What is it about swedes and crime fiction?

A macabre Swedish export has gained popularity over the last few years: crime fiction. It is a phenomenon the whole world is talking about.

Author Håkan Nesser was surprised to learn that he had desi readers. He was scheduled to fly here for the Swedish embassy’s Crime Fiction Week (April 19-25), but his plans were scuppered by the infamous volcanic ash cloud.

That did not stop Nesser from sharing his views by email, on what makes writers from his small nation of 10 million dabble with such gruesome enthusiasm in this literary genre. “It’s because we have so many readers,” he says simply. He attributes the worldwide interest to market hype generated since the 1990s, when “the Germans started to love us”.

Full report here Business Standard