Home Before Dark

'Clever, twisty, and altogether spine-chilling. . . . [A] deliciously terrifying story. . . .You'll want to read this one after dark, ideally with the wind whistling in the eaves and a window banging somewhere just out of reach. But keep the light switch handy. You just might need it' Ruth Ware, Book of the Month What was it like? Living in that house. Maggie Holt is used to such questions. Twenty-five years ago, she and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into a rambling Victorian estate called Baneberry Hall. They spent three weeks there before fleeing in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a memoir called House of Horrors. His tale of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon. Now, Maggie has inherited Baneberry Hall after her father's death. She was too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father's book. But she doesn't believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don't exist. But when she returns to Baneberry Hall to prepare it for sale, her homecoming is anything but warm. People from the pages of her father's book lurk in the shadows, and locals aren't thrilled that their small town has been made infamous. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself - a place that hints of dark deeds and unexplained happenings. As the days pass, Maggie begins to believe that what her father wrote was more fact than fiction. That, either way, someone - or something - doesn't want her here. And that she might be in danger all over again . . . THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER One of . . . Huff Post's "10 Of The Most Anticipated Book Releases Of June 2020" - Good Housekeeping's "The 35 Best Books of 2020 to Add to Your Reading List" - Travel + Leisure's "20 Most Anticipated Summer 2020 Books" - PopSugar's 17 Most Anticipated Summer Thrillers - Working Mother's "The 20 Most Anticipated Books of 2020" - Newsweek's 20 most anticipated summer reads - Publishers Weekly's "Summer Reads 2020" - BookPage's "2020 Most Anticipated Thrillers and Mysteries" - Today.com's "16 highly anticipated summer reads" - The Star Tribune's "Great Escapes" summer reads - BookPage's "Private Eye July" - USA Today's"Summer reading guide: 20 new books you won't want to miss" - CrimeReads "10 New Books Coming Out This Week" - Buzzfeed "17 New Thrillers That Will Keep Your Summer Exciting" - The Everygirl "30 Books That Should Be on Your Summer Reading List."

Struggling to separate her dreams from reality, a young woman investigates the disappearance of her sister ten years earlier … worried that she might be next. A breathtaking, twisty standalone thriller from the international bestselling author of the Forbidden Iceland series… ‘Truly addictive, I inhaled it in a single day’ Louise Candlish ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric’ Claire Douglas ‘Eva Björg Ægisdóttir just gets better and better’ Sarah Pearse ‘A complex, increasingly creepy tale of young love, dysfunctional families, long-buried secrets and pen pals who are not what they seem … Its psychological depth and physical shocks recall the work of the great Ruth Rendell’ The Times ‘A masterclass of psychological suspense from the superstar of Icelandic noir … addictively creepy’ Daily Express **WINNER of the Blood Drop Award for Iceland's Best Crime Novel of the Year** **SHORTLISTED for the Glass Key Award for Best Nordic Crime Novel** –––––––––– November, 1967, Iceland. Fourteen-year-old Marsí has a secret penpal – a boy who lives on the other side of the country – but she has been writing to him in her older sister's name. Now she is excited to meet him for the first time. But when the date arrives, Marsí is prevented from going, and during the night her sister Stína goes missing – her bloodstained anorak later found at the place where Marsí and her penpal had agreed to meet. November, 1977. Stína's disappearance remains unsolved. Then an unexpected letter arrives for Marsí. It's from her penpal, and he's still out there… Desperate for news of her missing sister, but terrified that he might coming after her next, Marsí returns to her hometown and embarks on an investigation of her own. But Marsí has always had trouble distinguishing her vivid dreams from reality, and as insomnia threatens her sanity, it seems she can't even trust her own memories. And her sister's killer is still on the loose… ––––––––––––––– ‘That rare crime novel – pacy and well-plotted but also driven by well-drawn, believable characters … Put this at the top of your TBR!’ Sarah Pearse ‘A chilling, atmospheric mystery with a devilishly unguessable solution’ Louise Candlish ‘Like an Icelandic winter, Home before Dark chilled me to the very core. An utterly gripping read, it kept me guessing till the last shocking twist’ Heidi Amsinck ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric, I was utterly gripped by this clever, twisty thriller … a must read’ Claire Douglas Praise for Eva Björg Ægisdóttir ‘Chilling and addictive, with a completely unexpected twist’ Shari Lapena ‘Fans of Nordic Noir will love this’ Ann Cleeves ‘This is virtuoso suspense writing’ A.J. Finn ‘Riveting, exciting, entertaining and packed with intrigue’ Liz Nugent ‘A tense, twisty page-turner that you'll have serious trouble putting down’ Catherine Ryan Howard **Winner of the CWA John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger** **Shortlisted for the Petrona Award for Best Scandinavian Crime** **Shortlisted for the CWA Crime in Translation Dagger** **Shortlisted for the Capital Crime Award for Best Thriller**

Struggling to separate her dreams from reality, a young woman investigates the disappearance of her sister ten years earlier … worried that she might be next. A breathtaking, twisty standalone thriller from the international bestselling author of the Forbidden Iceland series… ‘Truly addictive, I inhaled it in a single day’ Louise Candlish ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric’ Claire Douglas ‘Eva Björg Ægisdóttir just gets better and better’ Sarah Pearse ‘A complex, increasingly creepy tale of young love, dysfunctional families, long-buried secrets and pen pals who are not what they seem … Its psychological depth and physical shocks recall the work of the great Ruth Rendell’ The Times ‘A masterclass of psychological suspense from the superstar of Icelandic noir … addictively creepy’ Daily Express **WINNER of the Blood Drop Award for Iceland's Best Crime Novel of the Year** **SHORTLISTED for the Glass Key Award for Best Nordic Crime Novel** –––––––––– November, 1967, Iceland. Fourteen-year-old Marsí has a secret penpal – a boy who lives on the other side of the country – but she has been writing to him in her older sister's name. Now she is excited to meet him for the first time. But when the date arrives, Marsí is prevented from going, and during the night her sister Stína goes missing – her bloodstained anorak later found at the place where Marsí and her penpal had agreed to meet. November, 1977. Stína's disappearance remains unsolved. Then an unexpected letter arrives for Marsí. It's from her penpal, and he's still out there… Desperate for news of her missing sister, but terrified that he might coming after her next, Marsí returns to her hometown and embarks on an investigation of her own. But Marsí has always had trouble distinguishing her vivid dreams from reality, and as insomnia threatens her sanity, it seems she can't even trust her own memories. And her sister's killer is still on the loose… ––––––––––––––– ‘That rare crime novel – pacy and well-plotted but also driven by well-drawn, believable characters … Put this at the top of your TBR!’ Sarah Pearse ‘A chilling, atmospheric mystery with a devilishly unguessable solution’ Louise Candlish ‘Like an Icelandic winter, Home before Dark chilled me to the very core. An utterly gripping read, it kept me guessing till the last shocking twist’ Heidi Amsinck ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric, I was utterly gripped by this clever, twisty thriller … a must read’ Claire Douglas Praise for Eva Björg Ægisdóttir ‘Chilling and addictive, with a completely unexpected twist’ Shari Lapena ‘Fans of Nordic Noir will love this’ Ann Cleeves ‘This is virtuoso suspense writing’ A.J. Finn ‘Riveting, exciting, entertaining and packed with intrigue’ Liz Nugent ‘A tense, twisty page-turner that you'll have serious trouble putting down’ Catherine Ryan Howard **Winner of the CWA John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger** **Shortlisted for the Petrona Award for Best Scandinavian Crime** **Shortlisted for the CWA Crime in Translation Dagger** **Shortlisted for the Capital Crime Award for Best Thriller**

What was it like? Living in that house? Twenty-five years ago, Maggie Holt and her parents moved into a rambling Victorian estate called Baneberry Hall. Three weeks later, they fled in the dead of night. She may have been too young to really remember what happened, but Maggie doesn't believe a word of her father's bestselling book about that terrifying night. Ghosts, after all, don't exist. Now, Maggie has inherited Baneberry Hall and returns to prepare it for sale. Her homecoming is anything but warm - people from the pages of her father's book lurk in the shadows, and locals aren't thrilled that their small town has been made infamous. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself. As the days pass, Maggie begins to believe that there might have been some truth in the fiction. That, either way, someone - or some thing - doesn't want her here. And this time she might not make it out alive . . . THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - this unforgettable thriller will have you hooked. Fans of Grady Hendrix, Freida McFadden and John Marr won't be able to stop racing through the pages. Readers are OBSESSED with Home Before Dark : ' Loved, loved, loved . . . Perfection!' 'I was soooooo hooked!!! . . . be sure to read it with the light on!' 'Loved every second . . . absolutely obsessed .' 'I was hooked from the very beginning! ' 'Leaves you guessing till the very end! '

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER One of USA Today 's Best Books of 2020 "Sager is a master of the twist and the turn. . . . You have to read to the very last page to find how who did what to whom and why." --Rolling Stone In this chilling thriller, a woman returns to the house made famous by her father's bestselling horror memoir. Is the place really haunted by evil forces, as her father claimed? Or are there more earthbound--and dangerous--secrets hidden within its walls? Twenty-five years ago, Maggie Holt and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. Three weeks later they fled in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors . His horror memoir of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon, rivaling The Amityville Horror in popularity--and skepticism. Today, Maggie is a restorer of old homes and too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father's book. But she also doesn't believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don't exist. When Maggie inherits Baneberry Hall after her father's death, she returns to renovate the place to prepare it for sale. But her homecoming is anything but warm. People from the past, chronicled in House of Horrors , lurk in the shadows. And locals aren't thrilled that their small town has been made infamous thanks to Maggie's father. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself--a place filled with relics from another era that hint at a history of dark deeds. As Maggie experiences strange occurrences straight out of her father's book, she starts to believe that what he wrote was more fact than fiction. Alternating between Maggie's uneasy homecoming and chapters from her father's book, Home Before Dark is the story of a house with long-buried secrets and a woman's quest to uncover them--even if the truth is far more terrifying than any haunting.

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER One of USA Today 's Best Books of 2020 "Sager is a master of the twist and the turn. . . . You have to read to the very last page to find how who did what to whom and why." --Rolling Stone In this chilling thriller, a woman returns to the house made famous by her father's bestselling horror memoir. Is the place really haunted by evil forces, as her father claimed? Or are there more earthbound--and dangerous--secrets hidden within its walls? Twenty-five years ago, Maggie Holt and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. Three weeks later they fled in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors . His horror memoir of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon, rivaling The Amityville Horror in popularity--and skepticism. Today, Maggie is a restorer of old homes and too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father's book. But she also doesn't believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don't exist. When Maggie inherits Baneberry Hall after her father's death, she returns to renovate the place to prepare it for sale. But her homecoming is anything but warm. People from the past, chronicled in House of Horrors , lurk in the shadows. And locals aren't thrilled that their small town has been made infamous thanks to Maggie's father. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself--a place filled with relics from another era that hint at a history of dark deeds. As Maggie experiences strange occurrences straight out of her father's book, she starts to believe that what he wrote was more fact than fiction. Alternating between Maggie's uneasy homecoming and chapters from her father's book, Home Before Dark is the story of a house with long-buried secrets and a woman's quest to uncover them--even if the truth is far more terrifying than any haunting.

Struggling to separate her dreams from reality, a young woman investigates the disappearance of her sister ten years earlier … worried that she might be next. A breathtaking, twisty standalone thriller from the international bestselling author of the Forbidden Iceland series… ‘Truly addictive, I inhaled it in a single day’ Louise Candlish ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric’ Claire Douglas ‘Eva Björg Ægisdóttir just gets better and better’ Sarah Pearse ‘This is psychological thriller writing of a rare order and evidence that any comments about the demise of Scandicrime are greatly exaggerated' Financial Times ‘A complex, increasingly creepy tale of young love, dysfunctional families, long-buried secrets and pen pals who are not what they seem … Its psychological depth and physical shocks recall the work of the great Ruth Rendell’ The Times ‘A masterclass of psychological suspense from the superstar of Icelandic noir … addictively creepy’ Daily Express **WINNER of the Blood Drop Award for Iceland’s Best Crime Novel of the Year** **SHORTLISTED for the Glass Key Award for Best Nordic Crime Novel** –––––––––– November, 1967, Iceland. Fourteen-year-old Marsí has a secret penpal – a boy who lives on the other side of the country – but she has been writing to him in her older sister’s name. Now she is excited to meet him for the first time. But when the date arrives, Marsí is prevented from going, and during the night her sister Stína goes missing – her bloodstained anorak later found at the place where Marsí and her penpal had agreed to meet. November, 1977. Stína’s disappearance remains unsolved. Then an unexpected letter arrives for Marsí It’s from her penpal, and he’s still out there… Desperate for news of her missing sister, but terrified that he might coming after her next, Marsí returns to her hometown and embarks on an investigation of her own. But Marsí has always had trouble distinguishing her vivid dreams from reality, and as insomnia threatens her sanity, it seems she can’t even trust her own memories. And her sister’s killer is still on the loose… ––––––––––––––– ‘ Home Before Dark will have you checking your doors and windows before you go to bed’ Mirror ‘Winter’s darkness creates an eerie background for Marsibil’s growing instability and her dangerous war on secrets. A page-turning, twisty blend of coming of age themes, family trauma, and well-crafted menace’ Booklist ‘That rare crime novel – pacy and well-plotted but also driven by well-drawn, believable characters. This original, clever novel kept me gripped and furiously turning the pages. Put this at the top of your TBR!’ Sarah Pearse ‘A chilling, atmospheric mystery with a devilishly unguessable solution. Truly addictive, I inhaled it in a single day’ Louise Candlish ‘Like an Icelandic winter, Home before Dark chilled me to the very core. An utterly gripping read, it kept me guessing till the last shocking twist’ Heidi Amsinck ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric, I was utterly gripped by this clever, twisty thriller … a must read’ Claire Douglas ‘Addictive’ Crime Monthly ‘With sharp twists and explorations of the damaging loyalties that warp those they’re meant to protect, the chilling, unrelenting noir novel Home Before Dark follows a missing persons case that masks enduring traumas’ Foreword Reviews Praise for Eva Björg Ægisdóttir ‘Chilling and addictive, with a completely unexpected twist … I loved it’ Shari Lapena ‘Fans of Nordic Noir will love this’ Ann Cleeves ‘This is virtuoso suspense writing’

Struggling to separate her dreams from reality, a young woman investigates the disappearance of her sister ten years earlier … worried that she might be next. A breathtaking, twisty standalone thriller from the international bestselling author of the Forbidden Iceland series… ‘Truly addictive, I inhaled it in a single day’ Louise Candlish ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric’ Claire Douglas ‘Eva Björg Ægisdóttir just gets better and better’ Sarah Pearse ‘This is psychological thriller writing of a rare order and evidence that any comments about the demise of Scandicrime are greatly exaggerated' Financial Times ‘A complex, increasingly creepy tale of young love, dysfunctional families, long-buried secrets and pen pals who are not what they seem … Its psychological depth and physical shocks recall the work of the great Ruth Rendell’ The Times ‘A masterclass of psychological suspense from the superstar of Icelandic noir … addictively creepy’ Daily Express **WINNER of the Blood Drop Award for Iceland’s Best Crime Novel of the Year** **SHORTLISTED for the Glass Key Award for Best Nordic Crime Novel** –––––––––– November, 1967, Iceland. Fourteen-year-old Marsí has a secret penpal – a boy who lives on the other side of the country – but she has been writing to him in her older sister’s name. Now she is excited to meet him for the first time. But when the date arrives, Marsí is prevented from going, and during the night her sister Stína goes missing – her bloodstained anorak later found at the place where Marsí and her penpal had agreed to meet. November, 1977. Stína’s disappearance remains unsolved. Then an unexpected letter arrives for Marsí It’s from her penpal, and he’s still out there… Desperate for news of her missing sister, but terrified that he might coming after her next, Marsí returns to her hometown and embarks on an investigation of her own. But Marsí has always had trouble distinguishing her vivid dreams from reality, and as insomnia threatens her sanity, it seems she can’t even trust her own memories. And her sister’s killer is still on the loose… ––––––––––––––– ‘ Home Before Dark will have you checking your doors and windows before you go to bed’ Mirror ‘Winter’s darkness creates an eerie background for Marsibil’s growing instability and her dangerous war on secrets. A page-turning, twisty blend of coming of age themes, family trauma, and well-crafted menace’ Booklist ‘That rare crime novel – pacy and well-plotted but also driven by well-drawn, believable characters. This original, clever novel kept me gripped and furiously turning the pages. Put this at the top of your TBR!’ Sarah Pearse ‘A chilling, atmospheric mystery with a devilishly unguessable solution. Truly addictive, I inhaled it in a single day’ Louise Candlish ‘Like an Icelandic winter, Home before Dark chilled me to the very core. An utterly gripping read, it kept me guessing till the last shocking twist’ Heidi Amsinck ‘Dark, chilling and so atmospheric, I was utterly gripped by this clever, twisty thriller … a must read’ Claire Douglas ‘Addictive’ Crime Monthly ‘With sharp twists and explorations of the damaging loyalties that warp those they’re meant to protect, the chilling, unrelenting noir novel Home Before Dark follows a missing persons case that masks enduring traumas’ Foreword Reviews Praise for Eva Björg Ægisdóttir ‘Chilling and addictive, with a completely unexpected twist … I loved it’ Shari Lapena ‘Fans of Nordic Noir will love this’ Ann Cleeves ‘This is virtuoso suspense writing’ A.J. Finn ‘Riveting, exciting, entertaining and packed with intrigue’ Liz Nugent ‘A tense, twisty page-turner that you'll have serious trouble putting down’ Catherine Ryan Howard ‘Your new Nordic Noir obsession’ Vogue ‘Beautifully written … one of the rising stars of Nordic Noir’ Victoria Selman ‘Eerie and chilling. I loved every word!’ Lesley Kara ‘Exciting and harrowing’ Ragnar Jónasson ‘Fantastic’ Sunday Times ‘So atmospheric’ Heat *