Swedish Lapland, 1717. Maija, her husband and their two daughters arrive from their native Finland, hoping to forget the traumas of the past and put down roots in this harsh but beautiful land. Above them looms Blackasen, a mountain whose dark history haunts the lives of those in its shadow. While herding the family's goats on the mountain, Maija's elder daughter, Frederika, stumbles across the mutilated body of one of their neighbours. The community dismisses the death as a wolf attack, but Maija feels certain it was murder.

Includes a reader's guide with topics for discussion.