In Norway, it’s traditional to spend the Easter holidays diving into detective novels (the famous “påskekrim”, or Easter crime novel). With popular authors who are translated worldwide (like Jo Nesbø, Karin Fossum, or Anne Holt), it’s true that Norway excels in this genre that’s both dark and thrilling.

But the Francophone world isn’t left behind! Several Francophone authors also master the art of the thriller and offer captivating stories now translated into Norwegian or English. Here’s our selection, from novels available in the collections of our Francophone library.

The Essentials

In a recent episode of our podcast “Fransk-norsk kafé“, we identified 5 essential Francophone authors in crime literature. Take advantage of this episode to learn more about Fred Vargas, Joël Dicker, Pierre Lemaitre, Michel Bussi, and Jean-François Parot, 5 authors who are easily accessible in Norway and whose novels have captivated a very broad and diverse audience:

The Lesser-Known Treasures

Other Francophone crime authors deserve recognition for their work, if only for their originality in a genre long marked by somewhat repetitive narrative codes.

We think, for example, of Natacha Calestrémé, a journalist, editor, and also a documentary filmmaker very committed to the environmental and ecological cause. It’s with these concerns as the main plot that she writes her detective novels, in which the main character is the investigator Yoann Clivel. Calestrémé uses her knowledge in scientific and environmental matters to convey subtle messages, all while respecting the criminal plot of the story. At Fransk kulturhus, you can read her novel Le testament des abeilles.

Let’s also mention Richard Morgiève and his novel Le Cherokee. Known for the accuracy and incisiveness of his dialogues, Morgiève offers here a hypnotic and mysterious fresco of a 1950s America obsessed with flying saucers and the “red threat”.

Sébastien Japrisot, for his part, offers perfectly structured detective novels often adapted to cinema. His style perfectly blends suspense, the classic logic of the “thriller”, and more sentimental aspects. In L’été meurtrier, a novel you can read at Fransk kulturhus, Japrisot tells the story of Elle, a Frenchwoman driven by desires for revenge in the charming setting of a Haute-Provence village.

Fan of Francophone literature?

Consider checking out the program of our Francophone literature course, a course whose popularity is confirmed each year and in which you will analyze, in groups, recent novels belonging to extremely varied literary genres!