The allure of reading Dead Weight by Hildur Knútsdóttir was strong after liking The Night Guest, so reading the latest novella was sort of a no-brainer. At only 160 pages, it’s a thriller packed tight with real-world horrors and some deeply unsettling moments.
Unnur was living a normal, if lonely, life until a black cat showed up at her door. Trying to do the right thing, Unnur reunites the lost pet with its owner―a young woman named Ásta who is in desperate need of some help. Unnur reluctantly agrees to take in the cat until Ásta is able to care for it again herself.
Soon, Ásta becomes a fixture in Unnur’s life and the two form an unlikely friendship. But like a black cat, trouble is tailing Ásta, and Unnur is the only one there when things take a violent turn. Nothing tests a friendship like blood on your hands.
Knútsdóttir does a great job exploring the idea of letting go, shedding the “dead weight” and the parts of our lives we no longer need, through in a more intense and serve way. Dead Weight offers moments of kinship, but is balanced by a few visceral scenes that add just the right amount of impact with overwhelming the story. While billed as a horror and thriller, it leans much more toward the latter, and tossing in mystery to boot. While there are moments of horror, mostly grounded in real-life fears, it’s the mystery surrounding it all that made the story what it is.
With this stepping more into the mystery/thriller side of things than outright horror, Dead Weight wasn’t overly gory, at least until the end. It follows two women whose life choices intertwine in ways that ultimately lead to violence as they work together. The story focuses less on the fictional, gore-filled horror and more on the horrors women face each and every day in the real world.
What really elevated this story from merely okay to good was the character development, and Knútsdóttir’s ability to do this in a limited page count. Unnur grows significantly in a short span, shifting to caring for someone else instead of just herself and, as we find out, her awful boyfriend. This transformation made the story worth the effort, wanting to see how far she would go and how things would end up.
Dead Weight by Hildur Knútsdóttir is a well-written, fast-paced thriller with a gripping story and premise. Much like The Night Guest, I was happy with what I read, it’s an easy read, thought I am not sure why I like it as much as I did. There is not much that goes on, and the story isn’t long, yet there’s something about Knútsdóttir’s writing that kept me glued to the page. I enjoyed every moment of it.
Dead Weight hits bookstores everywhere on May 26, 2026 from Tor Nightfire. The audiobook, narrated by Mary Robinette Kowal, is available for preorder via Libro.fm!
