English Translations of Scandinavian/Nordic Mysteries & Thrillers discussion

June has 8 books so far that we can choose from at this time. We will add books as they become know to us. Good Reading.

1) Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Ruling the World by Louie Stowell to be published on the 1st of June 2023. Viking.

Loki's third doodle-packed diary in the number one best-selling series.

When Heimdall and Hyrrokkin abandon their "children" to go on holiday, Odin sends Baldur – Thor's half brother and god of making Loki look bad – to babysit.

As Baldur and Thor bond, Loki's attempts to prove he's good start getting a bit desperate. After the drama teacher casts him as the villain in the school play, Loki starts to wonder whether there's any point in being good when everyone seems convinced of his villainy.

That is until he discovers a rather unusual ring among the costumes and props. A ring that looks suspiciously like the cursed ring of Andvari, one that promises Loki the world if only he gives in to his deepest, darkest desires...

2) My Mother Says by Stine Pilgaard to be published on the 6th of June 2023. Denmark.

“Reeling from a breakup, a young Danish woman recovers her sense of self through conversations with parents, friends, and strangers. A sweet and quirky debut about heartbreak, memory, and the endless potential of language.” ― Kirkus Reviews The narrator’s long-term girlfriend has just broken things off, forcing her to move back in with her father, a Pink Floyd–loving priest. While she desperately tries to convince her girlfriend to reconsider, the rest of the world bombards her with from her childhood friend Mulle to her kindly therapist to her overbearing mother and card-playing father. Bumbling through the fog of disillusionment, the narrator gives herself permission to grieve, philosophize, and be generally outrageous until at last she sees a light at the end of the tunnel. My Mother Says is a compendium of conversations between people who talk past one another in a universe of misplaced good intentions. In this whirlwind of memories, confessions, temper tantrums, and declarations of love Pilgaard’s sheer affection for her characters turns the pain of a broken heart into a heartwarming comedy of errors.

3) Vigilante: A Sara Vallén Thriller by Cecilia Sahlström to be published on the 6th of June 2023. Sweden.

A brutal murder disrupts the idyllic beauty of a Swedish university town in this gritty Nordic noir by the acclaimed author of White Lilac .

Chief Inspector Sara Vallén knows the pristine autumn vistas of Lund belie a harsher reality. Just days ago, she had the devastating experience of testifying in court against the man who abused her. Still recovering from that ordeal, she is called to a garden community on the outskirts of town to investigate a brutal murder.

A man’s body has been discovered in one of the potting sheds of V ä stra Sommarstaden. The victim was a social worker whom friends and colleagues describe as a wonderful, kind, and generous human being. But Vallén’s intuition tells her something’s wrong. No person could possibly be so angelic. And if he was, why would someone murder him? As the police dig deeper into the deceased’s life and relationships, the secrets they unearth only get darker . . .

Vigilante is the second novel in the acclaimed Sara Vallén detective series from Swedish author and former police officer Cecilia Sahlström.

4) The Couples Trip by Ulf Kvensler to be published on the 6thof June 2023. Sweden.

Two couples set out together on a hiking trip that goes terrifyingly wrong in this addictive psychological thriller for fans of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley.

Anna, Henrik and Milena's annual hiking trip is just around the corner. This year, however, Anna and Henrik have a hard time saying no when Milena asks if her boyfriend, Jacob, can tag along. The hike soon spirals into mayhem when the three friends come to realize that taking Jacob was a decision that could change their lives forever.

From the austere mountaintops of northern Sweden, this highly anticipated thriller traverses through the unexplored wilderness—here, there's nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.

5) The Woman Inside by M.T. Edvardsson to be published on the 13th of June 2023. Sweden.

Two couples set out together on a hiking trip that goes terrifyingly wrong in this addictive psychological thriller for fans of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley.

Anna, Henrik and Milena's annual hiking trip is just around the corner. This year, however, Anna and Henrik have a hard time saying no when Milena asks if her boyfriend, Jacob, can tag along. The hike soon spirals into mayhem when the three friends come to realize that taking Jacob was a decision that could change their lives forever.

From the austere mountaintops of northern Sweden, this highly anticipated thriller traverses through the unexplored wilderness—here, there's nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.

6) A Valkyrie's Vengeance by Talia Clayton to be published on the 14th of June 2023. Viking.

Vera should not be alive.
Yet, here she is, dragging herself across the galaxy searching for survivors. The two-hundred-year-old Valkyrie knew the moment she woke up on a planet of ash and death that her homeworld, Asgard, is gone. The devastation, known as Ragnarok, swept through Asgard, brought on by none other than Loki, the god of mischief. That arrogant bastard brought the fire giants of Muspelheim to wipe out the entire population, and their flames consumed everything.
Still, Vera will not give up hope that survivors are out there, somewhere in the Nine Realms. She watched the space transports take off with her own eyes. One of those transports held her dearest sister, Edda. Vera will tear the worlds apart to be reunited with her. With the help of an annoyingly stoic Elven swordsman and a burlesque-dancing human, Vera sets off to search the Nine Realms for Asgardian survivors and her sister.
But something darker lurks in the Nine Realms, whispering doom for all the planets in the galaxy. Vera might be the only one who can save them-but don't get too excited.
She is never the hero. She is winged death.

*This book contains explicit content and dark elements that may be triggering to some. It includes depression, violence, mature language, explicit romance, murder, nudity, abuse, and blood. This book is intended for mature audiences 18+.

7) Whispers at Dusk by Heather Graham to be published on the 27th of June 2023. Norway.

When darkness falls, there’s nowhere to hide.

Four bodies have been discovered along Europe’s riverbanks, placed with care—and completely drained of blood. Pinpricks on their throats indicate a slender murder weapon, but DNA found in the wounds suggests something far more sinister. Tasked with investigating, the FBI recruits Agents Della Hamilton and Mason Carter to Blackbird, an international offshoot of the Krewe of Hunters. If you want to catch a vampire killer, you need agents who can speak with the dead.

The pair travel to Norway, where the shadowy forests of Lillehammer reveal a gruesome scene. The killer is thirsty for more victims, and the bloodless trail soon leads Della and Mason to a group that believes drinking blood is the key to immortality. To catch the culprit of such an intimate crime, the agents will have to get close. Mason’s already lost one partner; he’s not ready to risk Della as bait. But sometimes justice requires a sacrifice…

8) My Men: A Novel by Victoria Kielland to be published on the 27th of June 2023. Norway and U.S.A.

"This fascinating, off-kilter novel about a female serial killer is an unexpectedly thrilling read.”
—Karl Ove Knausgård, author of My Struggle and The Morning Star

"Kielland’s dense, lyrical novel offers both insight and opacity . . . Despite the subject matter, this novel is not your typical thriller. The language, in Searls’ translation, is dense, poetic, and deeply figurative." — Kirkus Reviews

Based on the true story of Norwegian maid turned Midwestern farmwife Belle Gunness, the first female serial killer in American history. My Men is a fictional account of one broken woman's descent into inescapable madness.

Among thousands of other Norwegian immigrants seeking freedom, Brynhild Størset emigrated to the American Upper Midwest in the late nineteenth century, changing her name and her life. As Bella, later Belle Gunness, she came in search of not only fortune and true faith but, most of all, love.

From Victoria Kielland, a rising star of Norwegian literature, comes My Men , a literary reimagining of the harrowing true story of Belle Gunness, who slowly but irreversibly turned to senseless murder for release from her pain, becoming America’s first known female serial killer. In pursuit of her American Dream, Kielland’s Belle grows increasingly alienated, ruthless, and perversely compelling.

Raw, visceral, and altogether hypnotic, My Men is a brutal yet radically empathetic glimpse into the world of a woman consumed by desire.

My Men sounds very interesting as do others. Thanks for the list Ken!

9) Venezia Miller has The Storm: Book 4 in the nordic noir series "The Find" to be published on the 1st of June 2023. Sweden.

In the snowy streets of Gävle, a man is found dead, and a homeless girl, who is on the run, holds the key to the truth. When Inspectors Isa Lindström and Timo Paikkala take on the case, they discover that this is just the tip of the iceberg. As they delve deeper, they uncover a tangled web of corruption and deceit that reaches all the way to the top.

With ties to a past mass shooting and a looming political convention, the stakes are higher than ever before. As the clock ticks down, Lindström and Paikkala race against time to unravel the conspiracy before it's too late. But as they peel back the layers of this twisted plot, they realize that the real danger may not just be the killer they're hunting, but the powerful forces behind the scenes.

In a pulse-pounding thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end, Lindström and Paikkala must navigate a dangerous maze of clues and suspects to solve the case and expose the truth.


suspense, political thriller, mystery, nordic noir

10) Michael Wills has For the Want of Silver: Inspired by the story of Ulf of Borresta to be published on the 23rd of June 2023. Sweden.

A novel based on the true story of a Viking raider who, over 30 years, acquired a fortune in English silver.

In the churchyard of the village of Orkesta, just north of the city of Stockholm, there are two eleventh century rune stones. One of them, in a few brief words, tells the world of the extraordinary achievements of Ulf of Borresta, who lived nearby. During a long career as a Viking raider, he became extremely rich on the proceeds of extortion: Danegeld. The carved runes mention the names of real Norse historical figures with whom he ravaged the English countryside. These names can be dated and the vicious raids and bloody battles where the Danegelds were won, identified.

11) Truth Is The Biggest Lie: A gripping psychological suspense with a jaw-dropping twist by Leonie Haubrich & Judith Fröling to be published on the 28th of June 2023. Norway.

Truth can be deadly ...
In the fishing village of Nusfjord in Lofoten, young Solveig discovers clues to a dark family secret: hidden sketchbooks and a photo of a woman who looks amazingly like her.
What happened to the German student who disappeared without a trace 23 years ago? As Solveig digs deeper into the past, she is haunted by hidden threats and drawn into a maelstrom of lies and intrigue.
With the help of Anders, a retired policeman, she embarks on a dangerous search. Little by little she gets caught in a dark web of betrayal, murder and secrets ...

A gripping Norwegian thriller about love, loyalty and the painful search for the truth.

12} Sólja: A chilling and prescient Arctic thriller by Christoffer Petersen to be published on the 24th of June 2023. Greenland. I note that this was in May's to be-read but Christofer Petersen doesn't always have the right date of published when a book goes on the publication date.

As the race for control of the Arctic intensifies, a Danish journalist becomes a person of extreme interest for the Arctic nations’ intelligence services, when she unwittingly uncovers the identity of a secret agent codenamed Sólja.

Set partly on the Faroe Islands, Sólja takes the reader deep into the shadows of the far north.

Christoffer Petersen writes chilling thrillers in harsh, isolated environments. Too dark for some. Too cold for everyone. Óskar Guðmundsson, author of The Commandments.

Pick up Sólja and discover the forgotten gateway to the Arctic today!

13) The Arcadian Match by Anne Mortensen to be published on the 20th of June 2023. Sweden.

In the year 2032, Sweden stands as an exemplary utopia, a crime-free haven immersed in eco-friendly ideals. Within this bold new society of social clubs and competitive point systems, many attribute the nation's remarkable achievements to the introduction of Q-scores.

Meet Christian Karlsson, a brilliant mastermind of social media, adept at navigating the Q-score landscape like a seasoned stockbroker. His ability to consistently deliver exceptional results has made him highly sought out. However, when tragedy strikes and his close friend plummets to his demise, Christian's existence takes a tumultuous turn.

Driven by an insatiable thirst for justice, Christian embarks on a relentless quest, delving deep into the enigmatic network of Sweden's oldest social club—an elusive organization whispered to be a secret society. As circumstances force him into a precarious corner, he finds himself entangled in a high-stakes game that mirrors reality itself.

In a world where the outcome hinges on who emerges victorious from The Arcadian Match, Christian must summon every ounce of his wit, resilience, and resourcefulness. Failure is not an option as he races against time, navigating treacherous paths and unraveling secrets that could shake the very foundations of his society.

14) Adelyne Scott and the Luftwaffe Locket: A short story of action and adventure by Christoffer Petersen to be published on the 11th of June 2023. Denmark.

When an old friend reveals a clue that might help a young Englishwoman recover her family’s fortune, Adelyne Scott risks everything to find the Luftwaffe Locket.

Adelyne Scott and the Luftwaffe Locket is a short story packed with action and adventure from the author of Seven Graves, One Winter and The Boy with the Narwhal Tooth .