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An Icelandic night may hide secrets and affairs – or even bodies – in this gruesomely cathartic horror thriller from the author of The Night Guest.
Unnur was living a normal, if lonely, life until a black cat showed up at her door.
When she tracks down the cat's wayward owner, she finds a young woman just as lost and in need of help. Like a gust of cold air in a Reykjavík night, Ásta and her pet slip into Unnur's life.
It's unexpected, but welcome. Unnur likes the company, and she begins to rely on Ásta in turn. But like a black cat, trouble has been tailing her new friend, and Unnur is the only one there for Ásta when things take a violent turn.
The two women quickly learn: nothing tests a friendship like blood on your hands.
"[An] impressively subtle and slow-burning psychological chiller from Knútsdóttir... Anyone looking for character-driven horror with a very sharp edge will be thrilled." ―Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Knútsdóttir creates a tale thick with tension...For fans of the grimmest stories that compel readers to root for their protagonists even as they make violently shocking choices, such as Out by Natsuo Kirino and My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite." ―Library Journal
"This gritty women-helping-women tale lands like a blow to the head. A tautly written, satisfying read from the author of The Night Guest." ―Booklist
"Utterly captivating. Dead Weight had me by the throat from the first page to the last. I cannot recommend it enough!" ―Katee Robert, New York Times bestselling author
"A gut-punch of a story as stark, brutal, and brooding as a lava field with a burning heart of female friendship and tenacity." ―Delilah S. Dawson, New York Times bestselling author
This information about Dead Weight was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Hildur Knútsdóttir was born in Reykjavík, Iceland, in 1984. She has lived in Spain, Germany, and Taiwan and studied literature and creative writing at The University of Iceland. She writes fiction both for adults and teenagers, as well as short fiction, plays, and screenplays. Hildur is known for her evocative fantastical fiction and spine-chilling horror. The Night Guest is her first book translated into English. She lives in Reykjavík with her husband, their two daughters, and a puppy called Uggi.
Author Interview
Link to Hildur Knútsdóttir's Website
Name Pronunciation
Hildur Knútsdóttir: hill-dure KNUTS-doh-teer
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