If any genre has made translated fiction less scary to readers, it is the Nordic crime novel. English readers seem to have developed an almost insatiable appetite for dark crime stories from these countries—some of the safest countries in the world. And since the screen adaptations of Henning Mankell's Wallander series and Steig Larsson's Millenium Trilogy have helped those books become huge bestsellers, one can hardly find a Nordic crime novel that doesn't declare itself to be the "Norwegian answer to Kurt Wallander" or the "next Steig Larsson." Most readers I know approach such declarations with great skepticism.

If truth be told--and as most regular crime readers know--even though crime novels share some common elements, each novel is itself as individual as the author who has written it. Besides the obvious differences in style and focus, crime novels may be mysteries or thrillers, police procedurals or psychological novels, urban or rural, historical or contemporary. As readers, it's unlikely we will enjoy each and every crime novel available; fortunately, there is a great variety to choose from, and finding the right one to read is just a matter personal preference.

And so it is with the delightfully varied works by the equally varied authors we present here, twelve authors from four of the five Nordic countries, nearly all the authors award-winning, all successful, some fabulously so. Some have literary connections, while others have journalism or legal backgrounds. Some are quite young, others a bit older. But they do have two things in common: all of them write excellent crime novels and all of them are women.

Kerstin Ekman (Swedish) writes literary fiction and crime fiction. Her first novel, Witches' Rings,written in the mid-70s and recently republished in English by Norvik Press, is the first of a tetralogy of village life set in 1870. The first book of her Wolfskin trilogy, God's Mercy, was recently translated into English and published by the University of Nebraska Press. God's Mercy was reviewed in an earlier issue of Belletrista. Her first crime novel, and the first of her books to be published in English, is Blackwater. Library Journal has described it as "a densely plotted psychological thriller set in northern Sweden near the Norwegian border. … [Ekman] infuses the novel with the eerie atmosphere of the North, where it's either always dark or light but never truly warm. Blackwater is rich in psychological nuance and character."

Maj Sjöwall (Swedish) collaborated with her partner Per Wahløø in the 1960s and early 70s on ten novels which feature the exploits of Stockholm police detective Martin Beck. Despite the fact that the stories were written before the age of the personal computer and internet, they have become classics and are all still in print. Book four of the series, Den skattande polisen (The Laughing Policeman), originally published in 1968, was adapted into the film by the same name, which starred Walter Matthau. The series has also been adapted for television in Sweden. Readers should begin, if possible, with book one, Roseanna. The Guardian's has published an excellent piece on Maj Sjöwall, "The Queen of Crime".

One of two Norwegian "Queens of Crime", Karin Fossum began her writing career as a poet, and published her first collection in 1974 when she was just twenty years old. She began writing her bestselling police procedural series starring Inspector Konrad Sejer, set northwest of Oslo in the early 1990s, and it has been translated into over sixteen languages. There are ten books in the series; the ninth , Bad Intentions, will be published in English this year. Readers can begin with Don't Look Back, the 5th in the series, and the first to be published in English.

The other Norwegian "Queen of Crime" is author and lawyer Anne Holt. Holt debuted in 1993 with Blind gudinne, (Blind Goddess) which features lesbian police office Hanne Wilhelmsen. There are eight books in the series, two co-authored with Berit Reiss-Andersen. Her second series features former FBI profiler Johanne Vik and Detective Inspector Adam Stubø of the Olso police department. The series begins with Det som er mit, published as Punishment in the UK and What is Mine in the US; the book appears to be available only through used book sources. Readers, however, will be glad the hear that the most recent book of the Hanne Wihelmsen series, 1222, has been published recently in the UK (the paperback release will be in June). Described as an homage to Agatha Christie, 1222 sounds like an excellent introduction to this author.

Lisa Marklund (Swedish) is an author and journalist, and is currently co-owner of Sweden's largest publishing house. Her crime series featuring Stockholm crime reporter Annika Bengtzon debuted with Sprängaren (The Bomber) in 1998, which won several awards. The series now comprises eight novels, which have not been written chronologically. Two books of the series have been adapted to film in Sweden. The rights to the remaining six have been bought by the film production company which adapted the Steig Larsson books and the English-language Wallander series. Although copies of The Bomber might still be found, readers might do well to start with the most recently translated Annika Bengtzon novel, Red Wolf.

The first three of Mari Jungstedt's (Swedish) crime novels featuring Detective Superintendent Anders Knutas and the journalist Johan Berg are set on the island of Gotland, a popular tourist destination in the Baltic Sea between Sweden and Latvia. Several of her books have been adapted for Swedish television. Jungstedt, who has been a reporter for Swedish National Public Radio and Television, summers on Gotland. The first novel in the series of seven is Unseen.

Civil engineer Yrsa Sigurðardóttir (Icelandic) writes both crime novels and children's literature. Her crime series features the lawyer Thóra Gudmundsdottír; they are set in various locations around Iceland and often include historical elements. Her most recent installment available in English is Ashes to Dust, which is set on the Westmann Islands and involves the "Pompeii of the North" project—the unearthing of homes buried in the 1973 volcanic eruption that nearly closed off the island's harbor. Readers should begin with the first book, Last Rituals. A fourth book will be published in the UK this summer. Belletrista's review of her 2nd book, My Soul to Take, is here.

Literary scholar and author Leena Lehtolainen (Finnish) has written 20 crime novels featuring policewoman Maria Kallio, several of which have won prizes. Translated in many languages, but not yet available in English, readers will need to be patient while we wait for translation (one cannot help but wonder what we are missing after watching this short, subtitled promotional video).

Karin Alvtegen (Swedish), author, television scriptwriter, and the grandniece of beloved children's author Astrid Lindgren, has written six standalone psychological thrillers, four of which have been translated into English. Her novel Saknad (Missing) was adapted into a television series, and the novel was awarded The Glass Key— the premier Nordic crime writing award. Because they are standalone novels, readers can begin with any of the books which have been published by Canongate in the UK, and Felony & Mayhem in the US. Her most recently translated novel, Shadow, was reviewed by Belletrista's Akeela Gaibie-Dawood here.

Before she took up crime writing, Åsa Larsson (Swedish) was a tax lawyer much like her fictional character Rebecka Martinsson. Her crime series, which features Martinsson and several police detectives, now numbers five books, of which three are available in English. Belletrista recently published an "In Praise of" article about Larsson. Book one of the series, The Savage Altar (UK) or Sunstorm (US) which was adapted into the 2007 Swedish film "Solstorm".

Camilla Läckberg (Swedish), a former economist, has set her crime series—now seven novels—in the area around her birthplace, the small west coast town of Fjällbacka, Sweden. They feature police detective Patrik Hedstrom. Her first novel, described as being part crime novel, part love story, is The Ice Princess; in this book writer Erica Falck, a writer who returns to her childhood home and becomes curious about the circumstances surrounding the apparent suicide of a childhood friend. The fifth book in the series is due out in English in the UK in August. Camilla Läckberg lists her top ten Swedish Crime novels in a 2009 Guardian article.

The newcomer of Swedish crime novelists is Camilla Ceder (Swedish) who debuted with her novel, Frozen Moments, in 2009. When not writing, Ceder works in counseling and social work. Set outside of Gothenburg, her first book features Police Inspector Christian Tell and is a complex story tied to events more than a decade in the past. A much-anticipated sequel is in the works.