Thursday, March 26, 2015

In Line for the Petrona

Half a dozen works of fiction make up the shortlist of contenders vying to win the 2015 Petrona Award for Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. This commendation--established just two years ago--takes its name from the blog operated by Maxine Clarke, a British editor and “champion of Scandinavian crime fiction,” who died in 2012.

Here are the latest Petrona candidates:

The Hummingbird, by Kati Hiekkapelto,
translated by David Hackston (Arcadia Books; Finland)
The Hunting Dogs, by Jørn Lier Horst,
translated by Anne Bruce (Sandstone Press; Norway)
Reykjavik Nights, by Arnaldur Indriðason,
translated by Victoria Cribb (Harvill Secker; Iceland)
The Human Flies, by Hans Olav Lahlum,
translated by Kari Dickson (Mantle; Norway)
Falling Freely, As If in a Dream, by Leif G.W. Persson,
translated by Paul Norlen (Doubleday; Sweden)
The Silence of the Sea, by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir,
translated by Victoria Cribb (Hodder & Stoughton; Iceland)

According to a press release sent out this morning, “The winning title will be announced at the annual international crime fiction event CrimeFest, held in Bristol 14-17 May 2015. The award will be presented by the Godmother of modern Scandinavian crime fiction, Maj Sjöwall, co-author with Per Wahlöö of the Martin Beck series. ... The winning author will receive a full pass to and a guaranteed panel at the 2016 CrimeFest event.”

Congratulations to all of the nominees! To learn more about the books mentioned above and this year’s Petrona Award judges, click here.

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