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Last Updated: Apr 15, 2020 2:29 AM
Subjects: Adults, Mystery/Suspense
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Introduction

Nordic Noir

February 2012

Stieg Larsson and the Millennium Trilogy (featuring Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist) may have brought Scandinavian authors to our attention, but Swedish authors like Astrid Lindgren and her heroine Pippi Longstocking, or Swedish police detective Kurt Wallander, created by Henning Mankell have been around for many years. Pat Loughnane, BCCLS Executive Secretary known for her "Pat's Picks" lists, is now sharing her Scandinavian favorites.

Recommended Reads

Denmark

The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen; Lisa Hartford (Translator)
ISBN: 9780525952480
Publication Date: 2011-08-23
The first installment in an award-winning Danish series introduces chief detective Carl Morck, who after recovering from what he thought was a career-destroying gunshot wound is relegated to cold cases and becomes immersed in the five-year disappearance of a politician.

Finland

Silence by Jan Costin Wagner
ISBN: 1605982679
Publication Date: 2011-12-15
When a young girl vanishes and her abandoned bike is discovered in the exact same spot where another girl was murdered thirty-three years before, Detective Kimmo Joentaa suspects the same killer has struck again and tries to solve both cases.
Lucifer's Tears by James Thompson
ISBN: 9780399157004
Publication Date: 2011-03-17
Kari Vaara, physically and psychologically scarred a year after the Sufia Elmi case (Snow Angel), investigates a ninety-year-old national hero for suspected war crimes, an effort that is complicated by the murder of a Russian businessman's wife.
Snow Angels by James Thompson
ISBN: 9780399156175
Publication Date: 2010-01-07
A first entry in a new series introduces Inspector Kari Vaara, a hardened detective who investigates the racially charged murder of a Somali immigrant during a bitterly cold and dark Christmas season in Finland, a case that takes its toll on his marriage to his pregnant American wife.

Iceland

Frozen Assets by Quentin Bates
ISBN: 9781569478677
Publication Date: 2011-01-18
When Officer Gunnhildur, a sardonic female cop, investigates the discovery of a body in an Icelandic fishing village she uncovers a web of political intrigue and corruption.
Hypothermia by Arnaldur Indriðason
ISBN: 9780312569914
Publication Date: 2010-09-14
Unofficially investigating a suspicious suicide, Inspector Erlendur becomes increasingly unsettled by the unsolved cases of two young people who went missing decades earlier under circumstances tied to his own past.
Where the Shadows Lie by Michael Ridpath
ISBN: 9780312675035
Publication Date: 2011-08-02
On loan to the Icelandic Police Force, former Boston detective Magnus Jonson is forced to confront difficult truths about his father's murder while investigating rumors about a priceless ancient manuscript.

Norway

1222 by Anne Holt
ISBN: 9781451634716
Publication Date: 2011-12-27
From Norway's bestselling crime writer comes a suspenseful locked-room mystery set in an isolated hotel where guests who are stranded during a monumental snowstorm begin turning up dead.
Bad Intentions by Karin Fossum; Charlotte Barslund (Translator)
ISBN: 9780547483344
Publication Date: 2011-08-09
Inspector Konrad Sejer confronts his own fears and memories while investigating the work of a serial killer who is throwing his victims into local Scandinavian lakes.
The Water's Edge by Karin Fossum; Charlotte Barslund (Translator)
ISBN: 9780151014217
Publication Date: 2009-08-04
When a couple discovers the body of a boy and sees a man limping away from the scene, Inspectors Konrad Sejer and Jakob Skarre make inquiries throughout the community of Solberglia and find the case complicated by another boy's disappearance and the couple's marital tensions.
The Leopard by Jo Nesbø; Don Bartlett (Translator)
ISBN: 9780307595874
Publication Date: 2011-12-13
After two young women are found dead, both drowned in their own blood, Inspector Harry Hole is compelled to return to Norway to see his dying father and to investigate the brutal crime, which may be the work of a serial killer.
The Snowman by Jo Nesbø; Don Bartlett (Translator)
ISBN: 9780307595867
Publication Date: 2011-05-10
In Oslo, after the first snow of the season has fallen, a woman disappears, and a sinister snowman is left in her wake. As irascible detective Harry Hole realizes that this is only one of multiple disappearances, he begins to think a serial killer may be at work--and may be drawing in Hole personally and intentionally.
The Devil's Star by Jo Nesbø; Don Bartlett (Translator)
ISBN: 9780061133978
Publication Date: 2010-03-09
Detective Harry Hole has two missions: catch a serial killer obsessed with the number five, who cuts a finger off each victim and adorns her with a red pentagram; and expose his crooked partner, Tom Waaler.

Sweden

The Ice Princess by Camilla Läckberg; Steven T. Murray (Translator)
ISBN: 9781605980928
Publication Date: 2010-06-15
After she returns to her hometown to learn that her friend, Alex, was found in an ice-cold bath with her wrists slashed, biographer Erica Falck researches her friend's past and joins forces with Detective Patrik Hedstrom, who has his own suspicions about the case.
The Preacher by Camilla Läckberg
ISBN: 9780007253944
In a sequel to Ice Princess, the discovery of two murder victims who were killed 20 years earlier is complicated by the body of a third, recent victim at the same location, a case that compels detective Patrik Hedstrom to focus his investigation on a feuding clan of misfits, religious fanatics and criminals.
Until Thy Wrath Be Past by Asa Larsson
ISBN: 9781402787164
Publication Date: 2011-11-01
When a young woman's body is found on the River Torne, prosecutor Rebecka Martinsson teams up with police inspector Anna-Maria Mella to investigate a case tied to rumors of the mysterious disappearance of a German supply plane in 1943.
Faceless Killers by Steven T. Murray (Translator)
ISBN: 156584341X
Publication Date: 1997-03-01
Inspector Kurt Wallander, a local Swedish police officer whose own personal life is falling apart, finds himself coping with a wave of anti-foreigner sentiment when he is put in charge of the investigation into the brutal murders of an elderly couple.
The Inspector and Silence by Laurie Thompson (Translator); Hakan Nesser
ISBN: 9780375425233
Publication Date: 2011-06-14
Investigating a dubious religious sect in the aftermath of a young girl's brutal murder, Inspector Van Veeteren is frustrated by the group's secretive refusal to defend itself, a case that is complicated by increasingly perplexing tips by an anonymous woman.
Unwanted by Kristina Ohlsson; Sarah G. Death (Translator)
ISBN: 9781439198896
Publication Date: 2012-02-28
Inspector Fredericka Bergman investigates the kidnapping and murder of a child who had been separated from her mother on a crowded train on a rainy Swedish summer day, a case that points to the work of a brilliant and ruthless killer.

List Created By

Patricia Loughnane

Executive Secretary/Office Manager, BCCLS

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