The novel's main protagonist, Lisbeth Sorel, a successful middle-aged businesswoman, meets Eduardo Ros in Buenos Aires, a man whom women pay to dance the tango with them. She decides, out of desire for an erotic experience with him, to offer him a large sum of money if he spends the night with her in cold Reykjavik. The novel takes place mostly in a hotel room, in winter, when the day in Iceland lasts only a few hours. Here, the main character comes to terms with herself, her family, and her unfulfilled sexuality. She throws away all the emotional baggage she brought with her to this cold landscape. Through the memory of her deceased sister, whom she had cared for almost her entire life, she gets back on her feet in the Arctic North with Ros's help, after revealing to him the complexity of her life and broken family ties.