Home Before Dark

By: Eva Björg Ægisdóttir

Narrated by: Diana Croft

November, 1967, Iceland. Fourteen-year-old Marsi 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, Marsi is prevented from going, and during the night her sister Stína goes missing – her bloodstained anorak later found at the place where Marsibil and her penpal had agreed to meet.

November, 1977. Stína's disappearance remains unsolved. Then an unexpected letter arrives for Marsi. 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, Marsi returns to her hometown and embarks on an investigation of her own. But Marsi 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…

©2023 Eva Björg Ægisdóttir (P)2025 Isis Audio

The writing

I love her storytelling and the way she weaves through the time changes and characters. She paints pictures with her writing almost as if it’s a movie. Unfortunately, I went through the book quicker than I wanted to - I couldn’t stop listening. A huge thank you for writing another incredible book. And the narrator is superb.

Breathtaking atmosphere with an unpredictable ending!

Love, love, loved! Full of complex characters, unreliable accounts, and dark twisty revelations it kept me on the edge of my seat till the very last second. Diana Croft narrates beautifully conveying all the layered emotions these characters express. Hands down the best novel I’ve read this year!