Disappearing Earth

Chapter 1 opens on a warm summer day with two sisters, Alyona and Sophia, playing at the edge of the bay in the city of Petropavlovsk while their mother, Marina, writes propaganda for a post-Soviet state newspaper. Alyona, the older of the two girls, keeps an eye on her younger sibling and entertains her with a story about a tsunami washing a village out to sea. On their way home, they encounter a stranger (Yegor), who complains of an injured ankle. He asks for their help getting back to his car and then offers them a ride home to Gorizont. Alyona contemplates taking the bus but decides that going by car will be faster. As she climbs into the passenger seat, she spies a woman (Oksana) with a white dog getting out of a van.

The girls remark that the man missed the turn to their house. He tells them he’s taking them to his place for more help with his ankle. Alyona wants to call her mother, but the stranger takes her phone away. A struggle ensues. The man drives north beyond the villages and settlements to a remote area. Alyona realize that she and her sister are in grave danger, but rather than give in to her fear, she puts on a brave face and offers to tell Sophia another story.