Pricing
Paperback $16.95
More books by Agnete Friis
Description
Agnete Friis’s lyrical, evocative work of psychological suspense weaves together two periods in one man’s life to explore obsession, toxic masculinity, and the tricks we play on our own memory.
Jacob, a middle-aged architect living in Copenhagen, is in the alcohol-soaked throes of a bitter divorce when he receives ...
Agnete Friis’s lyrical, evocative work of psychological suspense weaves together two periods in one man’s life to explore obsession, toxic masculinity, and the tricks we play on our own memory.
Jacob, a middle-aged architect living in Copenhagen, is in the alcohol-soaked throes of a bitter divorce when he receives an unexpected call from his great-uncle Anton, who is in his nineties and still lives with his brother Anders on their rural Jutland farm—a place Jacob hasn’t visited since the summer of 1978.
Anton asks Jacob to answer the question that has haunted them both for decades: What happened to Ellen?
To find out, Jacob must revisit the farm and confront what took place that summer—one defined by his teenage obsession with Ellen, a beautiful young hippie from the local commune who came to stay with Anton and Anders, and the unsolved disappearance of Jacob’s classmate’s sister. In revisiting old friends and rivals, Jacob discovers that the tragedies that have haunted him for over forty years were not what they seemed.
Media
“A CrimeReads Most Anticipated Crime & Mystery Novel of 2019.”
“In this sensitive character study, Agnete Friis, who writes the Nina Borg mysteries with Lene Kaaberbøl, dares us to confront bad mothers and other outcasts.”
—The New York Times Book Review
“Breathtaking.”
—Toronto Star
“This branch of Nordic noir could be called Danish desolate; the settings, in contemporary Copenhagen and on a Jutlandfarm in 1978, mirror the psychological landscape by focusing on the bleak and challenging . . . Brilliant.”
—Booklist, Starred Review on The Summer of Ellen
“Modern Copenhagen, Danish farmland in the ‘70s, and a hippy commune: The Summer of Ellen has all the ingredients for a gripping, literary noir.”
—CrimeReads
“Very strong . . . The Summer of Ellen reminded me of an international version of Nancy Pickard’s The Scent of Rain and Lightning.”
—BOLO Books
“Absorbing . . . Ms. Friis holds us spellbound, watching in grim fascination.”
—The Wall Street Journal on The Summer of Ellen
“A character study wrapped around a novel of suspense, with every blade of grass, every whispering tree, beautifully painting a picture of both longing and desolation.”
—Bustle on The Summer of Ellen
“This is a beautifully written book, descriptive, atmospheric and carefully woven ... [Friis] describes Denmark in the 1970s with the keen eye of a miniaturist, taking in every little detail until you feel you are breathing the fresh country air and touching the blades of grass.”