Serie: Sunset Grove trilogy

Reading material
Full English editions

Domestica and International Bestseller! Rights sold to 11 territories. For the fans of Alexander McCall Smith!

#1 Death in Sunset Grove

Who could imagine that anything illegal – whether it be suspicious deaths, thefts or the covert trading of medications – could happen in Sunset Grove retirement home? Its 90-year-old residents Siiri and Irma certainly can’t.

The lives of Siiri, Irma, and other Sunset Grove inhabitants are filled mostly with empty time punctuated by glasses of red wine, tram rides and funerals. Investigating the sudden strange occurrences at Sunset Grove, however, proves to be a more interesting pastime than playing cards with the ambassador and the woman in the wide-brimmed hat – not to mention the never-ending arts and crafts sessions, gym classes or accordion evenings (which the residents of the house attend mostly out of pity towards the employees).

 

#2 Escape from Sunset Grove

Sunset Grove retirement home turns into a kind of hell when it is taken over by foreign construction workers cursing fluently in Finnish. The noise is deafening, a hole appears in the wall, things disappear and residents have to use a portable toilet.

Residents Siiri, Irma and Anna-Liisa, all older than 90, decide to move into a shared apartment in the exotic neighbourhood of Hakaniemi. All three have their own habits and quirks, and life together isn’t entirely free of friction. The women also learn about the sad differences in quality with at-home assistance, and are forced to become familiar with terminal care and questions surrounding euthanasia.

Our heroes also can’t help looking into the suspicious plumbing project at Sunset Grove. As the mystery unfolds, they begin to find out that few people in this world have a fully clean record.

 

#3 The End of Sunset Grove

The final part of the trilogy marks a return to the retirement community. But the place no longer feels like home, and has turned into a state-funded, technology-driven pilot project in elderly care. The conclusion brings together characters lost along the way, and murky details are brought to light. Legal justice is also served – in unexpected ways. A natural, long-awaited death finally collects some, but still not all, of our main characters.

 


Rights sold:

FINLAND, Teos (Original publisher)
CZECH REPUBLIC, Albatros Media
DENMARK, Jensen & Dalgaard
ESTONIA, Varrak
GERMANY, Kiepenheuer & Witsch
FRANCE, Calmann-Lévy
ITALY, Marsilio
SLOVAKIA, Albatros Media
SPAIN, Penguin Random House
SWEDEN, Norstedts
WORLD ENGLISH, Pan Macmillan

Serie author: Minna Lindgren


Minna Lindgren (b. 1963) is a freelance journalist and columnist known for her whimsical writing style and fearless approach to topics as strange as opera and death. In addition to novels, she has authored nonfiction books on classical music. In 2009 Lindgren won the Bonnier Journalism Prize for her article entitled “Father’s Death” (“Isän kuolema”).

Lindgren is best known for the Sunset Grove Trilogy, which has been sold to 11 territories, and the final part The End of Sunset Grow was nominated for the International Dublin Literature Award in 2019. She has also written three standalones: Angry Widow (2018), A Far Far Love (2019) and Hope Never Dies (2020).

Minna Lindgren’s books have been critical and commercial successes, in Finland and internationally.

Books on this serie


Minna Lindgren

Death in Sunset Grove

2013, Literary


Minna Lindgren

Escape from Sunset Grove

2014, Literary


Minna Lindgren

The End of Sunset Grove

2015, Literary