Stockholm Noir

“[A] superb sampling of Swedish crime writing talent . . . will be appreciated by fans of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium [series] and Jens Lapidus’s Easy Money.” —Library Journal What could be more peaceful than a city made up of a series of islands surrounded by crystal-clear water? But like any big, international metropolis, Stockholm has a dark side—fed by the disparity between its affluent boroughs and its more gritty suburbs. But even in the heart of its medieval streets, existential dread makes its presence known and gives Stockholm its own brand of Scandinavian noir. In Stockholm Noir, you’ll find stories by Unni Drougge, Inger Edelfeldt, Carl-Michael Edenborg, Åke Edwardson, Torbjörn Elensky, Inger Frimansson, Carl Johan De Geer, Martin Holmén, Nathan Larson, Malte Persson, Anna-Karin Selberg, Johan Theorin, and Lina Wolff. “Capture[s] the gloomy underside of Sweden’s capital, portraying the hopelessness of those trapped in what Larson and Edenborg in their introduction call the city that ‘devours your soul.’” —Publishers Weekly, starred review “Another worthy entry in this globe-trotting mystery series.” —Booklist “Stockholm may not be Marseille, but Larson and Edenborg’s contributors show that even a verdant place with socialized medicine can have its seamy side.” —Kirkus Reviews

"Stockholm Noir "joins "Copenhagen Noir "and "Helsinki Noir "in powerfully representing the Akashic Noir Series in Scandinavia.

Drug dealer Jorge is just out of prison but already bored with his new existence selling lattes and cappuccinos at a cafe. Who wouldn't be? But big money looms, if he can pull off an audacious last heist. What he doesn't know is that the police are already closing in: an undercover investigator has wormed his way deep into Stockholm's criminal circles, close to Jorge. And also close to JW, the part-time student, part-time cab driver who turned to crime - and got in over his head - in order to keep himself in with a rich party crowd. At the same time, someone is trying to take down the Godfather himself, Radovan Kranjic. What would Stockholm be like with Radovan gone? Who would be Stockholm's new king - or queen - of crime? As the novel unfurls answers will be found amid the voracious hunt for money, power, and a carefree life. The goal is easy - and the life deluxe

Marxist theories have had a profound influence on crime fiction, beginning with the works of the American writers of the 1930s. This study explores the development of a Swedish Marxist noir subgenre after the 1990s through a Marxist reading of central works, from the Marlowe novels of Raymond Chandler to the 1960s social crime fiction of Sjöwall-Wahlöö to modern bestselling authors such as Henning Mankell, Stieg Larsson, Roslund & Hellström, Jens Lapidus, Arne Dahl and others. The works of these writers show a common thread of Marxist worldview in their portrayal of a modern world gone wrong.

Niklas, a weapons expert, has returned home after years as a mercenary. His world has no laws. His life has made him a violence fanatic and an adrenaline junkie. He is haunted by traumatic childhood memories. One night his mother calls, hysterical. Someone has been murdered in her apartment building. Thomas is a demoralized cop. He's working the night shift when the call about the murder comes in. The victim has been badly beaten, and his arms have been pockmarked by syringes. But someone wants the case silenced - why? Mahmud is just out of jail, and keen to live the high life. He has debts to someone he used to deal for. In a game of russian roulette, his life is spared - but at what cost? He has to look for a man whom he later wishes he'd never found. And his search takes him to a side of Stockholm he wishes he'd never seen. No matter how hard they try, the power is not theirs. It belongs to Radovan who rules over the dark parts of the city where everything is for sale. But the price is much too high.

Dirty money, no matter where it comes from, will be clean cash after it has been laundered by the right person. JW hasn't wasted his time in prison and he's planning a grand comeback. Jorge is tired of his new, square existence selling lattes and cappuccinos. Life deluxe looms on the horizon as he plans his last heist. This time it will be very big money. But the police are closing in and an undercover officer has got deep into Stockholm's criminal inner circle. Close to Jorge, close to JW. At the same time, someone is out to get the Godfather himself - Radovan Kranjic. People are starting to think about what life will be like once he's gone. Who will be Stockholm's new king - or queen? The methods vary but the hunt for money, power and a carefree life somewhere warm and sunny goes on. The goal is easy money - and life deluxe.

From one of Sweden’s most successful defense lawyers comes an unflinching look at Stockholm’s underworld, told from the perspective of the mob bosses, the patsies, and the thugs who help operate its twisted justice system. JW is a student having trouble keeping up appearances in the rich party crowd he has involved himself with. He’s desperate for money, and when he’s offered a job dealing drugs to the very crowd he’s vying for a place in, he accepts it. Meanwhile, Jorge, a young Latino drug dealer, has just broken out of jail and is itching for revenge. When JW’s supplier gets wind of Jorge’s escape, he suggests JW track him down and attempt to win his trust in order to cover more area in the drug circuit. But JW’s not the only one on Jorge’s trail: Mrado, the brutal muscle behind the Yugoslavian mob boss whose goons were the ones who ratted Jorge out to the cops, is also on the hunt. But like everyone else, he’s tired of being a mere pawn in an impossibly risky game, and he’s seeking to carve out a niche of his own. As the paths of these antiheroes intertwine further, they find themselves mercilessly pitted against one another in a world where allegiances are hard-won, revenge is hard-fought, and a way out of it all is even harder to come by. Fast and intricately paced, and with pitch-perfect dialogue, Easy Money is a raw, dark, and intelligent crime novel that has catapulted Jens Lapidus into the company of Sweden’s most acclaimed crime writers.

With the same raw energy and verve he displayed in Easy Money, Jens Lapidus delivers an electrifying tale of Stockholm's vicious underworld. Mahmud is fresh out of jail, but he's forced to work for a brutal mob boss to pay off his debts to a drug lord. Niklas, a mercenary and weapons expert with an appetite for vigilante justice, is back in Sweden and plans to keep a low profile. But the discovery of a murdered man in his mother's building severely threatens those plans. Thomas, the volatile detective on the case, finding his efforts suspiciously stymied and the evidence tampered with, goes off the grid in search of the truth. But as the paths of these three men intertwine and the identity of the murdered man is revealed, crimes and secrets bigger, deeper, and darker than a mere murder will come to light.