The Norwegian Storytel Awards have now announced their winners, and Thomas Seltzer came out on top in the category Narrated by Author.

The jury’s motivation reads as follows:

“There’s not much to criticize here. American Karmageddon is an entertaining, funny, and surprising book. It’s both a biography, a travelogue, an encyclopedia, and a history book – which author Thomas Seltzer reads exceptionally well with a great and genuine enthusiasm that keeps the interest up throughout the sixteen hours the audiobook spans. Seltzer’s self-deprecating way of poking fun at his own style couldn’t have been used by an external narrator. This approach adds even more humor to the book than it has initially. The book is extremely packed with information and facts, and Seltzer is good at emphasizing what’s important and needs to be highlighted. He also has a nice and pleasant voice, masters the language well, and avoids repetitions. Seltzer knows his audience and loves footnotes and side remarks. And as one of the jury members said, ‘He is the king, and always rows back to the starting point… to the mother of side remarks.'”

Anne Holt’s best-selling crime novel 1222, the eighth installment in the Hanne Wilhelmsen series, is being adapted for the screen by Amazon Studios, with filming currently taking place in Stockholm. The four-part mystery drama titled Blind Spot is set to premiere on Amazon Prime Video in early 2025.

The lead role of Hanne Wilhelmsen will be played by Ida Engvoll (Love and Anarchy). The ensemble cast includes Pål Sverre Hagen (Exit, Kon-Tiki), Kjell Bergqvist (Bäckström, 30 Degrees in February) and Sissela Kyle (Fröken Frimans krig).

The script is written by celebrated screenwriter Sara Heldt (Sandhamn Murders, The Death of a Pilgrim) together with the acclaimed writer/director Erik Skjoldberg (Occupied, Narvik). Skjoldberg is also directing all four episodes of the series.

During a heavy snowstorm, a train travelling from Stockholm to Narvik collides with an avalanche. All passengers must take shelter in an old, isolated hotel in the mountains nearby. Among them is the sharp and dark-minded police officer, Hanne Wilhelmsen (Ida Engvoll) and when mysterious murders start taking place at the hotel – despite being temporarily suspended from the police – Hanne begins to investigate.

Blind Spot is produced by Nordic Drama Queens in co-production with Amazon MGM Studios, and in association with FIFTH SEASON. Producer is Nordic Drama Queens’ Sandra Harms, and Executive Producers are Anne Holt, Niclas Salomonsson, Line Winther Skyum Funch and Josefine Tengblad.

Anne Holt has been awarded the Riverton Prize for her twelfth installment in the Hanne Wilhelmsen series, Twelve Untamed Horses.

The prestigious crime writing award is annually given to the best Norwegian crime story. Anne Holt has been the recipient of this award previously, in 1994, for the second novel in the Hanne Wilhelmsen series, Blessed are Those who Thirst.

“The Riverton Prize – The Golden Revolver – 2023 goes to a crime novel that oozes linguistic and creative excess. The novel has an original plot, a vivid gallery of characters, socially relevant themes, and surprises and twists that can take your breath away,” the jury says.

Martin Widmark and Helena Willis’ The JerryMaya Detective Agency series has just reached a whopping 10 million copies sold in Sweden alone. Last year, the series was the third most sold in Sweden among all genres and age groups.

For over 20 years, the books about Jerry, Maya, and the other inhabitants of the town of Valleby have been immensely popular among Swedish children, as well as abroad. Each new installment goes straight to the top of the bestseller list, and with over 50 books in the universe, Valleby is a place for children to revisit again and again.

The longlist for the 2024 International Booker Prize has just been announced, and Ia Genberg’s award winning and internationally praised novel The Details has been nominated among 12 other works of translated fiction. 

The jury praises it in the following way: “Ia Genberg writes with a remarkably sharp eye about a series of messy relationships between friends, family and lovers. Using, as she says, “details, rather than information”, she gives us not simply the “residue of life presented in a combination of letters” but an evocation of contemporary Stockholm and a moving portrait of her narrator. She has at times a melancholic eye, but her wit and liveliness constantly break through.”

The prestigious prize is awarded annually for the finest single work of fiction from around the world which has been translated into English and published in the UK and/or Ireland. The shortlist of six books will be announced on April 9.

Paramount+ has announced the commission of a new original UK drama series, The Crow Girl, adapted from the internationally best-selling trilogy by Erik Axl Sund, with Eve Myles, Katherine Kelly and Dougray Scott cast in the lead roles. From Emmy-winning creative team Buccaneer (Irvine Welsh’s Crime, Marcella), The Crow Girl is a multi-faceted contemporary psychological thriller and begins with the gruesome discovery of a teenage boy’s body discarded in plain sight. Determined to find who is responsible, DCI Jeanette Kirkland (played by Myles: Hijack, Broadchurch, A Very English Scandal) joins forces with psychotherapist Sophia Craven (Kelly: Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office, Liar, Inside No. 9) to hunt the killer, despite opposition from her superiors, including confidant DI Lou Stanley (Scott: Irvine Welsh’s Crime, Vigil).

The Crow Girl is adapted for the screen by Milly Thomas, who acted in the likes of The Crown and Sex Education. “I’ve been aching to dive into this story ever since I got my paws on the strange, twisty beast of a novel, and to be making this show alongside the fierce talents of Paramount+ and Buccaneer is a real joy,” she said.

The Crow Girl is executive produced by Buccaneer’s Tony Wood and Richard Tulk-Hart, along with Thomas. Charles Martin and Rebecca Rycroft are both directors of the series, with Andy Mosse serving as producer. The Crow Girl has commenced filming in Bristol.

Read the full article in Deadline by clicking ‘Read more’ below.

The winners of the 2024 Ria Awards were announced this weekend, and the hit series Blackwater received the prize for ‘Best Scripted Series’.

Blackwater is written by Karin Arrhenius and Maren Louise Käehne, directed by Mikael Marcimain, and stars Pernilla August, Rolf Lassgård, Asta Kamma August, and Alba August.