Reviews

A literary confrontation with the fact of the suicide of a boyhood friend in the late 70s, this is the book Niklas Rådström spent thirty years not writing.

Klas Östergren's novel based on Old Norse tales reimagines the gods as a Mafia-like clan.

Erik Helmersson's debut novel paints a detailed and dramatic picture of Iceland.

Henning Mankell’s novel is a fascinating and intriguing murder mystery. But it is also much more than that.

The five knives become the leitmotif of Hannele Mikaela Taivassalo's novel. One of these knives, which have ornately decorated handles, is carried in a rather unusual place: its blade is tucked into a hymn book which is, in turn, tucked down the back of the young woman’s trousers, causing abrasions on her back.

Peter Birro mixes Strindberg’s own works with a biographical account.

Seasoned author Peter Kihlgård is bidding for our attention with an experiment in form.

Lena Andersson has written a diabolical satire about cravings, mass paranoia and mechanisms of control in a society that calls itself democratic.

What sets Dick Harrison and Kristina Svensson's book apart from many Viking studies is its detailed use of archaeology – in many cases a more reliable source of information than the Icelandic sagas.

Jessica Kolterjahn's novel is a sustained, understated but moving portrayal of a person, sometimes baffled and sometimes euphoric, exploring her own feelings, sexuality and reactions to the world.

Agneta Pleijel's historical fiction demonstrates elegantly how history can aid maturity through observing and identifying with the humanity of shadowy figures from the past.

Jörn Donner, himself a significant Finland-Swedish author and film expert, has written a biography of one of the more important Modernists that Finland has known: Elmer Diktonius.

Bengt Ohlsson’s novel is remarkably expressive, with powerful descriptive writing.

Ernst Brunner's novel documents the planning, execution and aftermath of a thrilling art raid.

Åsa Linderborg's autobiographical work has been hailed as a classic of the growing-up genre so central to Sweden’s literary canon.

Jerker Virdborg’s novel might better be called a reading experience, written by a cinematographer.

Inger Edelfeldt combines her fascination with fantasy with a serious concern for the psychological and social pressures of the teenage years.

Jonas Hassen Khemiri’s second full-length novel is aimed exclusively at the internet generation.