CBTB’s Guide to Early-2020 Nordic Noir
The Scandinavian crime fiction that belongs on your early-2020 TBR!
It’s no surprise that I’m always on the lookout for new Nordic Noir. Scandinavian crime fiction is my personal favorite crime fiction subgenre, and a staple of Crime by the Book—and luckily for all of us who adore it, 2020 is going to be a fantastic year for new releases in this category! Today I’m rounding up the Scandinavian crime fiction that belongs on your to-read list early this year, including both books I’ve already read and covered here on CBTB, and titles that I haven’t yet dug into, but which are on my personal TBR list. If I’ve already read a book on this list, you’ll find a link to my coverage of that book included here, too!
The books included in this post have US publication dates that fall between January and April 2020—which means that some of them are already on sale, and some are releasing very soon! From new installments in beloved series to exciting debuts, there’s a little something for every Scandinavian crime fiction fan releasing early this year. Dive into this list and fill your TBR with all the gritty, gripping storytelling that Scandinavian crime fiction has to offer.
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JANUARY RELEASES
THE RABBIT HUNTER by Lars Kepler
Read CBTB’s Q&A with Lars Kepler
Why I’m Excited:
A new Lars Kepler thriller is always cause for celebration. This is a new installment in Kepler’s bestselling series following detective Joona Linna in Stockholm, Sweden. This book features one of Kepler’s most complex plots yet: it’s a story that spans continents, and involves past secrets coming to light in the present day. Oh, and it’s got a killer with a very creepy penchant for nursery rhymes, too. If you’re a total newcomer to Kepler’s world, you may wish to start with Book 3 in the series, The Sandman, and work your way from there, but Kepler’s books are crafted in a way that they truly all can be read as standalones. This is another intricate, dark, violent thriller from a writing duo producing some of the scariest serial killer thrillers out there.
Plot Details:
Ten little rabbits, all dressed in white
Tried to get to heaven on the end of a kite.
Kite string got broken, down they all fell,
Instead of going to heaven, they all went to...
It begins with a nursery rhyme. Nineteen minutes later you die.
A masked stranger stands in the shadows. He watches his victim through the window. He will kill him slowly—make him pay.
Soon the Rabbit Hunter has claimed another three victims. This predator will stop at nothing to reap his ultimate revenge. It’s up to Joona Linna and Saga Bauer to untangle one of the most complex cases of their career, and follow the killer’s trail of destruction back to one horrific night of violence.
THE TENANT by Katrine Engberg
Read CBTB’s Review of THE TENANT
Why I’m Excited:
I’m always thrilled to see new authors breaking into the Nordic Noir genre, and Katrine Engberg has quickly established herself as an author on the rise in this category. Her debut novel, THE TENANT, introduces readers to the protagonists of her series: a duo of police officers in Copenhagen. THE TENANT finds these officers investigating a bizarre crime that may be inspired by an unpublished manuscript. I love thrillers that have bookish elements to them, and found this thread of THE TENANT very engaging! While I did find some elements of this story uneven (more on that in my full review), this was a strong debut and a compelling introduction to an author to watch.
Plot Details:
An electrifying work of literary suspense from international bestselling author Katrine Engberg, this stunning debut introduces two police detectives struggling to solve a shocking murder and stop a killer hell-bent on revenge.
When a young woman is discovered brutally murdered in her own apartment, with an intricate pattern of lines carved into her face, Copenhagen police detectives Jeppe Korner and Anette Werner are assigned to the case. In short order, they establish a link between the victim, Julie Stender, and her landlady, Esther de Laurenti, who’s a bit too fond of drink and the host of raucous dinner parties with her artist friends. Esther also turns out to be a budding novelist—and when Julie turns up as a murder victim in the still-unfinished mystery she’s writing, the link between fiction and real life grows both more urgent and more dangerous.
But Esther’s role in this twisted scenario is not quite as clear as it first seems. Is she the culprit—or just another victim, trapped in a twisted game of vengeance? Anette and Jeppe must dig more deeply into the two women’s pasts to discover the identity of the brutal puppet-master pulling the strings in this electrifying literary thriller.
STALKER by Lars Kepler (paperback edition)
Read CBTB’s “Buzzworthy Books” Post
Why I’m Excited:
My personal favorite Lars Kepler book has just been released in a gorgeous new paperback edition… what’s not to be excited about?! STALKER is an absolutely gripping serial killer thriller that puts readers up close and personal with one of my favorite fictional villains to date. This book is another series installment from Kepler, but it’s particularly easy to read on its own, as it spends a lot of time focused on a police officer who hasn’t appeared elsewhere in Kepler’s series. I love this book, and highly recommend it for my fellow serial killer thriller addicts!
Plot Details:
The internationally bestselling authors of The Sandman and The Hypnotist return with a terrifying new thriller: Detective Joona Linna--recently returned from compassionate leave--reunites with hypnotist Erik Maria Bark in a search for a seemingly unassailable sadistic killer.
The Swedish National Crime Unit receives a video of a young woman in her home, clearly unaware that she's being watched. Soon after the tape is received, the woman's body is found horrifically mutilated. With the arrival of the next, similar video, the police understand that the killer is toying with them, warning of a new victim, knowing there's nothing they can do. Detective Margot Silverman is put in charge of the investigation, and soon asks Detective Joona Linna for help. Linna, in turn, recruits Erik Maria Bark, the hypnotist and expert in trauma, with whom Linna's worked before. Bark is leery of forcing people to give up their secrets. But this time, Bark is the one hiding things.
Years before, he had put a man away for an eerily similar crime, and now he's beginning to think that an innocent man may be behind bars--and a serial killer still on the loose. . .
FEBRUARY RELEASES
THE ABSOLUTION by Yrsa Sigurdardottir
Available 2/11/20
Read CBTB’s Review
Why I’m Excited:
Yrsa Sigurdardottir is one of my absolute favorite authors, and the series she is currently writing in - the Children’s House series - is one of the best Scandinavian crime series out there right now. THE ABSOLUTION, the third installment in the Children’s House series, is Yrsa’s best series installment yet. (Yes, I realize this is a ton of praise I’m heaping on this book right now… but it deserves it.) The Children’s House books are gritty, slow-burning procedurals that explore the impact of childhood trauma. THE ABSOLUTION puts a fresh spin on this series’ themes, using social media as an integral part of the killer’s modus operandi. This book is intricate, masterful, and utterly engrossing. While this mystery is self-contained and can be read on its own, I would recommend reading your way through the whole series so you get the full scope of the characters’ development. Book one is The Legacy and book two is The Reckoning.
Plot Details:
The Absolution is the third installment in Queen of Icelandic crime fiction Yrsa Sigurdardóttir’s series about the psychologist Freyja and the police officer Huldar.
The police find out about the crime the way everyone does: on Snapchat. The video shows a terrified young woman begging for forgiveness. When her body is found, it is marked with a number “2”.
Detective Huldar joins the investigation, bringing child psychologist Freyja on board to help question the murdered teenager's friends. Soon, they uncover that Stella was far from the angel people claim, but who could have hated her enough to kill?
Then another teenager goes missing, more clips are sent to social media, and the body with a “3” is found. Freyja and Huldar can agree on two things at least: the truth is far from simple. The killer is not done yet. And is there an undiscovered body carrying the number “1” out there?
DEATH DESERVED by Jorn Lier Horst & Thomas Enger
Available 2/20/20
Read CBTB’s Review of DEATH DESERVED
Why I’m Excited:
Two of Norway’s most beloved crime writers teaming up on a new serial killer thriller? This is a dream project to me as a reader, and boy does it deliver. DEATH DESERVED is a superb blend of the writing talents of its two authors. Jorn Lier Horst is an author known for his meticulous and realistic portrayal of police work, drawn from his own experience working in Norway’s police force. Thomas Enger is an author whose novels are always infused with raw emotion and rich character development. Combine Horst and Enger’s skills, and you’ve got a crime novel that blends realism with human drama to fantastic effect. In DEATH DESERVED, a serial killer is targeting individuals in the public eye in Norway. DEATH DESERVED is the kind of Nordic thriller you’ll tear through in a couple of sittings. I’m already counting down the days until we can get our hands on the next English release from this talented writing team.
Plot Details:
Oslo, 2018. Former long-distance runner Sonja Nordstrøm never shows at the launch of her controversial autobiography, Always Number One. When celebrity blogger Emma Ramm visits Nordstrøm’s home later that day, she finds the door unlocked and signs of a struggle inside. A bib with the number "one" has been pinned to the TV. Police officer Alexander Blix is appointed to head up the missing-persons investigation, but he still bears the emotional scars of a hostage situation 19 years earlier, when he killed the father of a five-year-old girl. Traces of Nordstrøm soon show up at different locations, but the appearance of the clues appear to be carefully calculated—evidence of a bigger picture that he’s just not seeing. Blix and Ramm soon join forces, determined to find and stop a merciless killer with a flare for the dramatic, and thirst for attention. The trouble is, he’s just got his first taste of it.
MARCH RELEASES
VICTIM 2117 by Jussi Adler-Olsen
Available 3/3/20
Why I’m Excited:
I’ve been reading Jussi Adler-Olsen’s Department Q series for years now, and am so excited that he’s got another crime novel releasing in the US this spring! Adler-Olsen is a staple of the Nordic Noir genre, and his Department Q series explores the dark underbelly of idyllic Copenhagen through the eyes of Department Q, the cold case division of the Danish police force. This Danish crime series blends gritty, complex mysteries with rich character development and a dash of humor, too. In VICTIM 2117, Adler-Olsen delves into the life of one of Department Q’s own: the mysterious Assad. This is one of those crime series that conjures up a sort of nostalgia for me, as I’ve been reading these books since long before I started Crime by the Book. I can’t wait to see what Department Q gets up to next in Adler-Olsen’s newest release!
Plot Details:
In the heart-pounding next installment of the New York Times and #1 internationally bestselling Department Q series, a terrifying international investigation reveals the complex backstory of one of the department's own—the enigmatic Assad.
The newspaper refers to the body only as Victim 2117—the two thousand one hundred and seventeenth refugee to die in the Mediterranean Sea. But to three people, the unnamed victim is so much more, and the death sets off a chain of events that throws Department Q, Copenhagen’s cold cases division led by Detective Carl Mørck, into a deeply dangerous—and deeply personal—case. A case that not only reveals dark secrets about the past, but has deadly implications for the future.
For troubled Danish teen Alexander, whose identity is hidden behind his computer screen, the death of Victim 2117 becomes a symbol of everything he resents and the perfect excuse to unleash his murderous impulses in real life. For Ghallib, one of the most brutal tormentors from Abu Ghraib—Saddam Hussein’s infamous prison—the death of Victim 2117 was the first step in a terrorist plot years in the making. And for Department Q’s Assad, Victim 2117 is a link to his buried past—and the family he assumed was long dead.
With the help of the Department Q squad—Carl, Rose, and Gordon—Assad must finally confront painful memories from his years in the Middle East in order to find and capture Ghallib. But with the clock ticking down to Alexander’s first kill and Ghallib’s devastating attack, the thinly spread Department Q will need to stay one step ahead of their most lethal adversary yet if they are to prevent the loss of thousands of innocent lives.
THE CREAK ON THE STAIRS by Eva Bjorg Aegisdottir (e-book Edition)
Available 3/14/20
Why I’m Excited:
I first met Eva in Iceland, at the Iceland Noir crime fiction festival in 2018. Ever since hearing her describe her debut novel, THE CREAK ON THE STAIRS, I’ve been absolutely dying to get my hands on an English translation. Luckily for me, Orenda Books is making Eva’s debut available for English readers this year! I simply cannot wait to dig into this debut novel that follows a mysterious murder at a lighthouse in Iceland. Orenda Books is a UK-based publisher, so this book will be available overseas first - but you can always order it online! The e-book edition of A CREAK ON THE STAIRS will release this March, and the paperback will be available in the UK in May. It will come to US bookstores later in 2020, too, so keep your eyes peeled for that information later this year!
Plot Details:
When the body of a woman is discovered at a lighthouse in the Icelandic town of Akranes, it soon becomes clear that she’s no stranger to the area. Chief Investigating Officer Elma, who has returned to Akranes following a failed relationship, and her colleagues Sævar and Hörður, commence an uneasy investigation, which uncovers a shocking secret in the dead woman’s past that continues to reverberate in the present day. But as Elma and her team make a series of discoveries, they bring to light a host of long-hidden crimes that shake the entire community. Sifting through the rubble of the townspeople’s shattered memories, they have to dodge increasingly serious threats, and find justice—before it’s too late.
APRIL RELEASES
THE THIRD SISTER by Sara Blaedel
Available 4/7/20
Why I’m Excited:
Danish Queen of Crime Sara Blaedel was one of the first authors to inspire my love of the Nordic Noir genre, and I’ve always got my eye out for what she will publish next! While my personal favorite series of Blaedel’s is her Louise Rick series (police procedurals set in Denmark - yes please!!), I have loved seeing Blaedel push herself and her writing in new directions with her Family Secrets trilogy. THE THIRD SISTER, Blaedel’s April 2020 release, is the final trilogy installment. This trilogy follows a Danish woman, Ilka, who comes to the United States to learn more about her father, a man who abandoned her and her mother when she was very young. This trilogy isn’t as strongly tied to the Scandinavian crime fiction tradition as Blaedel’s Louise Rick series, so readers who want a true police procedural crime series would be better served looking there, but it is certainly heavily influenced by Blaedel’s Danish roots. I’m looking forward to seeing how this trilogy concludes with THE THIRD SISTER.
Plot Details:
Family drama, deadly secrets, and deception come to a head in the explosive conclusion of #1 internationally bestselling author Sara Blaedel's Family Secrets trilogy.
Ilka Jensen's life is in chaos following the tumultuous events of Her Father's Secret. The funeral home she inherited after her estranged father's death is bankrupt. Her new business partner, Artie, lies unconscious in the hospital after a savage attack by mysterious assailants, and her father's second wife is in prison.
Then, just as Ilka learns a shocking revelation about her father, two menacing strangers turn up at the funeral home -- dangerous men who mean to draw her further into a world of secrets, betrayal, and murder.
In order to protect herself and those around her, Ilka sets off on a twisting journey to confront the truth about the man who abandoned her as a child. But the long-buried secrets of her father's past are more tangled and perilous than Ilka could ever imagine . . .
And that’s a wrap on my guide to Scandinavian crime fiction releasing early this year! I’ll be sharing another blog post like this in a couple months, highlighting new summer Nordic Noir releases, but for now, enjoy the amazing new reads that the first few months of 2020 has to offer us! If any of these books are on your TBR, or if you’ve already read any of them, I’d love to hear how you enjoyed them! As always, happy reading! xx A
Nordic Noir fans, listen up: if you’re not already reading the Blix and Ramm series, add it to your to-read pile immediately. Co-written by powerhouse Norwegian crime writers Thomas Enger and Jørn Lier Horst, the Blix and Ramm series merges the best of its authors’ crime writing strengths to deliver a gripping blend of realistic procedural elements and character-driven, emotional suspense. Out last month in e-book and coming soon in paperback, the latest installment, UNHINGED, takes this already-excellent series to the next level. In UNHINGED, protagonists Alexander Blix and Emma Ramm face their most personal case yet when one of their colleagues is targeted in an execution-style killing. UNHINGED pushes this series’ endearing characters to their breaking points in a thrilling plot that is both gripping and deeply heartfelt. I do recommend reading at least this series’ first installment (Death Deserved) before diving into UNHINGED; while the case itself here is stand-alone, much of this story’s impact relies on our connection to its characters, and having a bit of background exposure to them will make readers all the more invested in their fates. Fans of Lars Kepler, Stefan Ahnhem, and Søren Sveistrup won’t want to miss this top-notch Nordic thriller series.