Lidingö Mysteries – serie

An art expert joins a detective to investigate a horrific murder on a Swedish island, leading them to a mystery rooted in Viking rites and Scandinavia's deepest, darkest winter. The Queen of French Noir returns with a chilling, utterly captivating gothic thriller, based on a true story. FIRST in the The Lidingö Mysteries series.  ‘Scarier than anything … a dark, dark slice of atmospheric Scandi Noir’ HeatHeat magazine *Book of the Month*  ‘The pace steadily accelerates as Gustawsson orchestrates her plot with breathless ingenuity. A successful page-turner from a rising star’ Financial Times‘Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying’ Peter James   ** Winner of the Livre de Poche Readers Crime of the Year and Cultura Ligue de l’Imaginaire Award**________Don’t  Art expert Emma Lindahl is anxious when she’s asked to appraise the antiques and artefacts in the infamous manor house of one of Sweden’s wealthiest families, on the island of Storholmen, where a young woman was murdered nine years earlier, her killer never found.   Emma must work alone, and with the Gussman family apparently avoiding her, she sees virtually no one in the house. Do they have something to hide?  Trust  As she goes about her painstaking work and one shocking discovery yields clues that lead to another, Emma becomes determined to uncover the secrets of the house and its occupants.  When the lifeless body of another young woman is found in the icy waters surrounding the island, Detective Karl Rosén arrives to investigate, and memories of his failure to solve the first case come rushing back. Could this young woman’s tragic death somehow hold the key?  Anyone  Battling her own demons, Emma joins forces with Karl to embark upon a chilling investigation, plunging them into horrifying secrets from the past – Viking rites and tainted love – and Scandinavia’s deepest, darkest winter…  ________  PRAISE FOR JOHANA GUSTAWSSON‘Remember her name. Johana Gustawsson has become a leading figure in French crime fiction [and] Yule Island is impossible to put down’ Le Monde‘Wonderfully dark and intricately woven … will have you hooked from the very first page’ B A Paris  ‘Johana Gustawsson has become the queen of the French thriller genre’ Le Point  ‘Intriguingly dark and vivid, and so cleverly told’ Essie Fox  `A gripping story of murder and black magic …Gustawsson slowly weaves together three seemingly disparate strands of her narrative with a skill that shows why she is such an admired crime writer in her native France´ The Times   ‘A wonderfully creepy, unsettling read, with a superb twist in its tail‘ James Oswald  ‘Bewitching and wonderfully gothic’ Sunday Express  ‘Johana Gustawsson brilliantly illuminates the depths of the human heart’ Le Figaro  `A whirlpool that draws you irresistibly into levels of darkness so much deeper than you can possibly be ready for´ Ambrose Parry  ‘Ethereal, romantic and as cold as death, this nerve-shattering and powerful novel immerses us in a cruel and thrilling Nordic tale where love smashes against the rocks of madness’ La Fringale culturelle  ‘A stunning and beautifully written gothic thriller’ Alexandra Benedict  ‘Johana Gustawsson has no equal when it comes to hooking us with stunning twists and unexpected leaps in time’ Les Echos  'A bold and intelligent read' Guardian  'Utterly compelling' Woman's Own  `Brilliant … the last chapters knocked me sideways, and it’s a long time since that’s happened´ Lisa Hall  `A dark world of elegance and grotesque … mesmeric´ Matt Wesolowski  'Cleverly plotted, simply excellent' Ragnar Jónasson'A must-read' Daily Express

When two teenagers are found brutally murdered on the island of Lidingö, dressed in white tunics and wearing crowns of candles, former French police officer Maïa Rehn joins local Commissioner Aleksander Storm to unravel a mystery with a shockingly dark heart. The highly anticipated sequel to the international bestselling gothic mystery, Yule Island.‘A horrific, baffling crime startles a small Swedish community. This is perfect Scandi Noir, dripping with atmosphere. The writing shines, and the story is impossible to resist. Gustawsson is a master’ Shari Lapena‘This revenger’s tragedy begins with a bang … a typically Scandi tale of beautiful interiors and ugly emotions that twists and turns like a snared mink’Sunday Times‘A gripping mystery simmering with social outrage – this is what crime fiction should be’ Alexandra Sokoloff‘Johana Gustawsson is an extraordinarily talented storyteller, with a beautiful, eloquent writing style. Scars of Silence unfolds at a breathless pace, and the climax is devastating’ Kate Rhodes___________Twenty-three years ago, a young woman was murdered on the Swedish island of Lidingö. The island has kept its silence. Until now…As autumn deepens into darkness in Lidingö, on the Stockholm archipelago, the island is plunged into chaos: in the space of a week, two teenaged boys are murdered. Their bodies are left deep in the forest, dressed in white tunics with crowns of candles on their heads, like offerings to Saint Lucia.Maïa Rehn has fled Paris for Lidingö after a family tragedy. But when the murders shake the island community, the former police commissioner is drawn into the heart of the investigation, joining Commissioner Aleksander Storm to unravel a mystery as chilling as the Nordic winter.As they dig deeper, it becomes clear that a wind of vengeance is blowing through the archipelago, unearthing secrets that are as scandalous as they are inhuman.But what if the victims weren’t who they seemed? What if those long silenced have finally found a way to strike back?How far would they go to make their tormentors pay?And you – how far would you go?_______‘Haunting, human and wholly unputdownable … unforgettable characters caught in the web of a chilling mystery, set against the stark, mesmerising backdrop of Sweden. Few writers balance heart and horror so masterfully – this is Scandi Noir at its finest’ Thomas Enger'A shockingly cold slice of Scandi noir that combines the darkness of folk horror with a sharp-eyed exploration of consent’ Sarah Hilary‘Relevant and timely, Scars of Silence is compulsive whodunnit, with a strong and important message, tackling issues of great relevance in today’s world. Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop – utterly addictive’ Sam Holland‘Magnificent! So chilling and atmospheric … I was utterly gripped. Johana Gustawsson gets better and better with every book’ Lisa Hall‘A page-turner full of twists and turns, told with devastating tenderness; I felt bereft when it ended. Scars of Silence is a masterclass in Nordic Noir’ Heidi Amsinck‘Scars of Silence is incredible – powerful, timely, superb – with layers of emotion even in the darkness. Such a talent!’ Louise Swanson‘Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying’ Peter James‘One of the true stars of Nordic Noir … this top notch thriller displays a talent to disturb and fascinate’ CrimeTime‘Gustawsson masterfully weaves past and present, painting the Lidingö setting so vividly that we can almost feel the cold as the snow begins to fall – her storytelling is as chilling as it is compelling … this is crime fiction at its most human and haunting’ Nordic Watchlist

An art expert joins a detective to investigate a horrific murder on a Swedish island, leading them to a mystery rooted in Viking rites and Scandinavia's deepest, darkest winter. The Queen of French Noir returns with a chilling, utterly captivating gothic thriller, based on a true story. FIRST in the The Lidingö Mysteries series.  ‘Scarier than anything … a dark, dark slice of atmospheric Scandi Noir’ HeatHeat magazine *Book of the Month*  ‘The pace steadily accelerates as Gustawsson orchestrates her plot with breathless ingenuity. A successful page-turner from a rising star’ Financial Times‘Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying’ Peter James   ** Winner of the Livre de Poche Readers Crime of the Year and Cultura Ligue de l’Imaginaire Award**________Don’t  Art expert Emma Lindahl is anxious when she’s asked to appraise the antiques and artefacts in the infamous manor house of one of Sweden’s wealthiest families, on the island of Storholmen, where a young woman was murdered nine years earlier, her killer never found.   Emma must work alone, and with the Gussman family apparently avoiding her, she sees virtually no one in the house. Do they have something to hide?  Trust  As she goes about her painstaking work and one shocking discovery yields clues that lead to another, Emma becomes determined to uncover the secrets of the house and its occupants.  When the lifeless body of another young woman is found in the icy waters surrounding the island, Detective Karl Rosén arrives to investigate, and memories of his failure to solve the first case come rushing back. Could this young woman’s tragic death somehow hold the key?  Anyone  Battling her own demons, Emma joins forces with Karl to embark upon a chilling investigation, plunging them into horrifying secrets from the past – Viking rites and tainted love – and Scandinavia’s deepest, darkest winter…  ________  PRAISE FOR JOHANA GUSTAWSSON‘Remember her name. Johana Gustawsson has become a leading figure in French crime fiction [and] Yule Island is impossible to put down’ Le Monde‘Wonderfully dark and intricately woven … will have you hooked from the very first page’ B A Paris  ‘Johana Gustawsson has become the queen of the French thriller genre’ Le Point  ‘Intriguingly dark and vivid, and so cleverly told’ Essie Fox  `A gripping story of murder and black magic …Gustawsson slowly weaves together three seemingly disparate strands of her narrative with a skill that shows why she is such an admired crime writer in her native France´ The Times   ‘A wonderfully creepy, unsettling read, with a superb twist in its tail‘ James Oswald  ‘Bewitching and wonderfully gothic’ Sunday Express  ‘Johana Gustawsson brilliantly illuminates the depths of the human heart’ Le Figaro  `A whirlpool that draws you irresistibly into levels of darkness so much deeper than you can possibly be ready for´ Ambrose Parry  ‘Ethereal, romantic and as cold as death, this nerve-shattering and powerful novel immerses us in a cruel and thrilling Nordic tale where love smashes against the rocks of madness’ La Fringale culturelle  ‘A stunning and beautifully written gothic thriller’ Alexandra Benedict  ‘Johana Gustawsson has no equal when it comes to hooking us with stunning twists and unexpected leaps in time’ Les Echos  'A bold and intelligent read' Guardian  'Utterly compelling' Woman's Own  `Brilliant … the last chapters knocked me sideways, and it’s a long time since that’s happened´ Lisa Hall  `A dark world of elegance and grotesque … mesmeric´ Matt Wesolowski  'Cleverly plotted, simply excellent' Ragnar Jónasson'A must-read' Daily Express