Thora peered at the floor, but couldn't see
anything that could have frightened Markus that
much, only three mounds of dust. She moved the
light of her torch over them. It took her some
time to realize what she was seeing-- and then
it was all she could do not to let the torch
slip from her hand. 'Good God,' she said. She
ran the light over the three faces, one after
another. Sunken cheeks, empty eye-sockets,
gaping mouths; they reminded her of photographs
of mummies she'd once seen in National
Geographic. 'Who are these people?' 'I don't
know,' said Markus...Bodies are discovered in
one of the excavated houses at a volcanic
tourist attraction dubbed 'The Pompeii of the
North'. Markus Magnusson, who was only a
teenager when the volcano erupted, falls under
suspicion and hires attorney Thora
Gudmundsdottir to defend him - but when his
childhood sweetheart is murdered his case starts
to look more difficult, and the locals seem
oddly reluctant to back him up.