Named after one of Iceland's most magnificent volcanoes, Hekla always knew she wanted to be a writer. In a nation of poets, where each household proudly displays leatherbound volumes of the Sagas, and there are more writers per capita than anywhere else in the world, there is only one problem: she is a woman. She decides to try her luck in Reykjavik, and moves in with her friend Jon, a gay man who longs to work in the theatre, but can only find dangerous, backbreaking work on fishing trawlers. Hekla's opportunities are equally limited: marriage and babies, or a job as a waitress, in which harassment from customers is part of the daily grind. They both feel completely out of place in a small and conservative world. And yet that world is changing: JFK is shot, hemlines are rising, and in Iceland another volcano erupts, and Hekla knows she must escape to find freedom abroad, whatever must be left behind.

"Ólafsdóttir...does a brilliant job of conveying, sentence by sentence and word by word, the exotic nature of Icelandic life, its harshness, its connection to the land and to history, and its amusing qualities... the distinctive nature of every scene and every character takes hold of the reader immediately" - Washington Post

"A potent, atmospheric story of creative frustration and fulfilment. I loved the wry, tender voice of Ólafsdóttir's narrator. I'm now going to read all of her other novels." - Megan Hunter

"An absorbing, bittersweet tale... this captivating novel's finest component is it's endearing heroine" - Economist

"[A] compelling tale of thwarted hope and ambition in a strange, cold, cruel, beautiful land" - Saga

"Ólafsdóttir's graceful and quiet tale of feminism, alienation, and artistic expression . . . This winning tale of friendship and self-fulfillment will inspire readers." - Publishers Weekly

"In her sixth novel, award-winning author Ólafsdóttir paints a vivid portrait of Iceland: cold weather, volcanic eruptions, northern lights, whale hunting, darkness, sexism, and homophobia. . . . In this excellent introduction to her work, Ólafsdóttir creates a world where either escape or hiding one's true nature are the only choices." - Library Journal

"A magnetic novel" - L'Express

"A magnificent feminist heroine" - Le Monde des Livres

"Ólafsdóttir's charm and devastating honour have just won her the Prix Médicis" - Libération

"Captivating and deeply moving until the final page" - Le Canard Enchainé