True-Detective-book-list

Reading lists

11 must-read books for True Detective: Night Country fans

Dead Island

From the bestselling novel I'm Travelling Alone, two dynamic characters are born. 
Police investigators Holger Munch and Mia Krüger work together to solve the most complex crimes in Oslo, catching serial killers before they strike again but their personal lives are not simple either. As people, they could not be more different but as they battle their own demons their unlikely pairing make Munch and Krüger the best kind of classic detective duo.

'Gives Jo Nesbo a run for his money money' Sunday Express 
'The latest Norwegian crime-writing sensation' Sunday Times 
‘Her name is Mia Kruger, and it is she who makes this superb story very special indeed. Genuinely gripping and with a wonderful heroine, it is sensational’ Daily Mail 
_____________ 
 
The latest instalment in the Munch and Krüger series from the bestselling author of I'm Travelling Alone. 
 
She’d once come here to kill herself but now Mia Kruger has returned to the picturesque island of Hitra to escape from the violence and madness of her life as a police investigator. 
 
But when she is approached by 11-year-old Sofia asking for help in finding her missing friend, her old instincts are awakened. Three years ago, Jonathan disappeared without a trace on his way home from Sofia's house. Mia is just beginning to re-examine the cold case when another crime rocks the island: a teenage girl is found brutally murdered, with Jonathan's name written in her blood. 
 
Knowing that the two cases are connected but unable to make the link, Mia calls in her former boss Holger Munch to join the investigation. When other bodies are discovered, tensions build in the apparently idyllic community, and Kruger and Munch must quickly learn to navigate the deadly maze of the island before the elusive killer claims their next victim. 
 
With characteristic cunning and psychological depth, Samuel Bjork pulls back a community’s curtain of respectability to reveal the dark web of treachery and deceit that lies behind it. 
_____________ 
 
Readers love Samuel Bjork: 
 
'Ingenious' 
'Simply terrific' 
'Intelligent and gripping' 
'Perfect for Scandi-Noir lovers'

The latest Norwegian crime-writing sensation.

Samuel Bjork is the pen name of Norwegian novelist, playwright and singer/songwriter Frode Sander Øien. The Munch and Krüger series features five books: the Richard & Judy Bookclub bestseller I'm Travelling Alone, The Owl Always Hunts At Night, The Boy in the Headlights, The Wolf and Dead Island.

The latest instalment in the Munch and Krüger series from the bestselling author of I'm Travelling Alone. 
 
She’d once come here to kill herself but now Mia Kruger has returned to the picturesque island of Hitra to escape from the violence and madness of her life as a police investigator. 
 
But when she is approached by 11-year-old Sofia asking for help in finding her missing friend, her old instincts are awakened. Three years ago, Jonathan disappeared without a trace on his way home from Sofia's house. Mia is just beginning to re-examine the cold case when another crime rocks the island: a teenage girl is found brutally murdered, with Jonathan's name written in her blood. 
 
Knowing that the two cases are connected but unable to make the link, Mia calls in her former boss Holger Munch to join the investigation. When other bodies are discovered, tensions build in the apparently idyllic community, and Kruger and Munch must quickly learn to navigate the deadly maze of the island before the elusive killer claims their next victim. 
 
With characteristic cunning and psychological depth, Samuel Bjork pulls back a community’s curtain of respectability to reveal the dark web of treachery and deceit that lies behind it.

The Wolf

Samuel Bjork (Author) Samuel Bjork is the pen name of Norwegian novelist, playwright and singer/songwriter Frode Sander Øien. The Munch and Krüger series features five books: the Richard &amp; Judy Bookclub bestseller I'm Travelling Alone, The Owl Always Hunts At Night, The Boy in the Headlights, The Wolf and Dead Island. Charlotte Barslund (Translator) Charlotte Barslund translates Scandinavian novels and plays. Her recent work includes Calling Out For You by Karin Fossum, Machine by Peter Adolphsen and The Pelican by August Strindberg.

'Gives Jo Nesbo a run for his money money' Sunday Express 
‘Written in Bjork’s habitual cool prose, it’s an absorbing, twisty novel’ Sunday Times 
‘Her name is Mia Kruger, and it is she who makes this superb story very special indeed. Genuinely gripping and with a wonderful heroine, it is sensational’ Daily Mail 
___ 
 
It was one of Sweden's most notorious unsolved cases: two young boys abducted and murdered, their bodies brutally, artistically arranged. 
 
But eight years later, when two other boys are found in similar circumstances, it looks like the killer might be back - this time in neighbouring Norway. 
 
Led by veteran detective Holger Munch, the investigating police are baffled. There are no clues, no leads to follow. In desperation, Munch drafts in a trainee from the Police Academy, Mia Kruger, a young woman with an uncanny ability to see beyond the facts. Little does he know that Mia is battling her own demons and will soon find that her life and that of the case are entwined in ways no one could have imagined.... 
 
From the internationally bestselling author of I'm Travelling Alone, comes another mesmerically chilling psychological tale of cat and mouse where the hunter may not know that they have become the hunted before it's too late... 
___ 
 
Readers love Samuel Bjork: 
 
'Ingenious' 
'Simply terrific' 
'Intelligent and gripping' 
'Perfect for Scandi-Noir lovers'

The Boy in the Headlights

How can you stop a murderer when you cannot predict their next move? A serial killer is choosing his victims at random, it is a detective's worst nightmare and the ultimate challenge for Munch and Kruger.

'Gives Jo Nesbo a run for his money' Sunday Express 
'Intelligent and gripping' The Times 
___ 
 
Mindless killer? Or do they know exactly what they're doing? 
 
Winter 1996. An old man is driving home when his headlights catch an animal on the empty road up ahead. He stamps hard on the brakes. But it is not an animal at all. It is a young boy, frightened and alone, with a set of deer antlers strapped firmly to his head. 
 
Fourteen years later, a body is found in a mountain lake. Within weeks, three people have died. Each time, the killer has left a clue, inviting Special Investigations Detectives Munch and Krüger to play a deadly game - a game they cannot possibly win. Against the most dangerous and terrifying kind of serial killer. One who chooses their victims completely at random. 
 
To find the killer they must look deep within their own dark pasts, but how can you stop a murderer when you cannot begin to predict their next move? 
 
The new novel from Samuel Bjork, THE WOLF, is available now. 
___ 
 
What readers are saying: 
 
'A riveting story, with plenty of dark emotions. Perfect for Scandi-Noir lovers.' 
'I was hooked, this tale got my heart racing and in places sat on the edge of my seat and reading late into the night.' 
'Ingenious . . . I found it gripping and compulsive.'

(Munch and Krüger Book 2)

The Owl Always Hunts at Night

'Gives Jo Nesbo a run for his money' Sunday Express 
The second dark and twisted Norwegian crime thriller from the author of I'm Travelling Alone, the Richard and Judy bookclub bestseller

Two books into this stark but compelling series, Bjork’s trademark themes are the lethal intersection of technology with child abuse and misogyny.

‘A unique, twisting, unsettling thriller that really epitomises the phrase 'page-turner'.’

Kruger is strongly reminiscent of Lisbeth Salander . . . this is an engrossingly labyrinthine novel, with enough offbeat and downright bizarre detail to keep us intrigued and guessing right up to a tense finale.

FANTASTIC sequel from Samuel Bjørk! . . . This is quality suspense at its very best and in my opinion a literary masterpiece. A delight to read!

This book is damnably perfect . . . A real ace of a crime novel full of suspense, horror, loss, deprivation and eternal love. Each and every page is worth reading. 5/5

With a dramatic finale that really took my breath away Samuel Bjork has placed himself up there with the best of Norwegian crime writers.

Samuel Bjork is Norway’s new Jo Nesbø.

Raw, psychological, disturbing. The Owl Always Hunts at Night, the new thriller by Samuel Bjork, is one of those reads you just can’t stop thinking about . . . a great thriller, a novel that leaves you with a sense of confusion and anxiety, a discomfort because of what humanity is capable of.

From the author of the bestselling Richard and Judy bookclub pick I'm Travelling Alone 
 
'Gives Jo Nesbo a run for his money' Sunday Express 
'The latest Norwegian crime-writing sensation' Sunday Times 
___________ 
 
When a young woman is found dead, the police are quick to respond. But what they find at the murder site is unexpected. The body is posed, the scene meticulously set. And there is almost no forensic evidence to be found. 
 
Detective Mia Krüger is a woman on the edge - she has been signed off work pending psychological assessment. But her boss has less regard for the rules than he should. Desperate to get Mia back in the office, Holger Munch offers her an unofficial deal. 
 
But the usually brilliant Mia is struggling and the team are unable to close the case. Until a young hacker uncovers something that forces the team to confront the scope of the murderer's plans and face the possibility that he may already be on the hunt for a second victim. 
 
The new novel from Samuel Bjork, THE WOLF, is available now.

(Munch and Krüger Book 1)

I'm Travelling Alone

A complex and sophisticated crime thriller from an astonishing new talent

Terrific . . . Intelligent and gripping . . . May well propel [Bjork] to deserved international fame

Samuel Bjork’s formidable I’m Travelling Alone is despatched with real élan . . . Mia’s confrontation with both her own demons and a very human one is mesmerising fare

A compelling novel, with plenty of intrigue and some splendid action sequences

Perfect for fans of Jo Nesbo's Harry Hole series and Danish crime drama The Bridge

Tense, thrilling and genuinely scary *****

A tense and smartly constructed narrative

The story is exciting, the setting cleverly evoked, the translation excellent . . . Welcome to a new voice.

Icy landscapes, mysterious clues, a messed up heroine . . . Nordic noir at its delicious best

Sarah Hilary, author of Someone Else's Skin

If this is a debut novel, then it is something of a literary sensation

One is tempted to call it a textbook on the modern crime novel. This is how it should be done

I’m Travelling Alone is a stunning debut. Think the debut of Stieg Larsson and how that reverberated for the next decade. The time has come again for such a debut and it is a beauty. This is the beginning of a major series and is truly awesome.

Crime addicts should look out for I'm Travelling Alone

An absolutely brilliant Norwegian crime novel that has everything you want in a good story. Believable and interesting characters. A truly thrilling mystery and plot

Excellent reviews and thousands of hooked readers. Welcome to the dark world of Inspector H. Munch and to an unforgettable crime novel

This thriller gets under your skin and won't let you go. One thing is very clear at the end: we want to read more about Holger Munch and Mia Krüger!

A very sophisticated and terrifying thriller, which keeps the reader guessing and gasping to the very last page. The story is powerful, the style is fluent, and the cast of characters is simply irresistible

A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 
A RICHARD & JUDY BOOK CLUB PICK 
 
'Terrific . . . Intelligent and gripping' The Times 
'Tense, thrilling and genuinely scary' Heat 
'The latest Norwegian crime-writing sensation' Sunday Times 
'The plot is scalpel sharp... utterly brilliant' Sunday Mirror 
'Perfect for fans of Jo Nesbo's Harry Hole series' Crime Scene Magazine 
____________ 
 
When the body of a young girl is found hanging from a tree, the only clue the police have is an airline tag around her neck. It reads 'I'm travelling alone'. 
 
In response, police investigator Holger Munch is immediately charged with assembling a special homicide unit. But to complete the team, he must track down his former partner, Mia Krüger - a brilliant but troubled detective - who has retreated to a solitary island with plans to kill herself. 
 
Reviewing the file, Mia finds something new - a thin line carved into the dead girl's fingernail: the number 1. She knows that this is only the beginning. To save other children from the same fate, she must find a way to cast aside her own demons and stop this murderer from becoming a serial killer. 
 
The new novel from Samuel Bjork, THE WOLF, is available now.

Samuel Bjork

Charlotte Barslund

Superb ... Genuinely gripping with a wonderful heroine.

Saturday, 09:07. A woman trembles in the back of a subway carriage, eyes wide with terror. A scream pierces through the thick air. She has a bomb, the timer on her chest counting down: Five. Four. Three. Two. One. 
 
The explosion shakes Oslo, and the capital is immediately set on lockdown, with Holger Munch’s elite team at the head of the investigation. They are joined by the bright and promising Mia Krüger, who has just dropped her sister off at rehab. 
 
Mia quickly realizes that something doesn’t add up, as the team finds three strange objects in the woman’s house – items seemingly planted there with purpose. 
 
As they investigate, a local journalist receives a horrifying phone call from a man claiming responsibility for the attack: She was only the first. More will follow, one every 24 hours… The clock is ticking, and it’s ticking fast. 
 
The real bomber is still out there – watching, calculating, stringing Mia and Munch along. Every second brings them closer to the next detonation – will they have enough time to beat the bomber at his own twisted game?

Samuel Bjork

Books by Samuel Bjork

Series by Samuel Bjork

Munch and Krüger

Articles featuring Samuel Bjork

11 must-read books for True Detective: Night Country fans

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