Ton absence n'est que ténèbres

Synopsis of Ton absence n'est que ténèbres

«Ton absence n'est que ténèbres» is the novel by Jón Kalman Stefánsson, published by Grasset & Fasquelle in paperback (608 pages, in French).

An amnesiac man appears in a church in the fjords of Iceland. After reading «Tu ausencia no es más que tinieblas» on a grave, he immerses himself in a family saga spanning from the mid-19th century to 2020; the voices of the village reconstruct his memory and that of a lineage marked by impossible loves, fragilities, and the search for happiness.

The novel was originally published in Icelandic as «Fjarvera þín er myrkur»; this French edition, translated by Éric Boury, won the Prix du livre étranger 2022.

For readers of contemporary literary fiction and sweeping family sagas.