'...They say that I must die. They say that I blew out the candle of another's life and now the same fate must befall me. When I hear these words, it seems to me that we are all candles, flickering and brightly burning in the darkness, in the howling wind - and then, in the silence of the room, I hear footsteps, the eerily and inexorably approaching footsteps of the one who will blow out my flame, and my life will fly away in a gray curl of smoke.'
Iceland, early 19th century. A young woman, Agnes Magnusdottir, is sentenced to death for the murder of her lover. While awaiting confirmation of the sentence, Agnes is sent to a remote farm, where she will live for several months with an ordinary family. Exhausted and chained, the villagers initially perceive her as a monster, but over time they begin to understand that the real story is far more complex than the one presented at the trial... 'A Taste of Smoke' is a book about what those months of shared life meant for Agnes and those who sheltered her. It is a psychological drama set against the backdrop of the harsh northern landscape, among taciturn and reserved people who are nonetheless capable of desperate acts.