Nora Carver (the podcaster).
"The Lost House" follows Agnes traveling to Iceland to be interviewed by a true crime podcaster, Nora Carver. Agnes has dealt with her father and grandfather not talking about what happened to drive them from Iceland about 40 years earlier. All Agnes knows is that her grandmother and aunt were both found murdered and left in the snow. Many thought Agnes's grandfather did it, but she does not believe that and wants to clear his name. She agrees to stay with Nora so she can be interviewed and also see where her family is from.
Agnes was a lot. I think that Larsen had way too much happening with her to the point that I found her distracting to the central plot/story. I didn't care about her love life, the insta-love that happened in the story was just so bizarre I didn't even really get what that was about, and she was just a poor amateur investigator. I just found myself taking out of the story so much with her and I wish that Larsen had switched to Nora's POV for some of this.
The other characters are paper thin outside of Nora I thought. I found her more interesting along with her backstory and why she got involved with true crime. She also seemed to read people way better than Agnes did. I thought the podcast angle was a good one, but it just seems to be picked up and dropped off randomly in the story because of Agnes and what she was doing.
The plot was pretty basic to me because it can only be one of two things, the grandfather did it, or someone else did it. And there's not a lot there to only think one thing IMHO.
The setting of Iceland I wish had been leaned into more. It felt like most of this book took place in the rental that Agnes and Nora were at or other rooms. The beginning of the book with the descriptions showed promise though.
The ending just felt broken apart. I really want to know what happened with certain characters and was disappointed on how Larsen ended things.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Domestic thriller with a podcast, although the podcast angle is minimal. This was an enjoyable listen in the moment, easy to follow, and had a few twists I didn’t see coming. With audio though, I don’t try to figure out the mystery like I do a physical/digital read.
Thank you MacMillan for the early copy.
Thank you MacMillan for the early copy.
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was intrigued by this book from the synopsis, but once I started reading, it took a different route than I was expecting.
This was definitely a slower burn mystery, which can be fine, but there were some parts that felt a little too slow for my liking. Agnes, the MC, really had me torn. There were times where I liked her a lot, but then others where her attitude rubbed me the wrong way. However, considering all that she was going through, it does explain some of it.
The setting for the story was one of the things I liked most. The snowy, secluded, woodsy, freezing landscape almost became its own character in a way, and created its own kind of danger. Though the rest of the book was a slower pace, the last 1/4 really kicked it up some notches, and I was turning the pages quickly. I also liked the dual mysteries, and how their stories wove together. This was just twisty enough to keep me guessing until the end. I would’ve liked some more ends tied up, but I think it leaves off in a good place.
Thank you Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the advance copy.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book pleasantly surprised me! I went in not really expecting much, as most mystery/thriller novels feel the same to me (and I normally love them either way, but count on them being average). This was a really great story that was excellently planned out.
Agnes was a great character to read about! She's frustrating enough that you want to shake her sometimes, but she has a backstory that makes you pity her a bit AND understand where she's coming from. She's not perfect, nor does she try to be, but she is human and she's doing her best (especially now that she is either temporarily or permanently disabled from an accident and also dealing with someone doing a podcast about her grandfather who may or may not have killed his wife and child).
Nora is also an interesting character, and I wish we had learned a little bit more about her and her sister's backstory. It was thrown in there very quickly and then not addressed again, even though it would have made for some more interest.
This story has some great twists and turns, most pieces are thought out well, and I think this is a perfect story for this time of year when things feel a bit cold and gloomy, as the setting fits that perfectly. If you like mysteries that are also a bit of a thriller, give this one a chance!
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Agnes was a great character to read about! She's frustrating enough that you want to shake her sometimes, but she has a backstory that makes you pity her a bit AND understand where she's coming from. She's not perfect, nor does she try to be, but she is human and she's doing her best (especially now that she is either temporarily or permanently disabled from an accident and also dealing with someone doing a podcast about her grandfather who may or may not have killed his wife and child).
Nora is also an interesting character, and I wish we had learned a little bit more about her and her sister's backstory. It was thrown in there very quickly and then not addressed again, even though it would have made for some more interest.
This story has some great twists and turns, most pieces are thought out well, and I think this is a perfect story for this time of year when things feel a bit cold and gloomy, as the setting fits that perfectly. If you like mysteries that are also a bit of a thriller, give this one a chance!
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No