
Photo: Anton Soggiu
Jørn Lier Horst (b. 1970) has with his award-winning novels about William Wisting joined the elite of Nordic crime writers. Having worked as a head of investigations before becoming a full-time author, Horst brings a unique brand of suspense and realism to the table. Besides his novels for grown readers, Horst has gained recognition for his unparalleled ability to thrill even young readers with charming mysteries. His standing as the Norwegian king of crime fiction for all ages was cemented when he created the Detective Agency No. 2 and CLUE series, both the most popular children’s book series in their respective age categories.
“Horst, a former Norwegian police detective, is often compared to Sweden’s Henning Mankell for his moody, sweeping crime dramas.”
-New York Times
“Jørn Lier Horst writes literary crime with high credibility and keen-eyed societal depictions – he’s Norway’s own Henning Mankell.”
-Hjorth & Rosenfeldt
“Jørn Lier Horst writes some of the best Scandinavian crime fiction available. His books are superbly plotted and addictive, the characters wonderfully realized.”
-Yrsa Sigurdardóttir
Norwegian writer Jørn Lier Horst (b. 1970) and illustrator and animator Hans Jørgen Sandnes (b. 1979) have together created the bestselling children’s book series Detective Agency No. 2 for ages 6-9. Jørn Lier Horst has won multiple awards for his crime fiction for adults, and is also the author behind the highly praised CLUE series for children aged 9-12. Horst’s ability to create charming and believable characters has resulted in a rich universe full of adventure and mystery. Together with Hans Jørgen Sandnes’ award-winning illustrations, the Detective Agency No. 2 series’ universe and its lovable young detective duo are brought to vivid life before the reader.
Set in the idyllic small town of Riverton, the Detective Agency No. 2 series follows the adventures of our main protagonists Tiril and Oliver – not to mention their dog Ocho! Together the two young detectives collect evidence, search for connections, and join the at times perilous hunt for criminals. Concluding each book is an afterword in which readers can put their own sleuthing skills to the test.
Shortlisted for Bøkekrimprisen (Best Crime Novel) Norway – Sak 1569 A Question of Guilt | 2021 |
Shortlisted for the Prix du Bureau des Lecteurs France – Blindgang Ordeal | 2021 |
Shortlisted for Vrij Nederland’s Thriller of the Year The Netherlands – Katharina-koden The Katharina Code | 2021 |
Shortlisted for BOK365’s Book of the Year Award Norway – Sak 1569 A Question of Guilt | 2020 |
Shortlisted for the Petrona Award (Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year) UK – Det innerste rommet The Cabin | 2020 |
Longlisted for the CWA International Dagger UK – Det innerste rommet The Cabin | 2020 |
Shortlisted for BOK365’s Book of the Year Award Norway – Illvilje The Inner Darkness | 2019 |
Longlisted for the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière France – Hulemannen The Caveman | 2019 |
The Petrona Award (Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year) UK – Katharina-koden The Katharina Code | 2019 |
Longlisted for the CWA International Dagger UK – Katharina-koden The Katharina Code | 2019 |
Nordic Noir Thriller of the Year Sweden | 2018 |
Longlisted for the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière France – Jakthundene The Hunting Dogs | 2018 |
Longlisted for the CWA International Dagger UK | 2017 |
Shortlisted for the Bokslukerprisen Award Norway – Ulvehundgåten The Wolfhound Mystery | 2017 |
Shortlisted for the Bookworm Award Norway – Rivertongåten The Riverton Mystery | 2016 |
Special Award for Excellence in Crime Fiction Writing Poland | 2016 |
The Petrona Award (Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year) UK – Hulemannen The Caveman | 2016 |
Shortlisted for the Ark’s Book of the Year Award Norway – Blindgang Ordeal | 2015 |
The Swedish Academy of Crime Writers’ Award Sweden – Jakthundene The Hunting Dogs | 2014 |
Shortlisted for the Petrona Award (Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year) UK – Vinterstengt Closed for Winter | 2014 |
The Glass Key The Nordic Countries – Jakthundene The Hunting Dogs | 2013 |
Shortlisted for the Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize Norway – Hulemannen The Caveman | 2013 |
The Vestfold Literature Prize Norway | 2012 |
The Riverton Prize Norway – Jakthundene The Hunting Dogs | 2012 |
The Norwegian Bookseller’s Prize Norway – Vinterstengt Closed for Winter | 2011 |
2022, Crime
2021, Crime
2020, Crime
2019, Crime
2018, Crime
2017, Crime
2015, Crime
2013, Crime
2012, Crime
2011, Crime
2010, Crime
2009, Crime
2007, Crime
2006, Crime
2005, Crime
2004, Crime
2019, Children’s suspense
2018, Children’s suspense
2017, Children’s suspense
2016, Children’s suspense
2016, Children’s suspense
2015, Children’s suspense
2015, Children’s suspense
2014, Children’s suspense
2014, Children’s suspense
2013, Children’s suspense
2013, Children’s suspense
2012, Children’s suspense
2012, Children’s suspense
2022, Children’s activity book
2022, Children’s activity book
2021, Children’s activity book
2021, Children’s activity book
2020, Children’s activity book
2019, Children’s activity book
2018, Children’s activity book
2017, Children’s activity book
2016, Children’s activity book
2015, Children’s activity book
2022, Children’s
2022, Children’s suspense
2021, Children’s crime fiction
2021, Children’s crime fiction
2021, Children’s crime fiction
2020, Children’s crime fiction
2020, Children’s crime fiction
2019, Children’s crime fiction
2019, Children’s crime fiction
2018, Children’s crime fiction
2018, Children’s crime fiction
2017, Children’s crime fiction
2017, Children’s crime fiction
2016, Children’s crime fiction
2016, Children’s crime fiction
2015, Children’s crime fiction
2015, Children’s crime fiction
2014, Children’s crime fiction
2014, Children’s crime fiction
2014, Children’s crime fiction
2013, Children’s crime fiction
2013, Children’s crime fiction
2013, Children’s crime fiction
2020, Children’s activity book
2020, Children’s activity book
2018, Children’s activity book
2017, Children’s activity book
Jo Nesbø and Jørn Lier Horst are the two most sold Norwegian authorships during 2022. Jo Nesbø is the No. 1 best selling author with his Killing Moon, the thirteenth Harry Hole novel. Jørn Lier Horst is No. 2 with The Traitor, the sixteenth novel about William Wisting.
Jørn Lier Horst’s The Traitor bounces back up to No. 1 on the official bestseller list for ebooks in Norway this week. The Traitor is the sixteenth volume in the series about William Wisting.
The Search for the Magical Christmas Village, the latest activity book in Jørn Lier Horst & Hans Jørgen Sandnes’s Detective Agency No. 2 series, is No. 2 on the official Norwegian bestseller list for children’s books.
Detective Agency No. 2 are tasked with finding a very unique snow globe and bringing it home before Christmas. Alongside Grandpa Franz they set course northwards. They ready the sleigh and head out on a thrilling journey – that you as the reader get to come along for. On every page there’s a challenge that needs to be solved in order for the search to continue. The reader get to help out in finding tracks, crack codes and solve tasks along the way. Keep your eyes peeled. The solutions are hidden in the text and images – and on the next page.
The Search for the Magical Christmas Village is the tenth activity book in the Detective Agency No. 2 series.
Jørn Lier Horst’s The Traitor comes in at No. 1 on the fiction and e-books bestseller lists for the third week in a row, while Liza Marklund’s The Polar Circle makes another appearance at No. 2 in paperback.
Jørn Lier Horst’s The Traitor, the sixteenth novel about detective William Wisting, stays put at No. 1 also this week on the official Norwegian bestseller lists for fiction and e-books.
The bestseller lists for week 39 in Norway are in, and Jørn Lier Horst’s just published The Traitor goes straight to the top, claiming the No. 1 spot in the fiction category. Jo Nesbø comes in at No. 2 on the same list with Killing Moon, and Matias Faldbakken climbs to No. 3 with Poor Thing. On the paperback list, Liza Marklund’s The Polar Circle jumps to No. 2.
Following weeks of heavy rain, the earth comes crumbling down on one of Larvik’s residential areas, burying tens of houses. Wisting joins the rescue operation. By sunrise the next day, all residents have been accounted for and it stands clear that the landslide has claimed no victims. And yet, twenty-four hours later a dead body is found in the masses. The coroner sets the time of death to forty-eight hours prior to the landslide. The investigation into the man’s death turns out to have ties to several other ongoing cases and Wisting is recruited to head a separate investigation team. Soon, however, signs begin to point to there being a traitor in the group…
The Traitor is the sixteenth installment in Jørn Lier Horst’s William Wisting series.
Operation Gold Tooth, the twenty-third installment in the Detective Agency No. 2 series, goes straight to No. 1 on the official bestseller list for children’s fiction in Norway.
In the twenty-third Detective Agency No. 2 title, Operation Gold Tooth, Oliver goes to see Tiril at their detective office, having discovered something suspicious. The padlock on the boom in front of the old mill is a fake! It doesn’t get any less mysterious when they find a gold tooth in the gravel. Who could the tooth have belonged to? And how did it end up here? The old sailor Captain Krogh is the only one Tiril and Oliver remember who had a gold tooth, but he died many, many years ago. There is no doubt that Detective Agency No. 2 must investigate this case further!
Jørn Lier Horst & Hans Jørgen Sandnes’ Detective Agency No. 2 series is crime fiction for the youngest – clever, engaging, and full of thrills! Join our heroes Tiril, Oliver and their dog Ocho as they solve mysteries that have even the adults of Riverton scratching their heads.
Stefan Ahnhem’s The Final Nail is the No. 1 most sold paperback novel of summer 2022 in Norway, closely followed by Jo Nesbø’s The Jealousy Man and Other Stories at No. 2.
The children’s books bestseller list is topped by Jørn Lier horst & Hans Jørgen Sandnes’ The Search for the Camping King, the ninth activity book in the Detective Agency No. 2 series.
The lead trio of Jørn Lier Horst and Hans Jørgen Sandnes’ immensely popular Detective Agency No. 2-series – Tiril, Oliver and Ocho – have now been crowned the best Norwegian children’s book characters of all time. Throughout the summer, readers have been able to cast their votes for their favourites from a longlist comprised of the 50 most beloved and iconic characters throughout the ages, via book platform Bok365.