Independent Publishers Group Logo

Sign up today...
for featured titles, special offers, bestsellers, and more, in your inbox!

Subscribe to receive special offers, monthly books suggestions, seasonal selections, and more!

Close
The Man Who Died
The Man Who Died

The Man Who Died

FICTION

300 Pages, 5 x 7.75

Formats: EPUB, Mobipocket, Trade Paper

Trade Paper, $14.95 (US $14.95) (CA $19.95)

Publication Date: May 2018

ISBN 9781910633847

Rights: US & CA

Orenda Books (May 2018)

eBook

eBook Editions Available

Will it work on my eReader?
Price: $14.95
 
 

Overview

With a nod to Fargo and the best elements of the Scandinavian noir tradition, this page-turning thriller is brimming with the blackest comedy surrounding life and death, and love and betrayal, marking a stunning new departure for the King of Helsinki Noir

A successful entrepreneur in the mushroom industry, Jaakko Kaunismaa is a man in his prime. At just 37 years of age, he is shocked when his doctor tells him that he’s dying. What is more, the cause is discovered to be prolonged exposure to toxins; in other words, someone has slowly but surely been poisoning him. Determined to find out who wants him dead, Jaakko embarks on a suspenseful rollercoaster journey full of unusual characters, bizarre situations and unexpected twists.
With a nod to Fargo and the best elements of the Scandinavian noir tradition, The Man Who Died is a page-turning thriller brimming with the blackest comedy surrounding life and death, and love and betrayal, marking a stunning new departure for the King of Helsinki Noir.


‘Right up there with the best’ Times Literary Supplement

'The Man Who Died is deftly plotted, poignant and perceptive in its wry reflections on mortality and very funny' Declan Hughes, Irish Times

‘The deadpan icy sensibility of Nordic noir is combined here with warm-blooded, often surreal, humour. Like the death cap mushroom, Tuomainen’s dark story manages to be as delicious as it is Toxic' <i>Sunday Express</i>

‘<i>The Man Who Died</i> by Finnish author Antti Tuomainen isn’t your standard Nordic noir. Told in a darkly funny, deadpan style … The result is a rollercoaster read in which the farce has some serious and surprisingly philosophical underpinnings' Laura Wilson, <i>Guardian</i><br><br>'An offbeat jewel’ Don Crinklaw, <i>Publishers Weekly</i><br><br>‘Hugely entertaining and satisfying … like Carl Hiassen transported to Finland. It’s full of black comedy and has an unlikely hero in Jaakko, who you’ll root for to the very end’ Kevin Wignall, author of <i>A Death in Sweden</i><br><br>‘Combines a startlingly clever opening, a neat line in dark humour and a unique Scandinavian sensibility. A fresh and witty read’ Chris Ewan, author of <i>Safe House</i><br><br>‘Dark and thrilling, funny and intelligent, this <i>Fargo</i>-like novel contains lethal doses of humour … and mushrooms' Sofi Oksanen, author of <i>Purge</i><br><br>‘Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I enjoyed every single sentence’ Thomas Enger<br><br>‘Told with a wit honed by the Arctic winter and a story that lures you in with the perfume of the Finnish forests, this is Wes Anderson meets the Coen Brothers in rural Finland … a book I will never forget’ Matt Wesolowski

Reviews

"Dark and thrilling, funny and intelligent, this Fargo-like novel contains lethal doses of humour—and mushrooms." —Sofi Oksanen, author, Purge


"U.S. audiences should prepare to be every bit as enthralled as the Finns." —Booklist starred review of The Healer


 “This one is a winner right from the first sentence.” —Booklist


“a tightly paced Scandinavian thriller with a wicked sense of humor and a bumbling ne’er -do-well at its center.”—Foreword Reviews


“[a] relentlessly funny crime novel.” —Publishers Weekly


"Brimming with black comedy and unexpected pathos, this is a clever and witty book."—Geek.com

Author Biography

Finnish Antti Tuomainen was an award-winning copywriter when he made his literary debut in 2007 as a suspense author. The critically acclaimed My Brother’s Keeper was published two years later. In 2011, Tuomainen’s third novel, The Healer, was awarded the Clue Award for ‘Best Finnish Crime Novel of 2011’ and was shortlisted for the Glass Key Award. Two years later, in 2013, the Finnish press crowned Tuomainen the ‘King of Helsinki Noir’ when Dark as My Heart was published. With a piercing and evocative style, Tuomainen was one of the first to challenge the Scandinavian crime genre formula, and his poignant, dark and hilarious The Man Who Died became an international bestseller, shortlisting for the Petrona and Last Laugh Awards. The recently published Palm Beach, Finland has been a massive critical success, with Marcel Berlins of The Times calling him ‘the funniest writer in Europe’, and making it one of his books of the year.