English Translations of Scandinavian/Nordic Mysteries & Thrillers discussion

For the month of May 2022 we have six book to choose from to read. As always we will add books as they become known to us. Good Reading.

1) Death In Summer by Lina Areklew to be published on the 5th of May 2022. Sweden.

When murder comes to a secluded island, the ghosts of the past will resurface…

As a young boy, Fredrik Fröding survived one of Europe’s worst ferry disasters. The tragedy haunts him, and decades later Fredrik refuses to give up hope that his brother Niklas also lived. It’s become an obsession that cost him a career in the police, and his relentless quest for answers leads him from Stockholm to the island of Ulvön.

In the remote north on Sweden’s High Coast, the island community is tiny, but bolstered by a bustling tourist industry. It’s where Detective Sofia Hjortén retreated to after her personal life fell apart. When a man is murdered at the local hotel, she gathers evidence, and is shocked to see Fredrik in the area: his departure from police training also signalled the end of their brief intimacy.

Sofia’s work leads her to unravel secrets from forty years ago. What does a summer camp have to do with the dead man? It’s this mystery Sofia must solve – a job made harder when the key suspect in the crime turns out to be Fredrik. Has his fragile mental state led to violence, or is there someone else out there whose demons have led to bloodshed?

A compulsive Scandinavian crime thriller with a vivid and atmospheric setting. Perfect for police procedural fans who love the novels of Maria Adolfsson, Anders de la Motte and Håkan Nesser.

2) A Postcard for Annie by Ida Jessen to be published on the 10th of May 2022. Denmark.

A young woman witnesses a terrible accident with unexpected consequences, a mother sits with her unconscious son in a hospital room, a pair of sisters remember their mother’s hands braiding their hair. The women in these quietly intense stories are all in one way or another out of sync with their lives and with themselves, women who appease and indulge, fret and acquiesce. Women who yearn to connect, who struggle to come to terms with unfulfilled love, for a husband, a son, a friend, who are locked inside wordless, sexless marriages, or impossibly bound by maternal bonds. Through all six stories, Jessen’s women cling to someone, someone from whom love, despite their efforts, cannot be wrung.

3) Geiger by Gustaf Skördeman to be published on the 10th of May 2022. Sweden.

For a seemingly perfect family, a single word will change everything in this edge‑of‑your‑seat thriller for fans of The Silent Patient and The Whisper Man.

It's early summer in Stockholm. Agneta and Stellan Broman have just waved off their daughters and grandchildren when the landline phone rings. The caller says just one word: "Geiger." Agneta hangs up, finds her old pistol, kills her husband of fifty years and then disappears from their home without a trace.

Sara Nowak, a police officer in the prostitution unit, is called by a colleague who is investigating the murder. Stellan was a widely loved former television presenter, and Sara grew up next door to the Bromans, spending much of her childhood in their grand house. Both the victim's daughters and Sara are devastated by the killing, and going against all regulations, Sara gets involved in the investigation. It is the beginning of a dark journey, leading back to the Cold War and fatal ideologies, and the truth about Sara's own childhood.

Exciting, compelling, and full of twists you'll never see coming, Geiger is Gustaf Skördeman's incredible debut thriller.

4) The Last to Disappear by Jo Spain an Irish author, to be published on the 12th of May 2022. Northern Lapland.

The chilling new thriller from the bestselling author of The Confession and Dirty Little Secrets

A small town. A frozen lake. Three missing women. One body.

When young London professional Alex Evans is informed that his sister's body has been pulled from an icy lake in Northern Lapland, he assumes his irresponsible sister accidentally drowned. He travels to the wealthy winter resort where Vicky worked as a tour-guide and meets Agatha Koskinen, the detective in charge. Agatha is a no-nonsense single mother of three who already thinks there's more to Vicky's case than meets the eye.

As the two form an unlikely alliance, Alex also begins to suspect the small town where his sister lived and died is harbouring secrets. It's not long before he learns that three other women have gone missing from the area in the past and that his sister may have left him a message.

On the surface, Koppe, Lapland is a winter wonderland. But in this remote, frozen place, death seems only ever a heartbeat away.

5) Attack and Decay by Andrew Cartmel the Main author of Doctor
who, for Titan Comics, to be published on the 17th of May 2022. Scandi.

The Vinyl Detective plunges into the world of death metal in his sixth adventure. Expect laughs, LPs, cats and the return of fan favourites, Nevada, Tinkler, Stinky Stanmer and more.

The Vinyl Detective goes Scandi noir in his sixth adventure. Disfigured corpse. Check. Grotesque snowman. Check. Headless animals. Check. But in fact the killer is taking their cue not from Scandi noir fiction but another popular Scandinavian export – death metal.

6) Dr. B. by Daniel Birnbaum to be published on the 24th of May 2022. Sweden.

The former director of the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm makes his literary debut with this dramatic and riveting novel of book publishing, emigrates, spies, and diplomats in World War II Sweden based on his grandfather's life.

In 1933, after Hitler and the Nazi Party consolidated power in Germany, Immanuel Birnbaum, a German Jewish journalist based in Warsaw, is forbidden from writing for newspapers in his homeland. Six years later, just months before the German invasion of Poland that ignites World War II, Immanuel escapes to Sweden with his wife and two young sons.

Living as a refugee in Stockholm, Immanuel continues to write, contributing articles to a liberal Swiss newspaper in Basel under the name Dr. B. He also begins working as an editor for the legendary German publisher S. Fischer Verlag. Gottfried Bermann Fischer had established an office in Stockholm to evade German censorship, publishing celebrated German writers such as Thomas Mann and Stefan Zweig.

Immanuel also becomes entangled with British intelligence agents who produce and distribute anti-Nazi propaganda in Stockholm. On orders from Winston Churchill, the Allied spies plan several acts of sabotage. But when the Swedish postal service picks up a letter written in invisible ink, the plotters are exposed. The letter, long a mystery in military history accounts, was in fact written by Dr. B. But why would a Jew living in exile and targeted for death by the Nazis have wanted to tip them off?

Daniel Birnbaum's novel will intrigue readers with its fascinating portrayal of the astonishing connections and often mysterious players illuminated by his grandfather's remarkable wartime life.

7) Retribution by Venezia Miller published on the 30th of April 2022. Sweden.

A quiet September morning turns into a nightmare when ten people are killed and dozens injured in a senseless massacre. The brutal attack is quickly dismissed as an act of terrorism, but as inspectors Paikkala and Lindström begin to piece together what happened and try to figure out if there's any connection between the victims, more questions arise than answers.
Was this a futile act to create fear and chaos or was there another motive behind the madness?
Then more gruesome murders surface, and for one of the inspectors the case becomes very personal, with old wounds being ripped open. Wounds and memories that were better left untouched.

With the pressure mounting and time running out, the race is on for the Gävle team to find out what connects these seemingly random murders before anyone else dies.

Retribution is the third installment in The Find series and continues the story that began in The Find and Evil Beneath The Skin.

Keywords: mystery, nordic noir, suspense

This is a great series. I hope that Retribution is not the last book.

8) Maratse and Petra: Petra Collection 1 by Christoffer Petersen to be published on the 20th of May 2022. Greenland.

Discover the world of Greenland crime, thrillers and mysteries in these five previously published novellas featuring Petra 'Piitalaat' Jensen as both constable, sergeant, and comissioner alongside Greenland's favourite police constable, David Maratse.

Container
A short story of torment and isolation in the Arctic
As winter retreats and the long summer begins, Greenland Police Constable David Maratse receives a call from inside a shipping container.

The Heart that was a Wild Garden
A short story of parenthood and rejection in the Arctic
When a young couple bring home a newborn baby, Police Constable David Maratse must take care of their challenging nine-year-old girl before the family self-destructs.

Qivittoq
A short story of theft and redemption in the Arctic
When a pattern for a Greenlandic national costume is stolen Constable David Maratse must find the thief before they are expelled from the community.

Scrimshaw
A short story of art and innocence in the Arctic
When an elderly artist goes missing in Greenland’s capital, Constable David Maratse takes a leave of absence to bring him back home before he is ruined by the city.

Asiaq
A short story of endurance and adversity in the Arctic
When two ships collide during an international Search and Rescue exercise off Northeast Greenland, Constable David Maratse and Constable Petra Jensen must rescue a group of journalists trapped below decks.

9) Maratse and Petra: Petra Collection 2 by Christoffer Petersen to be published on the 20th of May 2022. Greenland.

Discover the world of Greenland crime, thrillers and mysteries in these five previously published novellas featuring Petra 'Piitalaat' Jensen as both constable, sergeant, and comissioner alongside Greenland's favourite police constable, David Maratse.

Inuk
A short story of guilt and salvation in the Arctic
In the wake of a tragic car accident Constable David Maratse retreats to a remote hunters’ cabin in search of salvation.

Poison Berry
A short story of poison and pollution in the Arctic
When a young girl dies shortly after eating mountain berries, Constable David Maratse must determine the cause before the local community takes the law into their own hands.

Virusi
A short story of outbreak and hysteria in the Arctic
When a young woman collapses shortly after arriving in a remote settlement in Greenland, Constable David Maratse must enforce quarantine as sickness and panic spreads through the community.

The Women’s Knife
A short story of mental health and manipulation in the Arctic
When Constable David Maratse responds to a pregnant woman’s suicide attempt in a remote settlement, he uncovers disturbing secrets buried in tiny graves hidden on the island.

Ice, Wind and Fire
A short story of fire and devastation in the Arctic
When thin ice prevents firefighters from responding to a house fire, Constable David Maratse must organise an evacuation, before strong winds spread the flames through the settlement.