October deals & reviews round-up: The Guardian Angel and The Core of the Sun

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Guardian Angel film still
New deals for Hansen’s psychological thriller

The Guardian Angel, Einar Hansen’s psychological thriller, has sparked a lot of interest from Frankfurt. We currently have first offers in Denmark – where the story takes place – and a newly-closed deal in Serbia with Vulkan, whose list includes high-profile thriller authors such as Paula Hawkins and Stephen King, with plans for a film tie-in for the Serbian premiere of The Guardian Angel, the movie.

Rights also sold in Italy to Piemme, at auction, last month. In Finland, the book will be published by WSOY in spring 2018.

Hansen’s novel, which has been written alongside an eponymous feature film, directed by Arto Halonen as a Finnish-Danish-Croatian co-production, is based on real events of the so-called ‘hypnosis murders’ that shook Copenhagen in the early 1950s.

Turkey and Denmark acquire a feminist dystopia

Meanwhile, Johanna Sinisalo’s Prometheus Award-winning dystopian novel The Core of the Sun has just been sold in two territories, coinciding with its longlisting for the 2018 International Dublin Literary Award.

In Denmark, indie publisher Jensen & Dalgaard acquired the rights, and in Turkey rights sold to Ithaki Yayinlari. The prominent Turkish publisher of speculative and general fiction acquired Johanna’s topical dystopian novel, which has received a stream of great press attention since its publication in English:

“Margaret Atwood and Aldous Huxley get down with Carlos Castaneda in The Core of the Sun, an adventurous and original dystopian satire which isn’t likely to be forgotten in a hurry… It’s dark, biting, unlike anything you’ll read this year and, ultimately, a triumph,” The Herald (Scotland) wrote.

 

LATEST REVIEWS

Highlights of recent foreign and Finnish press for our authors’ books…

Undertaker by Marko Kilpi:
“At the top of its genre.” – Helsingin Sanomat, Finland
“Undertaker is also a work of art.” – Kauppalehti, FinlandThey Know Not What They Do by Jussi Valtonen:
“This hugely ambitious work of contemporary realism offers a dramatic warning about the influence of digital culture.” — Booklist,USA
“A contemporary novel that doesn’t lose sight of perennial dilemmas.” – Kirkus Reviews, USA

Roots by Miika Nousiainen:
“A quirky Nordic story that’s simply fun!” – Brigitte Extra, Germany
“Quirky humour, a good story, a happy end. Reading is rarely as deliciously amusing while also educative about dental hygiene and public health.” – NDR Kultur, Germany

THE GUARDIAN ANGEL
Rights sold:
FINLAND, WSOY
ITALY, Piemme
SERBIA, Vulkan

Reading material:
English manuscript

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THE CORE OF THE SUN
Rights sold: 
FINLAND, Teos
CZECH, Euromedia
DENMARK, Jensen & Dalgaard
FRANCE, Actes Sud
GERMANY, Klett-Cotta
LATVIA, Petergailis
TURKEY, Ithaki
WORLD ENGLISH, Grove Atlantic

Reading material:
English & Finnish editions

About author


Johanna Sinisalo

Johanna Sinisalo (b. 1958) is a Finlandia Prize-winning superstar of Finnish speculative fiction. In addition to her ten novels, she has also written short fiction and film and television screenplays. Her works have been translated into twenty languages.

Sinisalo has won several literary prizes also abroad, such as the 2004 James Tiptree, Jr. Award and the 2017 Prometheus Award, and was nominated for the Nebula Award in 2008, the Prix Escapades in 2012, and the Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire in 2017. In 2022, Johanna Sinisalo was awarded the Pro Finlandia Medal for services to Finnish literature.

Photo credit: Katri Kallio

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About author


Jussi Valtonen

Jussi Valtonen (1974) is an author and psychologist from Helsinki. He has studied neuropsychology in the United States and screenwriting in the UK, and has also worked as a science reporter. He has written three novels and a short story collection.

Carried by Wings (Siipien kantamat, Tammi 2007) was given second place in Bonnier’s novel competition, and received a warm reception from both critics and bloggers. In 2014 Valtonen was awarded the Finlandia Prize, the country’s highest-profile literary award, for They Know Not What They Do (He eivät tiedä mitä tekevät, Tammi 2014).

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About author


Miika Nousiainen

Miika Nousiainen (b. 1973 in Säynätsalo) has worked as a news and current affairs journalist for MTV3's news department. In addition, he has written for several popular TV-shows.

Nousiainen’s debut novel, Raspberry Boat Refugee (2007), tells the story of Mikko Virtanen, a man who desperately wants to become Swedish at any cost. In this tragicomic work, Nousiainen makes sharp observations about our western neighbor and illustrates that we’re all self-proclaimed experts on Sweden.

Roots (2016) follows the search for a missing father, taking readers across continents from Lieksa, Finland, to Australia. The book was also well-received internationally.

In Facelift (2020), Nousiainen gently explores themes of family and the longing for connection.

In addition, he has written The Danger of the Long Distance Runner (2009) and Forrest Giant (2011).

Nousiainen's novels have been adapted countless times and translated into languages such as Swedish, German, Dutch, Italian, and Estonian.

Miika Nousiainen have been awarded with: Laila Hirvisaari Foundation Grant (2008), Kalevi Jäntti Prize (2009) and Honorable Mention in the Sports Museum Foundation’s Sports Book of the Year Competition (2010)

Photo credit: Jonne Räsänen / Otava 2020

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