Content Warning: This section of the guide describes and discusses the novel’s treatment of cultural erasure and religious coercion. This section also contains references to abuse.

The book opens on the darkest day of the year, marked by perpetual twilight in a northern village. Pastor Lars Levi Laestadius is uneasy, feeling the weight of a significant but unclear dream. The village church fills with parishioners, including Finns and Sámi, who are drawn by rumors of Lars Levi's increasingly fervent sermons. Henrik, the bell ringer, sneaks away to his store, known for illegally selling alcohol.

Lars Levi anxiously prepares for the service, noting the mixed congregation. As he begins his sermon, a reindeer herder, Biettar Rasti, enters, drawing everyone's attention. Biettar, burdened by his family's decline and his own failings, collapses at the altar, a dramatic moment that Lars Levi initially interprets as a spiritual awakening. However, an earthquake disrupts the scene, shaking the church and causing panic.

Lars Levi grapples with the chaos, trying to find divine meaning in the earthquake. His daughter Willa, dutiful yet contemplative, takes her younger brother Lorens outside to calm him. Henrik, feeling trapped and disillusioned, rushes to the church amid the turmoil.