Thursday 10 October 2024

The Petrona Award 2024 - Shortlist

 




Outstanding crime fiction from the Kingdom of Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden shortlisted for the 2024 Petrona Award

Six impressive crime novels from the Kingdom of Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden have been shortlisted for the 2024 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. The shortlist is announced today, Thursday 10 October and is as follows:


Anne Mette Hancock - The Collector tr. Tara F Chace (Denmark, Swift Press)

Jørn Lier Horst - Snow Fall tr. Anne Bruce (Norway, Michael Joseph)

Arnaldur Indriðason - The Girl by the Bridge tr. Philip Roughton (Iceland, Harvill Secker)

Jógvan Isaksen - Dead Men Dancing tr. Marita Thomsen (Faroe Islands (Kingdom of Denmark), Norvik Press)

Åsa Larsson - The Sins of our Fathers tr. Frank Perry (Sweden, MacLehose Press)

Yrsa Sigurðardottir - The Prey tr. Victoria Cribb (Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton)


The winning title will be announced on 14 November 2024. 

The Petrona Award is open to crime fiction in translation, either written by a Scandinavian author or set in Scandinavia, and published in the UK in the previous calendar year.

The Petrona team would like to thank our sponsor, David Hicks, for his continued generous support of the Petrona Award. 


The judges’ comments on the shortlist:

There were 31 entries for the 2024 Petrona Award from six countries (Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden). This year’s shortlist sees both the Kingdom of Denmark and Iceland represented with two novels each and Sweden and Norway with one novel each. The judges selected the shortlist from a strong pool of candidates with the shortlisted authors including Petrona Award winners, Jørn Lier Horst and Yrsa Sigurðardottir.

As ever, we are extremely grateful to the six translators whose expertise and skill have allowed readers to access these outstanding examples of Scandinavian crime fiction, and to the publishers who continue to champion and support translated fiction. 


The judges’ comments on each of the shortlisted titles:


Anne Mette Hancock - THE COLLECTOR translated by Tara F Chace (Denmark, Swift Press)

When ten-year-old Lukas disappears from his Copenhagen school, police investigators discover that the boy had a peculiar obsession with pareidolia: a phenomenon that makes him see faces in random things. A photo on his phone, posted just hours before his disappearance, shows an old barn door that resembles a face. Journalist Heloise Kaldan thinks she recognizes the barn - but from where? When Lukas’s blood-flecked jacket is found, DNA evidence points to Thomas Strand, a former soldier suffering from severe PTSD, but then Strand turns up dead in his apartment. 

This is a complex thriller of buried secrets, that beautifully wrong-foots the reader from beginning to end.


Jørn Lier Horst - SNOW FALL, translated by Anne Bruce (Norway, Michael Joseph)

The discovery of an Australian backpacker’s body in Spain prompts a group of amateur true crime detectives into action. They are scattered online around the world, attempting to solve the mystery of her death. Astri, a young Norwegian woman whose intense pursuit takes her closer than anyone else to solving the case, prepares to reveal her findings and then goes offline. When William Wisting reluctantly gets involved in the investigation, he is faced with the unusual, unorthodox investigators of varied skills and intentions, and puzzling connections. 

A slow methodological approach gathers pace and pulls readers into a complex web of low-key international ties. As always Lier Horst delves deep into the psychology and motives of the characters, creating a slow-burning police procedural of empathy and human interest, firmly rooted in Norwegian society.   


Arnaldur Indriðason - THE GIRL BY THE BRIDGE translated by Philip Roughton (Iceland, Harvill Secker)

When a young woman known for drug smuggling goes missing, her elderly grandparents have no choice but to call friend of the family, retired detective Konrád. Still looking for his own father's murderer, Konrád agrees to investigate the case, but digging into the past reveals more than he set out to discover, and a strange connection to a little girl who drowned in the Reykjavík city pond decades ago recaptures everyone's attention.

One of Iceland’s most established authors, Indriðason skilfully interweaves different timelines along with assured characterisation, in this second book to feature Konrád.


Jógvan Isaksen - DEAD MEN DANCING translated by Marita Thomsen (Faroe Islands (Kingdom of Denmark), Norvik Press)

Similar to the story of the ancient god Prometheus, a man has been shackled to rocks and left to drown on the beach. But this time it happens on the Faroe Islands. The discovery of his body throws the local community into an unsettling chaos. As the journalist Hannis Martinsson investigates, he comes across evidence of similar deaths. He realises they are linked to the events in Klaksvik in the 1950s, and a local revolt which tore the community apart. As Martinsson digs into the past, he learns about his country’s history, and the reader has a chance to discover what makes the Faroes intriguing and spellbinding. 

This is only Isaksen’s second novel to be translated into English. The contemporary Faroese crime fiction writer places his characters in the wild, beautiful, and unforgiving environment and allows them to search for truth. Dogged and uncompromising, Martinsson is a superb creation. 


Åsa Larsson - THE SINS OF OUR FATHERS translated by Frank Perry (Sweden, MacLehose Press)

Rebecka Martinsson, disillusioned with her challenging job as a prosecutor, initially has no intention of looking into a fifty-year-old case involving the missing father of Swedish Olympic boxing champion, Börje Ström. Agreeing, however, to the dying wish of her forensic pathologist friend she begins to follow links when a body is found in a freezer at the house of a deceased alcoholic. The grim realities of life in the area years ago, and the current influx of criminals attracted by developments in Kiruna make for a tough investigation and difficult soul-searching, coupled with Rebecka’s own history in a foster family.

Larsson remains a wise, observant, social commentator and creator of a gripping, suspenseful and utterly moving series, with her eye to the past and the future, and emotive style. Delicate and  relevant humour adds hope to the fragile lives of the main characters.


Yrsa Sigurðardottir - THE PREY translated by Victoria Cribb (Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton)

Kolbeinn has been called to his old home as the new owners have uncovered some photos, and a muddied child's shoe bearing the name 'Salvor'. A name Kolbeinn doesn't recognise. Soon after, his mother's carers say that she has been asking for her daughter, Salvor.

Jóhanna is working with the search and rescue team in Höfn to find two couples from Reykjavik. Their phones' last location, the road leading up into the highlands. In a harsh winter, the journey is treacherous, and they soon find the first body.

Hjörvar works at the Stokksnes Radar Station in the highlands. He's alone when the phone connected to the gate rings: the first time it's ever done so. Above the interference he can hear a child's voice asking for her mother. 

How are these events connected?

Sigurðardottir balances these three storylines, each with her trademark creeping sense of unease, in this dark and disturbing standalone.


The judges

Jackie Farrant - creator of RAVEN CRIME READS and a bookseller/Area Commercial Support for a major book chain in the UK.

Ewa Sherman - translator and writer, and blogger at NORDIC LIGHTHOUSE.


Award administrator

Karen Meek – owner of the EURO CRIME blog and website.


On social media, please use #PetronaAward24.


Thursday 12 September 2024

The Petrona Award 2024 - Longlist

From the press release which was embargoed until 8.00am today:

Petrona Award 2024 - Longlist 


OUTSTANDING CRIME FICTION FROM DENMARK, ICELAND, NORWAY, AND SWEDEN LONGLISTED FOR THE 2024 PETRONA AWARD 


Ten crime novels from Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden have made the longlist for the 2024 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. 


They are:

Tove Alsterdal - You Will Never Be Found tr. Alice Menzies (Sweden, Faber & Faber)
Anne Mette Hancock - The Collector tr. Tara F Chace (Denmark, Swift Press)
Jørn Lier Horst - Snow Fall tr. Anne Bruce (Norway, Michael Joseph)
Jørn Lier Horst and Thomas Enger - Stigma tr. Megan E Turney (Norway, Orenda Books) 
Arnaldur Indriðason - The Girl by the Bridge tr. Philip Roughton (Iceland, Harvill Secker) 
Jógvan Isaksen - Dead Men Dancing tr. Marita Thomsen (Faroe Islands (Denmark), Norvik Press)
Åsa Larsson - The Sins of our Fathers tr. Frank Perry (Sweden, MacLehose Press) 
Lilja Sigurðardottir - White as Snow tr. Quentin Bates (Iceland, Orenda Books)
Yrsa Sigurðardottir - The Prey tr. Victoria Cribb (Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton) 
Karin Smirnoff - The Girl in the Eagle's Talons tr. Sarah Death (Sweden, MacLehose Press)

The longlist contains a mix of newer and more established authors including previous Petrona Award winners, Jørn Lier Horst and Yrsa Sigurðardottir. 

Both large and small publishers are represented on the longlist, with Orenda Books and MacLehose Press both having two entries, and the breakdown by country is Iceland (3), Sweden (3), Denmark (2) and Norway (2). 

The shortlist will be announced on 10 October 2024.

The Petrona Award 2024 judging panel comprises Jackie Farrant, the creator of RAVEN CRIME READS and a bookseller/Area Commercial Support for a major book chain in the UK and Ewa Sherman, translator and writer, and blogger at NORDIC LIGHTHOUSE, with additional help from Sarah Ward, author, former Petrona Award judge and current CWA Crime Fiction in Translation Dagger judge.

The Award administrator is Karen Meek, owner of the EURO CRIME blog and website. 

The Petrona team would like to thank both our sponsor, David Hicks, for his continuing support of the Petrona Award and the CWA, in particular Maxim Jakubowski, for allowing Sarah to step in following the very unexpected death of our much missed judge and friend Miriam Owen.

The Petrona Award was established to celebrate the work of Maxine Clarke, one of the first online crime fiction reviewers and bloggers, who died in December 2012. Maxine, whose online persona and blog was called Petrona, was passionate about translated crime fiction but in particular that from the Scandinavian countries.

The award is open to crime fiction in translation, either written by a Scandinavian author or set in Scandinavia and published in the UK in the previous calendar year. More information on the history of the Award and previous winners can be found at the Petrona Award website.

Sunday 8 September 2024

Petrona Award 2024 - Entries

We are pleased to announce that 31 of the 32 titles that were eligible for the 2024 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year have been entered by the publishers.

The winner of the Award will be announced online later this year.

The rules for eligibility are:
  • The submission must be in translation and published in English in the UK during the preceding calendar year ie 1 January – 31 December 2023.
  • The author of the submission must either be born in Scandinavia* or the submission must be set in Scandinavia*.
  • The submission must have been published in its original language after 1999.
(E-books that meet the above criteria may be considered at the judges’ discretion (does not include self-published titles))
*in this instance taken to be Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.

The award is sponsored by David Hicks.

Entries 

[15 titles are by Female authors and 12 by Male plus 3 teams of Female and Male authors and 1 team of 2 Male authors. There are 22 translators (11 Female (15 titles), 11 Male (16 titles)) and 6 countries are represented (11 Sweden, 7 Iceland, 7 Norway, 3 Denmark, 2 Finland and 1 France).]

Maria Adolfsson - Cruel Tides tr. Agnes Broomé (F, Sweden, Zaffre)
Tove Alsterdal - You Will Never Be Found tr. Alice Menzies (F, Sweden, Faber & Faber)

Samuel Bjork - The Wolf tr. Charlotte Barslund (M, Norway, Bantam)
Stella Blómkvist - Murder at the Residence tr. Quentin Bates (F, Iceland, Corylus Books)

Kjell Ola Dahl - The Lazarus Solution tr. Don Bartlett (M, Norway, Orenda Books)

M T Edvardsson - The Woman Inside tr. Rachel Willson-Broyles (M, Sweden, Macmillan)
Anki Edvinsson - The Snow Angel tr. Paul Norlen (F, Sweden, Thomas & Mercer) 

Carin Gerhardsen - Black Ice tr. Ian Giles (F, Sweden, Head of Zeus)
Johana Gustawsson - Yule Island tr. David Warriner (F, France, Orenda Books)

Anne Mette Hancock - The Collector tr. Tara F Chace (F, Denmark, Swift Press)
Jørn Lier Horst - Snow Fall tr. Anne Bruce (M, Norway, Michael Joseph)
Jørn Lier Horst & Thomas Enger - Stigma tr. Megan E Turney (M&M, Norway, Orenda Books)

Arnaldur Indridason - The Girl by the Bridge tr. Philip Roughton (M, Iceland, Harvill Secker)
Jógvan Isaksen - Dead Men Dancing tr. Marita Thomsen (M, Denmark, Norvik Press)

Ragnar Jonasson & Katrín Jakobsdottír - Reykjavík tr. Victoria Cribb (M&F, Iceland, Michael Joseph)
Katrín Júlíusdóttir - Dead Sweet tr. Quentin Bates (F, Iceland, Orenda Books)

Lars Kepler - The Spider tr. Alice Menzies (M&F, Sweden, Zaffre)

Camilla Läckberg & Henrik Fexeus - Cult tr. Ian Giles (F&M, Sweden, HarperCollins)
Asa Larsson - The Sins of our Fathers tr. Frank Perry (F, Sweden, MacLehose Press)
Jenny Lund Madsen - Thirty Days of Darkness tr. Megan E Turney (F, Denmark, Orenda Books)

Niklas Natt och Dag - 1795: The Order of the Furies tr. Ian Giles (M, Sweden, Baskerville)
Jo Nesbo - Killing Moon tr. Seán Kinsella (M, Norway, Harvill Secker)
Jo Nesbo - The Night House tr. Neil Smith (M, Norway, Harvill Secker)

Max Seeck - The Last Grudge tr. Kristian London (M, Finland, Welbeck)
Lilja Sigurdardottir - White as Snow tr. Quentin Bates (F, Iceland, Orenda Books)
Yrsa Sigurdardottir - The Prey tr. Victoria Cribb (F, Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton)
Karin Smirnoff - The Girl in the Eagle's Talons tr. Sarah Death (F, Sweden, MacLehose Press)
Gunnar Staalesen - Mirror Image tr. Don Bartlett (M, Norway, Orenda Books)
Viveca Sten - Hidden in Shadows tr. Marlaine Delargy (F, Sweden, AmazonCrossing)

Antti Tuomainen - The Beaver Theory tr. David Hackston (M, Finland, Orenda Books)

Eva Björg Ægisdóttir  - You Can't See Me tr. Victoria Cribb (F, Iceland, Orenda Books)

Not Submitted 

Katrine Engberg - The Island (apa The Sanctuary) tr. Tara Chace (F, Denmark, Hodder & Stoughton)

And the covers courtesy of Goodreads:        

Petrona Award 2024 - Eligibles

Cruel Tides
You Will Never Be Found
The Wolf
Murder at the Residence
The Lazarus Solution
The House Next Door
The Snow Angel
The Sanctuary
Black Ice
Yule Island
The Collector
Snow Fall
Stigma
The Girl by the Bridge
Dead Men Dancing
Reykjavík
Dead Sweet
The Spider
Cult
The Sins of our Fathers

Monday 22 January 2024

A Sad Loss

We are very sorry to report the sudden death of Miriam Owen who has been part of the Petrona Judging Team for several years. Miriam was well known, respected and loved, particularly in the Scandi-crime world, and we will miss her and her expertise very much.

Fellow judge and friend Ewa Sherman shared this photo from Iceland Noir 2014 and with her permission I've included it below.

As regards this year's Petrona, with the kind permission of the CWA, Petrona Award co-creator and former judge, and current judge for the Crime Fiction in Translation Dagger, Sarah Ward will be helping out with the first round of judging. We may recruit a guest judge at the long/shortlist stage if required. We hope to have a new full-time judge in place for Petrona 2025.


Miriam and Ewa, 2014.