Noir in the North

What is often termed 'Nordic Noir' has dominated detective fiction, film and television internationally for over two decades. But what are the parameters of this genre, both historically and geographically? What is noirish and what is northern about Nordic noir? The foreword and coda in this volume, by two internationally-bestselling writers of crime fiction in the north, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir and Gunnar Staalesen, speak to the social contract undertaken by writers of noir, while the interview with the renowned crime writer Val McDermid adds nuance to our understanding of what it is to write noir in the North.Divided into four sections - Gender and Sexuality, Space and Place, Politics and Crime, and Genre and Genealogy - Noir in the North challenges the traditional critical histories of noir by investigating how it functions transnationally beyond the geographical borders of Scandinavia. The essays in this book deepen our critical understanding of noir more generally by demonstrating, for example, Nordic noir's connection to fin-de-siècle literatures and to mid-century interior design, and by investigating the function of the state in crime fiction.

List of FiguresNotes on ContributorsForewordYrsa Sigurðardóttir (Author, Iceland) Acknowledgements1. Introduction: Noir in the North Gunnthorunn Guðmundsdóttir (University of Iceland, Iceland) and Gerardine Meaney (University College Dublin, Ireland)PART I GENDER AND TRANSNATIONAL DIMENSIONS2. The Woman Between: A Social Network Analysis of The Fall and The BridgeGerardine Meany (University College Dublin, Ireland), Derek Greene (University College Dublin, Ireland), Karen Wade (University College Dublin, Ireland), Maria Mulvany (University College Dublin, Ireland)3. Adapting Nordic Noir: From Forbrydelsen to The KillingDelphine Letort (Le Mans University, France)4. Lilyhammer's 'Land of Second Chances': Masculinity, Violence and CorruptionCatherine Ross Nickerson (Emory University, USA) PART II SPACE AND PLACE5. Views from The Bridge: Panoramas, Streetscapes and the Optics of Noir Graeme Gilloch (Lancaster University, UK) 6. Complex Nostalgias: North, Pastness and Community Survival in Arnaldur Indriðason's Strange Shores and Ann Cleeves' Blue LightningDaisy Neijmann (University of Iceland, Iceland) 7. Nordic Noir and the 'Postcolonial' North: The Legacies of Danish Colonialism in the Nordic Region Christinna Hazzard (Liverpool John Moores University, UK) PART III POLITICS AND MORALITY8. Crime's Cartography: Using Sjöwall and Wahlöö's Story of a Crime to Map Sweden's Coordinates within Global Neoliberalism's Uneven SpreadPatrick Kent Russell (University of Connecticut, USA)9. Kid Stuff: Nordic Noir, Politics, and Quality Andrew Nestingen (University of Washington, USA)10. Dark Nights and Moral Diversity: Re-thinking Morality in Nordic NoirMary Evans (London School of Economics, University of London, UK)PART IV GENEALOGY AND GENRE11. What's in a Name: The Thorny Thread of Nordic NoirBjörn Nordfjörd (St. Olaf College, USA)12. Bleakness and Tenacity: Nordic Noir and Fin-de-siècle French Decadent LiteratureChristopher James (Bridgewater College, USA) 13. Dragon Tattoos, Crime, and the City: The Contemporary EpicGiti Chandra (University of Iceland, Iceland)14. The New Swedish Police Thriller of the 2010sKerstin Bergman (Lund University, Sweden)15. 'Safe Little Norway': Norwegian Noir and the Roots of Subversive Sociopolitical Commentary Nina Muzdeka (University of Novi Sad, Serbia)16. Val McDermid on Noir in the NorthInterview by Lorna Hill (University of Stirling, UK)CodaGunnar Staalesen Index