Crime fiction West Sweden

Fjällbacka

The setting for Läckberg’s books is the to-die-for pretty coastal community of Fjällbacka, 140 km north of Gothenburg on Sweden’s Bohuslän coast. According to Läckberg two of the locals cop it per book, and with a population of 1,000 people she’d have to write 500 books to kill them all off. Good news for Läckberg fans, bad news for the locals.

It would be criminal not to visit Fjällbacka, especially if you’re a fan of Camilla Läckberg’s books. And if you want clues about what to do here – read on. Fjällbacka town is from the 17th century and famed in Sweden for its cobbled streets, red boathouses and world famous west coast shellfish. In summertime hop on one of the boats lining the harbour and take a trip to the Väderörna group of islands, which are part of the Bohuslän archipelago.

If fishing is your fancy you can do that too. Or come in the autumn (end September to end November) and hunt down some west coast lobster. The plot goes like this; Stora Hotellet in Fjällbacka arranges you a lobster safari with a savvy sea captain who knows where to catch what may be the best lobster on the planet. Out at sea, he’ll show you how to prep and drop the pots and you catch your fill. Then it’s back to Stora Hotellet to boil, grill and devour your catch.

At the nearby Tanum UNESCO World Heritage site do, a bit of detective work and try to work out what Bronze Age Swedes are trying to tell us in their brilliantly coloured rock paintings and carvings from 3,000 years ago. 

Gothenburg

Åke Edwardsson’s series of crime books featuring Inspector Winter, the sharp-suited, gourmet meal cooking jazz cat, are best selling fiction. But there’s nothing fictional about the city of Gothenburg and its attractions and, in particular, its brilliant restaurants, cafés, pubs and bars.

From Marstrand you can also take a boat trip out to the islands of Nidingen, Hållö and the Koster Islands – Sweden’s largest marine national park and the Pater Noster lighthouse on the uninhabited island of Hamneskär. Pater Noster’s distinctive red lighthouse figures in Rosman’s book for all the wrong reasons. You can go there for all the right reasons and stay in the lighthouse keeper’s cottage. Talk about getting away from it all.