5 Must-Read Crime Novels Set In Norway

26.02.2024 - 16:25 / forbes.com

Looking for a new read to tide you over until your next vacation? Pick up one of these Nordic noir hits and be whisked away to Norway, where you’ll find Norwegian authors all too keen to lift the lid on the darker side of Scandinavian society.

Over the past two decades, Scandinavian crime fiction has gained significant popularity worldwide in the realms of television, film, and literature.

This genre, also known as Nordic noir, is characterized by its blend of crime fiction with social commentary and psychological depth, set against the backdrop of the often bleak and desolate locations of the Nordic countries out of the tourist season.

The international success of series like ‘The Killing’ and ‘The Bridge’ often steal the Nordic noir spotlight, but it’s literature that truly underpins the genre. Norwegian authors Jo Nesbø and Jørn Lier Horst are among the household names in Norway that have seen their novels turned into visual productions.

Outside of the region, the stories provide readers with an intriguing contrast between the external image of these societies as utopian in terms of happiness, equality, and living standards, and the darker undercurrents that the genre often freely explores.

Topics including immigration and integration, familial bonds and feuds, and corruption at the highest levels are often addresed in novel form in far more depth than can be exlored in the shorter-form formats of film or television.

Contrary to the perception of uniformity, Norwegian crime literature offers a diverse range of storytelling. From the movie-friendly bestselling plotlines of Jo Nesbø, to the more literary, slower pace tales of Karin Fossum, the genre offers a story to suit all readers.

The movie version may have been a flop, but the original book is a chilling highlight in the back catalog of one of Scandinavia’s most famous crime writers.

The first snowfall of winter brings with it a sinister snowman, signaling the return of a serial killer. Packed with atmospheric tension, psychological depth, and Nesbø's masterful suspense building, ‘The Snowman’ will immerse the reader into a gripping tale of fear, obsession, and the hunt for a killer.

Including themes of love, loss, and the impact of past events on the present, Nesbø successfully melds a traditional detective story featuring his antihero Harry Hole with a psychological thriller.

A train on the Oslo to Bergen railway derails in a freak winter storm, forcing survivors to seek shelter in a remote mountain hotel.

Isolated from the outside world by the fierce weather, the situation quickly turns dire when a body is discovered, creating a new twist on the classic locked-room mystery for the reader.

Themes of survival and trust are at the forefront in