Jens Lapidus’ Dead Man Walking sails to No. 2 on the official bestseller list for hardcover this week, while Alex Ahndoril’s recently published I Will Find the Key makes its debut at No. 4.
Jørn Lier Horst & Thomas Engers’ Stigma is No. 2 on the Norwegian paperback list this week, followed by Jørn Lier Horst’s The Traitor at No. 3. Hjorth & Rosenfeldt’s The Guilt You Carry debuts as No. 2 on the list for e-books.
Tina Mackic’s latest Summer Shadow title, The Summer Shadow and the Water Trick, stays put at No. 1 on the children’s list. This marks the title’s fourth consecutive week on the bestseller list since its publication.
In May, Niklas Natt och Dag was awarded this year’s Mystery Writers of Japan Award in the translated fiction category for his praised historical thrillers 1794 and 1795. The ceremony was held last night, and the award was accepted on behalf of Niklas by his publisher, Shogakukan. Niklas sent a video greeting in Japanese that was shown during the ceremony.
The Mystery Writers of Japan Award was founded in 1947 and is considered one of the most prestigious awards within the genre.
Oliver Lovrenski’s incredible debut, Back in the Day, has been shortlisted for the most prestigious literary award in Norway – the Brage Award (Brageprisen).
The jury calls Lovrenski a “linguistic genius” who “shows enormous literary talent”.
The full motivation is as follows: “The novel is inspired by Lovrenski’s own life. It is strong, humorous, tender, and heartfelt. Lovrenski, who is still a teenager himself, displays immense literary talent with his impressive creativity, linguistic genius, and the ability to captivate the reader from the very first sentence. Back in the Day is a fantastic contemporary literature from an authentic voice that truly knows what he’s talking about. It’s a novel that’s hard to put down and hard to forget. A novel you simply fall in love with.”
Should Lovrenski win, he will be the first ever debutant to receive the Brage Award in the fiction category. The winner will be announced 23 November.
Private detective Julia Stark receives an unannounced visit at the office. The man at the door is one of the owners of a successful family business. The day before, he was present at a board meeting and dinner at his estate in the northwestern part of Sweden. The following morning, he finds a photograph in his phone of a bloody man, tied up with a bag over his head.
Due to alcohol-related amnesia, the man has no idea where the picture comes from and wants to hire Stark Detective Agency to clear his name before the police get involved. Julia asks her ex-husband Sidney Mendelson to take time off from the City Police and assist her in the investigation. There is still a glimmer of hope left in Julia that this might be her chance to win him back.
Welcomed as guests at the opulent estate, Julia and Sidney begin to search for the truth while dining and socializing with each of the family members that could theoretically be involved in the murder.
I Will Find the Key is the first installment in the whodunnit suite “The Key Series,” – a modern take on the classic whodunnit mystery, contained and rich with colorful characters, and with one of the most compelling and fascinating female characters in modern Scandinavian crime fiction at the center of it all: Private Detective Julia Stark.
The pseudonym Alex Ahndoril is a new collaboration between Alexandra Coelho Ahndoril and Alexander Ahndoril, the authors behind Lars Kepler.
A round-up of the bestselling titles in Sweden during the third quarter of 2023 have just been published. Martin Widmark’s The Dinosaur Mystery comes in at No. 3 in the children’s category.
Jo Nesbø’s just published The Night House debuts at No. 5 on the Danish book retailer Bog & idé’s Top 10 Crime list.
A new Jönssonligan film is currently shooting and FLX and SF Studios can now reveal the star-studded cast.
This Jönssonligan reboot is going to take us back to the soul of the classic film series whilst being placed in a contemporary context. Eddie Åhgren directs from a script written by Per Gavatin. In the beginning of the film, we meet Sickan who has been on the run for a year. He reunites with Vanheden, Harry and Doris for another coup.
Robert Gustafsson plays Charles-Ingvar “Sickan” Jönsson, and Jonas Karlsson, Jennie Silfverhjelm and Anders Jansson will portray Vanheden, Doris and Dynamit-Harry. The cast also includes Arvin Kananian, Lotta Tejle, Thomas Bo Larsen, Johan Rabaeus, David Batra, Felicia Danielsson, Alfred Svensson and David Ritschard.
Jönssonligan will premiere in Swedish theatres Christmas 2024.
Oliver Lovrenski’s smashing debut Back in the Day has been shortlisted for the highly acclaimed Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize (Bokhandlerprisen).
Lovrenski is hailed as the youngest ever nominee of the award, and the nomination follows the title’s constant presence at the top of the best seller list since publication.
The Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize is awarded following a vote amongst all those who work in bookstores in Norway. Eligible books are those considered to be one of the “Books of the Year” written by a Norwegian author. The prize was awarded for the first time in 1948, and this year’s winner will be announced on November 14.
China, Booky
Closed by The Grayhawk Agency on behalf of Ida Schabbauer
UK, Manilla Press
Two-book deal closed by Josephine Oxelheim
France, Buchet-Chastel
Two-book deal closed by Josephine Oxelheim
Netherlands, Gottmer
Three-book-deal closed by Linda Andersson
Estonia, Varrak
Two-book deal closed by Emma Granberg
Germany, HarperCollins
Closed by Senka Hasanovic
[A] superlative example of Scandi noir. /…/ A haunting tale that concludes with a sickening double twist. SON is everything a crime novel should be – and more.
– The Times
All in all, The Mother-in-Law is a brilliant book because it twists things around until you don’t know who to sympathize with in the end.
– WMN Magazin
When the Cranes Fly South is the kind of novel that goes straight to the heart. It’s both a beautiful and moving tale. I was completely captivated by the book and it will remain in my thoughts for a long time. It’s so wonderfully written, with sensitivity and empathy. For the first time ever, a book has moved me to tears.
– Randiglensbo.dk
When the Cranes Fly South by Lisa Ridzén is an extremely evocative title, a delicate story about what one faces as we grow older and a touching novel about fathers and sons as well as what it means to say goodbye.
– Today
Oksanen’s prose resonates with clarity and conviction. /…/ An exquisite feminist critique of Russia’s oppressive tactics.
– Kirkus Reviews
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.
