Jo Nesbø’s The Kingdom has been handpicked by the Sunday Times as one of the best thrillers of the year in its prestigious Books of the Year article. The newspaper calls the novel “a sombre, brutally executed delight.”
As is tradition, SVT’s annual Christmas Calendar will premiere on December 1, this Tuesday. This year’s Christmas Calendar, Miracle, has already received great reviews in Swedish press. Svenska Dagbladet has called it “the most successful Christmas Calendar in nine years,” and Aftonbladet described it as “fun, exciting, educational and well-acted.”
Miracle is directed by Calle Åstrand and written by Peter Arrhenius, Fredrik Agetoft and Sara Young.
Lars Kepler and Kristina Ohlsson each grab three top spots on the official Swedish bestseller lists this week. In this round, The Mirror Man is No. 1 in hardcover, No. 2 in e-books, and No. 3 in audio. Storm Watch is No. 3 in hardcover, No.3 in e-books and No. 4 in audio.
Kristina Ohlsson’s third Martin Benner title, To Him Who Knocks, stays put at No. 5 on the paperback list in Norway. Lars Kepler also repeat their performance from the past weeks, coming in at No. 1 in e-books with The Mirror Man. The No. 5 spot goes to Jørn Lier Horst’s A Question of Guilt.
Lars Kepler’s The Mirror Man (Joona Linna #8) was just published in the Netherlands and has entered the official bestseller list for hardcover crime fiction at No. 1.
The Petrona Award’s jury has just presented its shortlist for the 2020 Petrona Award for ‘Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year.’ The list of six nominees include Antti Tuomainen’s Little Siberia, Stina Jackson’s The Silver Road, Jørn Lier Horst’s The Cabin, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir’s The Absolution and Thomas Enger’s Inborn.
A quote from the judges about the titles shortlisted for this year’s award:
“The Petrona Award judges selected the shortlist from a rich field. The six novels stand out for their writing, characterisation, plotting, and overall quality. They are original and inventive, often pushing the boundaries of genre conventions, and tackle highly complex subjects such as legacies of the past, mental health issues and the effects of grief.”
The winning title, usually announced at the international crime fiction convention CrimeFest, will now be announced on Thursday 3 December, 2020.
Jonas Gardell’s Don’t Ever Wipe Tears Without Gloves tells the heart-wrenching story of the lovers Benjamin and Rasmus and their group of friends in Stockholm, focusing on the early and mid-80s when the AIDS crisis became fact. The trilogy, a romantic fiction in three parts (1: Love, 2: Disease, 3: Death), chronicles the gay movement in Sweden and the world, holding up a furious mirror to the times lest we forget those who went before us, and the battles they fought for freedom, love, and the right to live.
Don’t Ever Wipe Tears Without Gloves: 1. Love
When Rasmus steps off the train in Stockholm in September 1982, he’s leaving stuffy little Koppom behind for good. Young and beautiful, he throws himself into the welcoming arms of the LGBTQ community.
Benjamin is a Jehova’s Witness, knocking on doors to spread God’s word. Nothing can shake his faith. Until the day he rings the doorbell of Paul, the kindest, funniest and bitchiest gay God ever made.
Then on Christmas Eve, as snow covers the city’s rooftops, Rasmus and Benjamin meet. Things are never the same again.
This is a true story: It happened here, in this city, on these streets, among these people. In a city where people continued to live their lives as if nothing had changed, young men began to sicken, to fade, and to die.
Lars Kepler’s The Mirror Man grabs three No. 1 spots also this week on the official Swedish bestseller lists. The novel is No. 1 in hardcover, audio and e-books. Kristina Ohlsson meanwhile comes in at No. 2 in e-books with the just published Storm Watch, which also claims the No. 3 spot on the audio list.
Fredrik Backman’s Anxious People has been named one of Amazon’s Best Books of 2020. Each year, Amazon.com’s editorial team chooses the best books of the year in the popular categories, including that of “Literature & Fiction” in which Anxious People can be found.
In addition, the novel is included in the “Editors’ Holiday Gift Picks” under the “Notable Novels” feature.
Lars Kepler’s The Mirror Man stays at No. 1 on the official e-book bestseller list in Norway. Not far behind is Jørn Lier Horst’s A Question of Guilt at No. 3. Kristina Ohlsson meanwhile lays claim to the No. 5 spot on the paperback list with To Him Who Knocks.
Netherlands, House of Books
Two-book deal closed by Tor Jonasson
Albania, Dudaj
Three-book deal closed by Emma Granberg
Denmark, Bogoo Books
Two-book deal closed by Linda Andersson
Lithuania, Baltos Lankos
Closed by Emma Granberg
Bulgaria, Enthusiast
Closed by Emma Granberg
Taiwan, Azoth
Three-book deal closed by Emma Granberg
It’s reminiscent of an Agatha Christie tale, where the group is slowly whittled down. Although the cover labels it a thriller, there’s a strong detective element too: Who’s targeting them? Why? And how is someone managing to manipulate their environment? The answers are revealed gradually—the most crucial ones saved for last, and they’re far from easy to predict.
– DAST Magazine
Lovrenski writes with mordant wit throughout /…/ Lovrenski is a gifted writer.
– The Telegraph
There is of course plenty of giggles, laughter, and the occasional scream, just as intended I suppose.
– Mariestads-Tidningen Plus
In short, [it’s a story] about a completely ordinary and strikingly beautiful life, which you would have to be made of Bornholm granite not to be touched and moved by.
– Kristeligt Dagblad
This is the beauty of this novel: without directly verbalizing it, it achieves to say so much of that which is part of our human experience, our fears, our suffering.
– Il Giornale
Psychologist Kari Voss is grieving for her dead husband when she is thrust into a shocking local investigation, when two teenage girls are violently murdered in a family summer home in the nearby village of Son.
