Literature and Fiction · Hardback

Kiss Mark

Norwegian title: Kyssemerket

Agnes Nordvik

Ella washes until her skin burns, runs every night, doesn't dare to go to the bathroom. She loses track of the days and doesn't understand why her body is on constant alert. Something is about to unravel.

Ella's grief runs deep; she lost her mother to cancer when she was a child. But there is also something else that is pushing its way forward – something she has long kept hidden, also for herself. Through glimpses of a childhood marked by loss and an adolescence where trust was betrayed, a story of abuse, shame and a body that remembers what the mind tries to repress is revealed.

Kiss Mark is an in-depth account of what happens when repressed memories break the surface, and of the path towards understanding oneself in order to become whole again.

"Nordvik shows both courage and distinctiveness as she depicts how the attempt to say ‘no’ is drowned out by an overwhelming physical experience [...] The scenes in which Ella receives help from caring women to overcome the shame that has settled in her body are beautiful—both edifying and moving. In this way, the book pays tribute to maternal care, while the message remains clear: Women must protect one another [...] It is a task of literature to put into words what is taboo and to foster community based on shared experiences. Nordvik does so in a language that is simultaneously childishly innocent and mature enough to lay bare sexually inflicted shame.”Klassekampen

"I read on with a mixture of dread and curiosity (...) impresses and moves the reader."Adresseavisen

"Debut author Agnes Nordvik deserves to be widely read. I am already eagerly awaiting her next book (...) Moving in an unusual way (...) Kiss Mark, this puzzle-like narrative, leaping between different pasts and a present, has touched me as a reader."Samtiden

"Agnes Nordvik's debut novel Kiss Mark left me gasping for breath (...) What elevates this text is that even though Nordvik pushes hard against the clichés, she maintains a clear focus and an open, inquiring gaze as Ella's 'bad guy' walks into the narrative."Aftenposten

“a real page-turner [...] Kiss Mark is not for the faint-hearted. The novel tackles heavy themes such as death and abuse in a very graphic and painful manner. But that is precisely what makes the novel so good. By writing about the protagonist’s experiences in such a genuine and raw way, the story leaves a lasting impression on the reader.”Framtida