CHRISTINA WAHLDÉN

 
 

CHRISTINA WAHLDÉN is an award-winning author and journalist. Her debut was made in 1998 with the youth novel Kort kjol (Short skirt) that deals with rape. She has since then written more than 70 books for children, young adults and adults. 

During her years as a crime reporter at the morning paper Svenska Dagbladet, she mainly covered violence against women and girls, such as sexual crimes and honor-related violence, and many of her books deal with crime. She has an exam in Journalism from Gothenburg University but has also studied theater history at Stockholm University and dramaturgy in Australia at University of New South Wales in Sydney. She is a member of the Swedish Academy of Crime Fiction and Swedish PEN.

Photo: Joel Nilsson

Agent Moa Alfvén

 
 

GENTLEMEN OF WAR

 

PUBLISHED harper collins, 2025-04-08
GENRE HISTORICAL SUSPENSE
PAGES 288

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ESTONIA – varrak

November 1944: As World War II approaches its final phase, the Women's Voluntary Defense Corps on Gotland works tirelessly, providing shelter and sustenance to Baltic refugees fleeing the conflict. Yet amidst this humanitarian effort, troubling questions arise about certain Finnish war children arriving on the island. Is young Toivo from Karelia truly orphaned, or is there more to his story? And what trauma has rendered him silent?

Police sisters Rut and Svea are assigned to infiltrate the women's corps and uncover the truth. But when Rut waits anxiously at Visby harbor for the S/S Hansa carrying her colleague—a vessel that never arrives—she faces the grim realization that the ship has been lost.

In Stockholm, the dying Countess Lussan Kagg contemplates a different mystery: who will inherit her family estate now that the crucial entail document has vanished? In these final days of war, who deserves her trust? Are there any true gentlemen left in a world consumed by conflict?

This compelling thriller marks the final installment in the Police Sisters series, following the acclaimed Lessons in Ungentlemanly Warfare and No Admission.

 
 

NO ADMISSION

PUBLISHED harper collins, 2024
GENRE HISTORICAL SUSPENSE
PAGES 311

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ESTONIA – varrak

On the tiny island Enholmen in the inlet to the strategically located harbour of Slite on northeast Gotland, strange things are happening late in the summer of 1944. Soldiers are found murdered and World War II is still raging outside Sweden. 

On a remote farm, the police sisters Svea and Rut are getting trained in stealthy killing and learning morse code under British command together with countess Lussan Kagg and her group of resistance women. After that, the cell travels to Slite, in disguise and undercover, to try and solve the mystery at Enholmen. A very skillful mask designer at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm is helping them with the details. The amount of Baltic refugees arriving in small open boats are increasing and the situation is escalating. 

At this time, Stockholm is called the Casablanca of the North, due to all the spies living in the capital. At Grand Hôtel, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has set up a press room for foreign correspondents. Lussan does not get the support she wants from her younger brother Angus, but is involuntary entrapped in a crime involving him. Looted art from the continent and unconventional surveillance methods are some of the ingredients in the sequel to the popular historical crime novel Lessons in Ungentlemanly Warfare.

 
 

LESSONS IN UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE

PUBLISHED harper collins, 2023
GENRE HISTORICAL SUSPENSE
PAGES 432

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ESTONIA – varrak

Gotland, Sweden, June 1944.

The police sisters Svea and Rut have been sent to the seaside resort Ljugarn on the east coast of the island on an undercover mission. The presence of military personel is high and beneath the surface there are nefarious elements threatening not only the calmness on the little resort but also the security of the nation. Young girls start disappearing and corpses float up along the coastline. What first started as a simple surveillance mission changes into something bigger and darker. When everything looks hopeless, the paths of the police sisters are crossed by the notable countess Lussan Kagg and her motley group of resistance women.

Acclaimed author Christina Wahldén has been inspired by the obscure history of Gotland and weaves together a story that is enthralling, atmospheric and warm.

REVIEWS

“Lessons in Ungentlemanly Warfare is a delightfully entertaining crime novel with great charm but also with a feminist sharpness – not least in the portrayal of the situation of women in a variety of professions (police, journalist, telephone operator, waitress, etc.). There is also a palpable darkness in the depiction of a peaceful life in the shadow of war. What’s especially topical is the portrayal of refugees from the Baltics who are coming to Gotland across the ocean, and it is easy to draw parallels to our own time. […] What characterizes Lessons in Ungentlemanly Warfare is the lively and joyful storytelling and an exceptionally well-constructed milieu and historical atmosphere. And in addition; it is incredibly thrilling.”
Gunilla Wedding, Skånska dagbladet (SE)

“The raging war in Europe is interwoven with personal human fates in a picturesque summer setting. The novel is thrilling, while friendship and sisterhood run like a theme throughout the book and leaves the reader with a warm feeling after the last page. It is clear that author and journalist Christina Wahldén for many years worked as a crime reporter focusing on violence against women and girls. Both the structure of the story and its details indicate solid research and experience. And luckily, Lessons in Ungentlemanly Warfare is the first part of a suspense series, so we will soon get to know more about the colorful cast of characters.”
BTJ (SE)

“Lessons in Ungentlemanly Warfare – what a fantastic cover by Lotta Kühlhorn – is the first part of a series called Police Sisters, set in the 1940s. Here we meet Svea and Rut who are two young police sisters in Stockholm who are sent on a reconnaissance mission to Gotland […] Girls disappear and a man is found murdered in the ocean – soon the police sisters have to do more than just investigate and their vice mission grows into something bigger. […] The spirit of the time is not only reflected in the dialogue; the nods to predecessors in the genre are noticeable in both form and content and adds an extra dimension. Darkness lures both on Gotland and in the sisters’ background, but the collective female power and the will to resist are stronger – and pave the way for a sequel that is due out next year.”
Göteborgsposten (SE)

“The military presence on Gotland is high and there are disturbing reports of young women disappearing and bodies appearing along the coast. Two police sisters are sent there undercover. This is the first part of a new series that delivers on its promises. By far. The spirit of the time, the characters, and the unimaginable evil that is revealed – everything feels real and terrifying.”
Ingalill Mosander, Aftonbladet (SE)

“Praised author Christina Wahldén has been inspired by Gotland’s dark history and she seamlessly weaves a thrilling, charming, and heartfelt story.Praised author Christina Wahldén has been inspired by Gotland’s dark history and she seamlessly weaves a thrilling, charming, and heartfelt story.Praised author Christina Wahldén has been inspired by Gotland’s dark history and she seamlessly weaves a thrilling, charming, and heartfelt story.”
Kulturnytt (SE)

“The plot is great and Christina Wahldén creates a setting rich in details from the 40’s.”
Dagens Nyheter (SE)

“When an author as skilled as Christina Wahldén dives into into a certain subject you know that you’ll be getting more than just a thrilling crime novel. […] Christina is always reliable. When I open one of her books I know right from the start that I’m in for a treat, and this is confirmed in the first few pages.”
Dast Magazine (SE)