Kiefer Lee Photo: Kiefer Lee

Ella Rae Rappaport joins Salomonsson Agency

Actor Ella Rae Rappaport grew up in Stockholm, Sweden with a half-American, half-Swedish upbringing. She made her screen debut at the age of ten in SVT’s celebrated Christmas Calendar, Barna Hedenhös uppfinner Julen (2013), where she played one of the leads, Flisa Hedenhös. She also played the lead, Gladys, in the feature film Alone in Space (2018), as well as the recurring roles as Sam in the HBO comedy series Lust (2022), and Sandra in the UR-series Limboland (2019).

In 2023, Rappaport finished shooting the starring role in the much-anticipated feature film Egghead Republic, by acclaimed writer/director duo Pella Kågerman and Hugo Lilja (Aniara). Egghead Republic is to be released in Spring, 2024.

Rappaport began her acting studies at Södra Latins Gymnasium, where she for three years trained in different techniques such as Stanislavski and Epic Theater (Bertholt Brecht). She also directed and wrote manuscripts. Later, she studied Dramaturgy at Biskops Arnö Folkhögskola where she wrote scripts for film, theater, and radio.

Martin Widmark and Helena Willis top list of most borrowed authors in Swedish libraries 2022

The list of 2022’s most borrowed library titles is out, and Martin Widmark and Helena Willis top the list. Their series The JerryMaya Detective Agency regularly feature at No. 1 on the Swedish bestseller lists and has been translated into over 30 languages.

Yrsa Sigurdardóttir and Horst & Enger on The Times’ list of 2023’s best crime novels

Yrsa Sigurdardóttir’s critically acclaimed novel The Prey has been named one of the best crime books of 2023 alongside Jørn Lier Horst & Thomas Enger’s Stigma, the internationally bestselling fourth Blix & Ramm novel.

Martin Widmark No. 5 in Iceland

The Hospital Mystery, Martin Widmark’s nineteenth JerryMaya novel, is No. 5 on the official Icelandic bestseller list for the month of September.

‘Same River Twice’ published in Finland

Twenty years after the publication of Stalin’s Cows, Sofi Oksanen is back with an impactful essay, Same River Twice, depicting how Russia is repeating its old playbook in Ukraine, a playbook first executed by Catherine the Great in Crimea in 1783, and again on a larger and bloodier scale by the Soviet Union and Stalin.

Russia has never confronted its imperialist past. Instead, the Kremlin has focused on creating enemies, using them to lay the groundwork for the sexual violence it employs in wars and dehumanizing those who become victims of human rights abuses. Gender equality progress is in decline in Putin’s Russia. Russia silences women, uses rape as a weapon, and humiliates its victims in the media, threatening them with further sexual violence.

This essay on colonialism, oppression and genocide is also a story of war and of women. It addresses the necessity of talking about war, and about war crimes, arguing that no matter what happens, silence cannot ever win.

New title: ‘Back in the Day’

They’re young, filled with angst, pills, hope and love. The parents are powerless, the police are hated, and the child welfare has no control. Ivor and his best friends Marco, Jonas and Arjan are sixteen years old, live right in the middle a modern-day city, and fall deeper and deeper down into a world of intoxication, violence and criminality. But beyond that, there’s friendship, laughter, love, the yearning for grandparents and an unbreakable bond between young men.

Back in the Day is a novel about friendship and hope, about growing up too fast, and longing for what you’ve never had. We follow the boys’ day-to-day life through notes and longer passages where Ivor lets his thoughts and feelings flow throughout the pages. It is a rough story stemming from the urgency of our contemporary city life, characterized by violence and criminality, as well as by warmth and love.

Back in the Day is Oliver Lovrenski’s literary debut; a raw coming-of-age novel from modern Oslo.

‘Back in the Day’ No. 2 in Norway

Oliver Lovrenski’s lauded debut, Back in the Day, enters the Norwegian bestseller lists with a bang. The title claims the No. 2 placement on the hardcover list as well as the e-book list.

Jo Nesbø’s ‘The Redbreast’ chosen as one of the 100 Best Mystery and Thriller Books of All Time by TIME Magazine

TIME has presented the 100 most gripping, twist-filled, satisfying, and influential mystery and thriller books of all time. With a panel of celebrated authors—Megan Abbott, Harlan Coben, S.A. Cosby, Gillian Flynn, Tana French, Rachel Howzell Hall, and Sujata Massey—TIME has selected Jo Nesbø’s The Redbreast as one of these, with the following praise:

”In many ways, The Redbreast—the third novel in Norwegian writer Jo Nesbø’s best-selling Harry Hole series—is as much of an enthralling crime thriller as it is an epic war novel. Here, hard-headed detective Harry Hole is tasked with monitoring neo-Nazi activity in modern-day Oslo when someone mysteriously purchases an expensive, sought-after gun, known as the Marklin Rifle, from the black market. Subsequently, as more murders of dishonored soldiers that conspired with Nazi Germany are discovered, Hole uncovers a dangerous conspiracy where Norway’s violent past and restless future collide.

Switching from Hole’s journey to the frontlines of World War II, the 2000 novel cleverly turns the detective trope on its head, asking the reader to hold all of the pieces while Hole desperately tries to turn over every stone and catch the killer. Its unflinching look at the violence and effects of war, as well as its vivid character development, has garnered The Redbreast, which was translated into English by Don Bartlett in 2006, numerous accolades and awards including the 2000 Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize for Best Novel of the Year, and has also cemented Nesbø as one of the most exciting Scandinavian crime writers to date.”

In an introduction to the project, panelist and best-selling author Tana French reminds us of the genre’s impact, especially in increasingly turbulent times. “In a world that can often be chaotic and reasonless, we need these stories,” she writes. “We need to believe that sometimes things can fit together and make sense, even when that seems impossible; that someday our crisis will end and we’ll be able to leave it behind.”

To see the full list, click ‘Read More’ below.

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Trailer release for ‘Oxen’

Danish TV 2 has released the trailer for the new thriller series Oxen, created by Emmy-award-winning duo Mai Brostrøm and Peter Thorsboe, and directed by Jannik Johansen. Oxen is the television adaptation of the international bestselling book series of the same name by Jens Henrik Jensen recounting the story of war veteran Niels Oxen.

The six-episode series will premiere October 22 on TV 2 Play and October 29 on TV 2.