15-05-2025
Ghost stories and executions in Iceland — when Hannah Kent and Agnes Magnusdottir became entwined
Hannah Kent's arrival in Iceland as a high school exchange student in 2003 was a difficult one.
On her first night in the country, she found herself stranded late at night at Keflavik Airport and desperately homesick.
But within weeks, Iceland had begun to change young Hannah — its dramatic landscapes, extraordinary light and chilling ghost stories embedded themselves in Hannah's psyche.
She became particularly entranced with the haunting story of accused murderer and domestic servant, Agnes Magnusdottir, who became the last person executed in Iceland.
Hannah's later novel, Burial Rites, was inspired by Agnes' story and became a best-seller. But there were many unsolvable mysteries that lingered in her mind years after that book was released.
Hannah returned to Iceland to find answers, and discovered her life was still entwined with Agnes in strange and eerie ways.
Further information
This episode of Conversations was recorded live at the 2025 Melbourne Writers Festival.
Always Home, Always Homesick is published by Pan Macmillan
