THIS IS AN ARCHIVED PAGE
WE PROUDLY PRESENT GUESTS OF HONOUR FOR ICELAND NOIR 2022
Bernardine Evaristo / Richard Osman / David Walliams
Eliza Reid / Mark Billingham
Paula Hawkins / Sophie Hannah / Abir Mukherjee
Nita Prose / Ólafur Darri Ólafsson / Ruth Ware
Lucy Foley / Amanda Redman
AJ Finn / Clare Mackintosh / Liz Nugent
WITH
Aliya Ali-Afzal / Heidi Amsinck / Sam Baker / María Elísabet Bragadóttir / Will Carver / Paul Cleave / CJ Cooke / Kamilla Einarsdóttir / Thomas Fecchio / David Fennell / Íris Tanja Flygenring / Helen Fitzgerald / Tim Glister / Jon Grimwood / Maxim Jakubowski / Baltasar Kormákur / Jón Atli Jónasson / Ugla Stefanía Kristjönudóttir Jónsdóttir / Auður Jónsdóttir / Jean Kwok / Shari Lapena / Jónína Leósdóttir / Michael Malone / Louise Mangos / Jakob Melander / Sverrir Norland / Sólveig Pálsdóttir / Emil Hjörvar Petersen/ Sarah Pinborough / Satu Rämö / Amanda Redman / William Ryan / Jeff Siger / Lilja Sigurðardóttir / Eve Smith / Nina von Staffeldt / Sarah Sultoon / Harriet Tyce/ Wendy Walker / Kevin Wignall / Martyn Waites / Trevor Wood / Robyn Young
HOSTED BY
Eva Björg Ægisdóttir | Óskar Guðmundsson
Ragnar Jónasson | Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Eliza Reid / Mark Billingham
Paula Hawkins / Sophie Hannah / Abir Mukherjee
Nita Prose / Ólafur Darri Ólafsson / Ruth Ware
Lucy Foley / Amanda Redman
AJ Finn / Clare Mackintosh / Liz Nugent
WITH
Aliya Ali-Afzal / Heidi Amsinck / Sam Baker / María Elísabet Bragadóttir / Will Carver / Paul Cleave / CJ Cooke / Kamilla Einarsdóttir / Thomas Fecchio / David Fennell / Íris Tanja Flygenring / Helen Fitzgerald / Tim Glister / Jon Grimwood / Maxim Jakubowski / Baltasar Kormákur / Jón Atli Jónasson / Ugla Stefanía Kristjönudóttir Jónsdóttir / Auður Jónsdóttir / Jean Kwok / Shari Lapena / Jónína Leósdóttir / Michael Malone / Louise Mangos / Jakob Melander / Sverrir Norland / Sólveig Pálsdóttir / Emil Hjörvar Petersen/ Sarah Pinborough / Satu Rämö / Amanda Redman / William Ryan / Jeff Siger / Lilja Sigurðardóttir / Eve Smith / Nina von Staffeldt / Sarah Sultoon / Harriet Tyce/ Wendy Walker / Kevin Wignall / Martyn Waites / Trevor Wood / Robyn Young
HOSTED BY
Eva Björg Ægisdóttir | Óskar Guðmundsson
Ragnar Jónasson | Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Aliya Ali-Afzal’s debut novel Would I Lie to You has been described as ‘a moral dilemma everyone can relate to’ by Clare Mackintosh, ‘a page-turner’ by Adele Parks (Platinum) and ‘a nail-biter all the way’ by The Toronto Star. Aliya is studying for an MA Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London and has a BA in Russian and German from UCL. After working as an Executive MBA Career Coach in London for 20 years, she decided to take her own advice and pursue her dream of becoming a writer. Her writing has been longlisted for The Bath Novel Award, Mslexia Novel Award, The Primadonna Prize and The Mo Prize Hachette UK. Aliya has lived in London all her life since moving there from Pakistan as a young child.
Creator of the 'Jensen' series of crime novels set in Copenhagen, Heidi Amsinck is a Danish author and journalist who writes in English. She spent many years covering Britain for the Danish press, including a spell as London Correspondent for the daily broadsheet Jyllands-Posten. Heidi has written numerous stories for radio, including the three story sets Danish Noir, Copenhagen Confidential and Copenhagen Curios, all produced by Sweet Talk for BBC Radio 4. Her short story collection Last Train to Helsingør was published in 2018, followed in 2021 by My Name is Jensen, with the second book in the series, The Girl in the Photo, due to be published in the UK in July 2022. Heidi has two sons and lives in London.
Sam Baker is a journalist, broadcaster and author. She has written five novels, the most recent of which is the psychological thriller The Woman Who Ran (HarperFiction) and a memoir, The Shift (Coronet). She is also the host of the hit podcast, The Shift with Sam Baker. Former Editor-in-chief of Cosmpolitan and Red magazine, she has judged the Women's Prize for Fiction, the Costa Novel Award and the Nibbies. She lives in Edinburgh with the novelist Jon Courtenay Grimwood aka thriller writer Jack Grimwood and their tail-less rescue cat, Sausage.
Mark Billingham was born and brought up in Birmingham. Having worked for some years as an actor and more recently as a TV writer and stand-up comedian his first crime novel was published in 2001. He is the author of the Tom Thorne series of crime novels as well as several stand-alones. Mark lives in London with his wife and two children. He is currently writing his next novel.
María Elísabet Bragadóttir has a degree in philosophy form the University of Iceland, has written op-eds for Fréttablaðið newspaper, read her short stories for 101 Radio and written for the National Broadcaster's cultural radio programme Víðsjá. María's first book is the short story collection Herbergi í öðrum heimi (A Room in Another World) published by Una Publishing House in 2020 to critical and popular acclaim. María is currently working on her second book, a novel. She lives in Reykjavík.
Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series and the critically acclaimed Detective Pace series. 2021 saw the release of the fourth book in the Detective Pace series, Psychopaths Anonymous, and a standalone, The Beresford. Will is currently working on a wildly original new thriller, The Daves Next Door, which sees the lives of five strangers collide on a London train carriage, as they become involved in a life changing incident.
Paul Cleave is an award-winning author from New Zealand. His books have been translated into over twenty languages and have won the Ngaio Marsh Award three times, and the Saint-Maur book festival’s crime novel of the year award. Paul has thrown his Frisbee in over forty countries and has two cats. The Quiet People, a thriller about a husband and wife crime writing duo who fall under suspicion when their son goes missing, is his latest novel.
CJ Cooke is a bestselling author of gothic novels. Her latest novel The Lighthouse Witches explores the history of witchcraft in Scotland. Also an academic at the University of Glasgow, she lives in the countryside with her husband and four children.
Kamilla Einarsdóttir was born and raised in Reykjavik. The author of two novels, Kamilla was nominated for the prestigious Icelandic Literary prize in 2021. Her first novel was adapted for the stage by the National Theatre of Iceland. Currently working as librarian, but with a varied career history which includes a strip club and the Post Office, Kamilla is also extremely skilled at cartwheels, but politely requests that you do not ask her to do them when she is drunk, because it ended in chaos last time.
Bernardine Evaristo is the award-winning author of eight books of fiction and verse fiction that explore aspects of the African diaspora. Her novel Girl, Woman, Other made her the first Black woman to win the Booker Prize in 2019, as well winning the Fiction Book of the Year Award at the British Book Awards in 2020, where she also won Author of the Year, and the Indie Book Award. She also became the first woman of colour and Black British writer to reach No.1 in the UK paperback fiction chart in 2020. Her writing spans reviews, essays, drama and radio, and she has edited and guest-edited national publications, including The Sunday Time's Style magazine. Her other awards and honours include an MBE in 2009. Bernardine is Professor of Creative Writing at Brunel University, London, and Vice Chair of the Royal Society of Literature. She lives in London with her husband.
Thomas Fecchio graduated from the European Foundation for the Professions of Image and Sound, la Fémis, and worked in various companies before founding Macalube Films in 2010, a structure that mainly produces documentaries.
In 2016, he decided to discover new territories and start to write fiction. He successively wrote a detective novel Je suis innocent (Ravet-Anceau 2017) and an action-adventure TV show entitled 1878, which was distinguished by both CNC (National Centre for Cinema and the Moving Image) and Beaumarchais Foundation. In 2018, Thomas Fecchio started to work on the acclaimed French crime television series Candice Renoir for 2 years. In 2021, his new novel L’Heure des Chiens is published by Le Seuil. The book has been distinguished by the city of Soissons book award of “Best Novel” and is nominated at the prices of “Noir Dissay” and “Noir de l’Histoire”.
In 2016, he decided to discover new territories and start to write fiction. He successively wrote a detective novel Je suis innocent (Ravet-Anceau 2017) and an action-adventure TV show entitled 1878, which was distinguished by both CNC (National Centre for Cinema and the Moving Image) and Beaumarchais Foundation. In 2018, Thomas Fecchio started to work on the acclaimed French crime television series Candice Renoir for 2 years. In 2021, his new novel L’Heure des Chiens is published by Le Seuil. The book has been distinguished by the city of Soissons book award of “Best Novel” and is nominated at the prices of “Noir Dissay” and “Noir de l’Histoire”.
David Fennell was born and raised in Belfast before leaving for London at the age of eighteen with £50 in one pocket and a dog-eared copy of Stephen King’s The Stand in the other. He jobbed as a chef, waiter and bartender for several years before starting a career in writing for the software industry. David is the author of the Sleeper series of books, the second of which (The Red Storm) was shortlisted for the 2018 Wilbur Smith Prize. His bestselling crime novel The Art of Death was published in 2021. The follow up, See No Evil, will be published in April 2022. He is married and and lives in Brighton.
Íris Tanja Í Flygenring is an Icelandic actress. She is best known for her performance as Ása in the Netflix TV series Katla. She graduated from the Iceland University of the Arts in 2016. In 2021, she appeared as one of the main characters the third season of Trapped.
A. J. Finn lived in England for many years before returning to his native New York. His debut novel, The Woman in the Window, has been published in more than forty languages and sold millions of copies worldwide. In 2021 it was adapted for the screen in a hit film starring Amy Adams and Gary Oldman.
Helen FitzGerald is the bestselling author of adult and young adult thrillers, including The Donor (2011) and The Cry (2013), which was longlisted for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year, and adapted for a major BBC drama. Helen worked as a criminal justice social worker for over fifteen years and grew up in Australia, where
her latest thrillers are set. She now lives in Glasgow with her husband.
her latest thrillers are set. She now lives in Glasgow with her husband.
Lucy Foley is a British novelist, most well known for her crime thrillers which include The Paris Apartment, The Hunting Party and The Guest List. After studying English Literature at Durham University and University College London, Foley became a fiction editor, penning her debut novel The Book of Lost and Found in 2015 alongside her day job. Two more novels followed before she achieved the breakout success of her first crime thriller, The Hunting Party. The Paris Apartment, set in a sinister Montmartre apartment block, is out now.
Tim Glister is a novelist who wishes he was a spy. Originally from Newcastle and now based in London, he is the author of the Richard Knox Spy Thriller series. The first novel in the series, Red Corona, won the People's Book Prize First Time Author Award, and the second, A Loyal Traitor, was a Times Thriller of the Month. The third Richard Knox adventure, A Game of Deceit, will be published in Spring 2023.
Born in Malta, Jon Grimwood he grew up in the Far East, Britain and Scandinavia. He writes as Jack Grimwood, Jonathan Grimwood, and Jon Courtenay Grimwood. Apart from novels, he writes for magazines and newspapers including The Guardian, The Times, The Telegraph and The Independent. He’s twice won the BSFA Award for Best Novel and been shortlisted for a number of other awards.
Halldór Guðmundsson was born in Reykjavík, Iceland, in 1956, brought up in Germany and studied in Denmark. He has worked as a publisher for Mál og menning, at that time Iceland’s largest publisher, written several books, the most well known being a biography of the Icelandic Nobel prize laureate, Halldór Laxness, and been CEO of Harpa, the concert hall and conference center in Reykjavík.
Sophie Hannah is an internationally bestselling crime fiction writer. Her psychological thriller The Carrier won the Specsavers National Book Award for Crime Thriller of the Year in 2013. Sophie is the author of the bestselling Poirot continuation mysteries. The Point of Rescue and The Other Half Lives have been adapted for television as Case Sensitive, starring Olivia Williams and Darren Boyd. Sophie is also a bestselling poet who has been shortlisted for the TS Eliot award. Her poetry is studied at GCSE and A-level. Sophie is an Honorary Fellow of Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge. She lives in Cambridge with her family.
Paula Hawkins worked as a journalist for fifteen years before turning her hand to fiction. Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, Paula moved to London in 1989 and has lived there ever since. Her first thriller, The Girl on the Train, has been a global phenomenon, selling 23 million copies worldwide. Published in over forty languages, it has been a No.1 bestseller around the world and was a No.1 box office hit film starring Emily Blunt. Into the Water was also a global No.1 bestseller, spending twenty weeks in the Sunday Times HB fiction Top 10 and selling 4 million copies worldwide.
Maxim Jakubowski is a London-based former publisher, editor, writer and translator. He has compiled over one hundred anthologies in a variety of genres, many of which have garnered awards. His book of tributes to the late Cornell Woolrich, Dark is the Night, has just been published. He is a past winner of the Karel and Anthony awards, and in 2019 was given the prestigious Red Herrings award by the Crime Writers' Association for his contribution to the genre. He broadcasts regularly on radio and TV, reviews for diverse newspapers and magazines, and has been a judge for several literary awards. He is the author of twenty novels, including The Louisiana Republic (2018), his latest The Piper's Dance (2021) and a series of Sunday Times bestselling novels under a pseudonym. He has also published six collections of his own short stories, the latest being Death Has a Thousand Faces (2022). He is currently Chair of the Crime Writers' Association.
Jón Atli Jónasson is considered one of the foremost Icelandic playwrights. His plays have been performed in London, Paris, Berlin, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Athens. He’s written several scripts for film. Most notably The Deep, produced by 101 Studios Iceland, based on his own play. It was shortlisted for The 85th Academy Awards for best foreign feature 2015. Jón Atli has been nominated for The Nordic film price on three occasions. He was chosen the Nordic Radio Dramatist in 2011. Jón Atli has also written three novels, a short story compilation and a novella. His serialized radio drama based on the Guðmundur and Geirfinnur case (Iceland’s most notorious criminal case) won third price at Prix Europa in 2017. His latest work is the crime novel Breathless published by Storytel Iceland. Jón Atli co-wrote the first season of the crime TV. series Arctic Circle (Ivalo) in 2017 which was produced by Yellow film in Finland, Bavaria Films in Germany. Jón Atli has various projects in different stages of development for example with Warner Brothers TV in Germany and Turbine Studios in the U.K.
Auður Jónsdóttir is a writer and independent journalist. Her first work of fiction appeared in print in 1997, and a year later her novel Stjórnlaus lukka was nominated for the Icelandic Literature Prize. Since then Auður has published fiction for children and adults, as well as pioneering work which seeks to describe the environment of the media in Iceland with a diverse approach. Her books have enjoyed much acclaim from readers and critics and she has received many awards, including being nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize 2006 and 2013. Auður has also written about her grandfather, the Nobel Prize for Literature winner Halldór Laxness. Her books have been published in many languages.
Baltasar Kormákur is an actor, producer and director whose work spans theater, movies and television. Born in Reykjavik, Iceland, he graduated as an actor from Iceland's National Academy of Fine Arts in 1990. He is best known for directing the films 101 Reykjavík, The Sea, A Little Trip to Heaven, a film based on the book Jar City by Arnaldur Indriðason, Contraband, 2 Guns and Everest. He also created the TV shows Trapped and Katla.
Jón Atli Jónasson is considered one of the foremost Icelandic playwrights. His plays have been performed in London, Paris, Berlin, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Athens. He’s written several scripts for film. Most notably The Deep, produced by 101 Studios Iceland, based on his own play. It was shortlisted for The 85th Academy Awards for best foreign feature 2015. Jón Atli has been nominated for The Nordic film price on three occasions. He was chosen the Nordic Radio Dramatist in 2011. Jón Atli has also written three novels, a short story compilation and a novella. His serialized radio drama based on the Guðmundur and Geirfinnur case (Iceland’s most notorious criminal case) won third price at Prix Europa in 2017. His latest work is the crime novel Breathless published by Storyte Iceland. Jón Atli co-wrote the first season of the crime TV. series Arctic Circle (Ivalo) in 2017 which was produced by Yellow film in Finland, Bavaria Films in Germany. Jón Atli has various projects in different stages of development for example with Warner Brothers TV in Germany and Turbine Studios in the U.K.
Ugla Stefanía Kristjönudóttir Jónsdóttir (Owl) is a feminist, author and trans advocate. They are a prominent spokesperson in Iceland for trans rights, and were one of the creators of the Gender Autonomy Act that passed in 2019 in the Icelandic parliament. They are the co-director of My Genderation and the co-author of the Trans Teen Survival Guide and Trans Survival Workbook. They are also a columnist for the Metro and were listed as one of the BBC's 100 Most Influential Women of 2019.
Jean Kwok is the award-winning, New York Times and international bestselling author of Girl in Translation, Mambo in Chinatown, and Searching for Sylvie Lee, which was a Read with Jenna Today Show Book Club pick, a Belletrist pick, and an instant New York Times bestseller. Her work has been published in twenty countries and is taught in schools across the world. She has been selected for numerous honors, including the American Library Association Alex Award, the Chinese American Librarians Association Best Book Award, an Orange New Writers title and the Sunday Times Short Story Award international shortlist. She immigrated from Hong Kong to Brooklyn when she was five and worked in a Chinatown clothing factory for much of her childhood. She received her bachelor's degree from Harvard University and earned an MFA from Columbia University. She currently lives in the Netherlands.
Shari Lapena is the author of the thrillers The Couple Next Door, A Stranger in the House, An Unwanted Guest, Someone We Know, The End of Her, and Not a Happy Family. All of her thrillers have been Sunday Times and New York Times bestsellers. Her books have been sold into 39 territories around the world and optioned for film and television. She lives in Toronto.
Jónína Leósdóttir is an Icelandic author and playwright. She studied modern languages and Latin and has a BA-degree in English and Literature. She has written 19 books, fiction and non-fiction, many short-stories and plays that have been broadcast by RÚV, the national broadcaster in Iceland, both on television and radio. In 2013, Jónína published a memoir called “Við Jóhanna” (Jóhanna and I) about her relationship with Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, former Prime Minister of Iceland. The couple fell in love in 1985 and had a turbulent relationship in the closet for 15 years, before setting up home together in 2000. They later married and Jóhanna became the first openly LGBT+ leader in the world. Jónína Leósdóttir has received awards for her work – for poetry, short-stories and books for young adults. She was instrumental in establishing The Icelandic Women’s Literary Prize in 2007 and is now an honorary member of the association that awards the prize. In 2016 Jónína “turned to crime” with the Edda crime series, five novels about a mature amateur sleuth. And 2021 saw the first book in a new series about Adam, a British expat psychologist, and his ex-wife, Soffía, who is a detective with the Icelandic police. The English language publishing rights to Jónína’s latest crime novel has been secured by Corylus Books.
Clare Mackintosh has sold more than two million copies of her books sold worldwide, and is the multi-award-winning author of I Let You Go. Both Clare’s second and third novels, I See You and Let Me Lie, were number one Sunday Times bestsellers.Clare’s latest thriller, Hostage, was published in June 2021. Together, Clare’s books have been published in more than forty countries. Clare is patron of the Silver Star Society, a charity which supports parents experiencing high-risk or difficult pregnancies. She lives in North Wales with her husband and their three children.
Michael Malone is a prize-winning poet and author who was born and brought up in Scotland. A Suitable Lie was a number-one bestseller, and Michael’s subsequent thrillers, In the Absence of Miracles and A Song of Isolation have cemented his position as a key proponent of Tartan Noir and an undeniable talent. His upcoming release, Quicksand of Memory, is a psychological thriller about a young couple seeking happiness after their troublesome pasts, but someone has chilling plans for revenge.
Louise Mangos writes novels, short stories and flash fiction which have won prizes, placed on shortlists, and have been read out on BBC radio. Her short fiction has appeared in more than twenty print anthologies and magazines. The Beaten Track is her third suspense novel. She holds a Masters in crime writing from the University of East Anglia. Louise lives at the foot of the Swiss Alps with her Kiwi husband and two sons.
Jakob Melander is a Danish Crime Writer, as well as former guitar player in several Danish rock bands and holds an MA in Comparative Literature. His Lars Winkler-series was first published in Denmark in 2013 onwards. His current series, the Sigga Freitag series, is currently published in DK, ISL, FIN, SE and in English by Storytel, who will also publish the Lars Winkler-series in the same languages. He lives in the district of Nørrebro in his native Copenhagen with his wife and two children. Fun fact: In the summers of 1999 and 2000 he took part in the Greek-Danish collaborative archaeological excavations of ancient Chalkis in Greece.
Abir Mukherjee is the bestselling author of the Wyndham & Banerjee series of crime novels set in 1920s India. His debut, A Rising Man, won the CWA Endeavour Dagger for best historical crime novel of 2017, was shortlisted for the MWA Edgar for best novel, was a Sunday Times Crime Book of the Month, and Waterstones Thriller of the Month. His second novel, A Necessary Evil, won the Wilbur Smith Award for Adventure Writing, was shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger for best crime novel of 2018, and was featured on ITV as a Zoe Ball Book Club pick. Abir grew up in Scotland and lives in Surrey with his wife and two sons.
Liz Nugent has worked in Irish film, theater, and television for most of her adult life. She is an award-winning writer of radio and television drama and has written critically acclaimed short stories both for children and adults, as well as the bestselling novels Unraveling Oliver and Lying in Wait.
Sverrir Norland is an Icelandic author, translator, publisher, and public speaker. His latest book is Stríð og kliður (War & Noise, 2021), a personal essay on nature, technology, and the human imagination, which was met with great acclaim in his native country. Sverrir has also published two novels with Forlagið, Iceland’s leading publishing house: Kvíðasnillingarnir (Masters of Anxiety) and Fyrir allra augum (In Plain Sight). He runs a small publishing house called AM forlag, and has translated, from both French and English, books by Maurice Sendak, Tomi Ungerer, Pénélope Bagieu, and Carson Ellis, among others, as well as making programs for radio and TV.
Richard Osman is an author, producer and television presenter. His first two novels, The Thursday Murder Club, and The Man Who Died Twice were multi-million-copy number one bestsellers around the world. The third book in The Thursday Murder Club series will be here to cause even more trouble in 2022. He lives in London with his partner and Liesl the cat.
Sólveig Pálsdóttir worked in theater, radio and taught literature and Icelandic in secondary school before she started writing fiction. This year, it has been ten years since her first book was published, to great acclaim. Sólveig has written six crime novels and one memoir. All the books have reached the top ten bestseller lists and have been very popular with readers. Sólveig received Blóðdropinn in 2020 when Fjötrar (e. Silenced 2021) was awarded Best Crime Novel of the Year and the book was also Iceland's contribution to the Glass Key, the Nordic crime fiction award. Sólveig's writing style is considered to be characterized by strong character creation, well-thought-out plots and a instinctive feeling for Icelandic society and nature. The following books by Sólveig have been published in English by Corylus Books: The Fox 2020, Silenced 2021 and Harm (working title) will be out 2022.
Emil Hjörvar Petersen is an Icelandic author of horror, fantasy and crime. His praised trilogy Saga eftirlifenda (Survivors of Ragnarök) made him known as a pioneer in speculative fiction in Iceland. Soon after, Petersen turned to writing a crime-fantasy series, a combination of Nordic Noir and urban fantasy. The first book, Víghólar (Crimson Hills), was awarded and optioned for a TV-show. Two more praised novels in the series have seen the light of day. Lately, Petersen has been focusing on horror. The audiobook giant Storytel published his folk horror, Ó, Karítas, and his historical horror Hælið (The Sanatorium), as Storytel Original. Both titles became immensely popular and the latter is nominated for Storytel Awards. This autumn, his ninth novel will be published, also as Storytel Original; and now it’s horror- crime. Petersen lives in Kópavogur, where he works on his stories.
Nita Prose is a writer and longtime editor. The Maid, her debut novel, was a #1 New York Times bestseller, a Good Morning America Book Club Pick, and an international bestseller. The Maid has been published in over forty countries in more than thirty-five languages. Nita lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is moderately clean. She would love to hear from you at nitaprose.com or on Twitter and Instagram: @NitaProse.
Satu Rämö (b. 1980) moved to Iceland twenty years ago as an economics exchange student, but instead of macroeconomics she ended up studying Icelandic culture, literature and mythology before forging a successful career as a writer, influencer and mentor. Satu has published numerous bestselling, prizewinning non-fiction titles in her native Finland, ranging from travel guides to Iceland, to inspirational memoirs and a forthcoming Icelandic knitting book. HILDUR is her fiction debut and she is planning two further standalones featuring Hildur Rúnarsdóttir. Book 2, RÓSA & BJÖRK will be published in spring 2023, followed by Book 3 in winter 2023. Satu lives with her Icelandic husband and two children in the small town of Ísafjörður in northwest Iceland.
Amanda Redman, MBE, is an award-winning British actor. Originally from Brighton, Amanda trained at the Bristol old Vic theatre school and began her successful career in 1978. Her theatre credits include productions at The National Theatre, The Royal Court, the West end and many more. Amanda's television/film credits include 'Sexy Beast', 'New Tricks', 'At Home with the Braithwaites', and 'The Good Karma Hospital'.
Eliza Jean Reid, the First Lady of Iceland, was born in 1976 in Ottawa, Canada. She moved to Iceland in 2003. Madame Reid holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in international relations from Trinity College, University of Toronto, where she held the position of Head of College in her final year. Her critically acclaimed new book, Secrets of the Sprakkar: Iceland’s Extraordinary Women and How They Are Changing the World, explores what it is that makes Iceland a world leader for gender equality.
William Ryan is the author of six novels, including the Captain Korolev series set in 1930s Moscow, The Constant Soldier and A House of Ghosts. They have been shortlisted for numerous awards, including the Irish Fiction Award, the Theakstons Crime Novel of the Year and the Crime Writer Association’s Steel, Historical and New Blood Daggers. His latest novel, The Winter Guest, is set in the Irish War of Independence and was described by Ann Cleeves as “a stunning book, beautifully written”.
Sarah Sultoon is a journalist and writer, having travelled across the world as international news executive at CNN. Sultoon has won awards for her work, and an Emmy for covering Europe’s migrant crisis. Sarah lives in London with her family, and she’s currently working on her upcoming release. The Shot, releasing this year, is a thriller about an aspiring TV journalist who faces a shattering moral dilemma after joining a photographer in the Middle East.
Harriet Tyce was born and brought up in Edinburgh. She did a degree in English before working as a criminal barrister for nearly ten years. After a career break to have children she did an MA in Creative Writing (Crime Fiction) at the University of East Anglia where she wrote her first psychological thriller, Blood Orange. She is also the author of The Lies You Told and her new book, It Ends At Midnight, will be published on 14 April this year.
Eve Smith writes speculative fiction - mainly about the things that scare her. Her debut thriller, The Waiting Rooms, about an antibiotic-resistant pandemic was published at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Her latest thriller, Off Target, about the perils of genetically engineering our children was hailed by The Times as "astute, well-researched and convincing".
A former Wall Street lawyer, Jeff Siger fled his career as a name partner in his own Manhattan law firm to live on a Greek island and write mystery thrillers set in Greece. The New York Times picked him as Greece’s thriller novelist of record, and Greece named him as one of six authors—and only American—writing mysteries serving as a guide to Greece. He’s received Lefty and Barry “Best Novel” nominations, been Chair of Bouchercon World Mystery Convention, and served as adjunct professor of English at Washington & Jefferson College teaching mystery writing.
Lilja Sigurðardóttir is an Icelandic crime-writer born in 1972. She is the author of novels, stage plays and screenplays.
Nina von Staffeldt has lived, worked and traveled all over Greenland since 1997 with assignments for The Self Rule Government as well as within the tourism sector. She divides her time between writing and undertaking tasks for Danish Government offices and in Greenland. Her first novel Frosne Beviser (Frozen Evidence) was published in May 2016 and awarded ‘Best Danish Debut Crime Novel’, and this book as well as the sequels have been very well received by Danish and Greenlandic media and readers alike in both countries. The books are translated into other Nordic languages, including Icelandic.
Wendy Walker is the USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author of All Is Not Forgotten, Emma In the Night, The Night Before, Don’t Look for Me, and American Girl. Her work has been published in 23 foreign languages and optioned for both film and television. Prior to writing, she worked as a lawyer and investment banker, and trained for competitive figure skating. Wendy lives in Connecticut with her family.
Ruth Ware is an international number one bestseller. Her thrillers In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, The Lying Game, The Death of Mrs Westaway, The Turn of the Key and One by One have appeared on bestseller lists around the world, including the Sunday Times and New York Times. Her books have been optioned for both film and TV, and she is published in more than 40 languages. Ruth lives near Brighton with her family.
Martyn Waites is a crime writer from the North East of England. He has been nominated for every major British crime writing award and won the Grand Prix de Roman Noir Etranger for Born Under Punches. He has also written eight internationally bestselling thrillers under the name Tania Carver. His most recent series is set in Cornwall and comprises The Old Religion, The Sinner and The Gravedigger’s Song.
David Walliiams is one of Britain’s best-loved comedians. LITTLE BRITAIN, his creation with Matt Lucas, won numerous international awards including three BAFTAs, and now plays in over 100 countries. It was followed by one of the most popular comedies of all time, COME FLY WITH ME. David has also been a judge on the ITV talent show BRITAIN’S GOT TALENT since 2012.
A best-selling children’s author, David began writing books in 2008. His novels have been translated into 55 languages, selling 50 million copies worldwide. Some of his books have been adapted into television films or for the stage, such as the Royal Shakespeare Company’s acclaimed musical production of THE BOY IN THE DRESS. David’s vocal talents have also been heard in numerous films including the Oscar nominated Missing Link. In 2006, David swam the English Channel, raising over £1m for the charity SPORT RELIEF. He followed this up in 2011 by swimming 140 miles along the length of the River Thames, which raised more than £2m.
A best-selling children’s author, David began writing books in 2008. His novels have been translated into 55 languages, selling 50 million copies worldwide. Some of his books have been adapted into television films or for the stage, such as the Royal Shakespeare Company’s acclaimed musical production of THE BOY IN THE DRESS. David’s vocal talents have also been heard in numerous films including the Oscar nominated Missing Link. In 2006, David swam the English Channel, raising over £1m for the charity SPORT RELIEF. He followed this up in 2011 by swimming 140 miles along the length of the River Thames, which raised more than £2m.
Kevin Wignall's novels for adults and young adults have been published in more than twenty countries and shortlisted for numerous awards. His work has been adapted for film as well as being used as inspiration for pop songs, paintings and body art. Born in Brussels, he currently lives in England, but travels extensively.
Trevor Wood is an ex-sailor, playwright and journalist. His first novel The Man on the Street, set in Newcastle’s homeless community, won the CWA’s New Blood Dagger and the Crimefest Debut Prize in 2020. It was also shortlisted for the Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year and has been optioned for TV by World Productions, the makers of Line of Duty. It was followed by the highly-acclaimed One Way Street. The final book in the trilogy, Dead End Street, was released earlier this year.
Erin Young's debut thriller, THE FIELDS, was inspired by an article about the menacing power of Big Agriculture. A decision to set the novel in the corn-capital of the world led her to make a fascinating journey across Iowa. Having grown up in a fishing village in Devon, she is drawn to the claustrophobic dramas of rural small-towns and the secrets they hide. THE FIELDS is in development for TV, by the producers behind hit shows BIG LITTLE LIES & CITY ON A HILL. Erin Young is the pseudonym of acclaimed historical novelist, Robyn Young, author of eight internationally bestselling novels. She has been published in 20 languages in 23 countries, selling over two million books worldwide.
