Finland is the new Mecca of crime fiction – CARGO publishers predict the future bestseller!

Join the happy family of A.M. Ollikainen’s CARGO Publishers!

The book is now printed and on its way to bookstores!

We are excited to share amazing endorsements by CARGO’s foreign publishers and passionate about growing the family of A.M. Ollikainen’s publishers around the world.

Who can resist this supercouple and their unique combination of the best Finnish crime fiction that also masters the literary style?

CARGO is the Winner of a National Crime Novel Competition with rights sold in 12 languages and the publication date in Finland is May 12th. 

The book has already left the printers and is on the way to bookstores as we speak!


Download the 100pp English sample and full Finnish manuscript for your reader here.

Find a Finnish reader here.



PRAISE FOR CARGO AND A.M. OLLIKAINEN:

Finland is the new Mecca of crime fiction. You need proof? Just read the first novel by A.M. Ollikainen. I couldn’t imagine a better start for a series.  CARGO is outstanding.  
– Marco Schneiders, Publishing Director, Bastei Lübbe, Germany

„Cargo” is a fast-paced story with suspense until the end and well-drawn main character—an intelligent, empathetic and pragmatic police commissioner, Paula Pihlaja. The other characters also have clear psychological outline and natural dialogues which fuel the reader’s curiosity. All those things make „Cargo” impossible to put down. I am glad that Polish readers will be able to take part in this criminal feast. 
– Dominika Dudarew-Osiecka, Czarna Owca, Poland

Something very exciting is for sure happening within the genre of Nordic noir – our eyes are drawn to Helsinki. A.M. Ollikainen comes in and blow our minds. What a terrific start for a new series! The writing, the atmosphere, the characters, the tension – it’s all there, and we strongly believe this author duo to be the next big thing. Cargo is a book that’s hard to put down and has excellent twists and turns that are sure to delight thriller and Nordic noir fans. In addition to the great entertaining read this novel is, we love how well it takes on political and human themes – that’s rare, and adds to our enthusiasm for this author duo and their promising series.
– Vidar Strøm Fallrø, Development Editor, Aschehoug, Norway

Cargo is like a breath of fresh air among contemporary crime fiction – it is not only a thrilling detective story but also a perfectly written novel pointing out many interesting observations about our current lives. Moreover, the investigator Paula Pihlaja is such a relatable character – a capable, intelligent woman full of wit yet also haunted by her past. But could her seeming weaknesses be a source of strength too? It is a pleasure to see a strong female lead who is not afraid of being vulnerable. 
-Lucie Bregantová, editor, HOST – vydavatelství, s. r. o., Czech Republic

We see a great readership for this thriller series starring Paula Pihlaja: she’s a great detective, but also a person people can relate to as she copes with her past and the challenging times ahead of her. Add to this the themes that every great thriller novel needs: an intriguing murder method, a perfect writing style and a suspenseful plot, and I think you’ve got a winning combination in Cargo! We see A.M. Ollikainen as a very promising crimewriting powercouple, and look forward to introduce them to our Dutch readers.
– Soraya Vink, Commissioning Editor, HarperCollins Holland

When finishing the English sample I felt that it is quite terrible that I can’t speak Finnish – you need to continue the story just from the really beginning! Big things are happening in Finland, authors like A.M. Ollikainen makes us stunned. With Cargo, you felt yourself immediately in the middle of a well-deserved Nordic thriller, and you quickly realize that this won’t be an easy one. The first fine screws, the personality of the main characters, the launch of this story guarantees that this book will have an amazing future.
– Laszlo Marosi, Publishing editor, Animus Kiado, Hungary

A rare crime novel that also masters the literary style. One of the authors – Aki Ollikainen – is an awarded and internationally acclaimed literary fiction author and it really shows. The well-crafted mystery only unfolds in the very end and leaves the reader in awe.
– Piret Saluri, Estonia

CARGO is really masterful at setting up its twists and turns, also adding some hard-hitting societal criticism into the mix. I certainly could not put it down and it kept me guessing the whole time.
– Gintė Pačėsė, Editor, Baltos lankos, Lithuania


JURY’S praise for CARGO by A.M. Ollikainen – Winner of a National Crime Novel Competition (2019)

The jury agrees that the text in Milla and Aki Ollikainen’s book runs splendidly. According to the jury, with its artfully and cleverly spun multifaceted criminal storyline CARGO springs to mind the best Nordic crime series:

The gallery of characters is exceptionally fascinating and well-controlled: they all pertain to the story and propel it again and again towards new unforeseeable twists. You simply cannot put this ace of a suspense book down. Even the first scenes of the manuscript contain an enormous charge.

The Crime 2019 Contest jury consisted of writers Leena Lehtolainen and Antti Tuomainen, producer Riina Hyytiä from Dionysos Films, Editor Aleksi Pöyry and Publisher Antti Kasper from Otava Publishing

RIGHTS SOLD:

FINLAND: Otava (orig.)

ESTONIA: Varrak
(2-book deal)
CZECH REPUBLIC: Host
(2-book deal)
GERMANY: Bastei Lübbe
(2-book deal)
HUNGARY: Animus
(2-book deal)
LITHUANIA: Baltos lankos
(5-book deal)
LATVIA: Zvaigzne
(2-book deal)
NETHERLANDS: HarperCollins Holland
(2-book deal)
NORWAY: Aschehoug
(2-book-deal)
POLAND: Czarna Owca
(2-book deal)
SLOVENIA: Didakta
(2-book deal)
TURKEY: April
(2-book-deal)

About author


A.M. Ollikainen

A. M. Ollikainen is a pseudonym for author duo Aki and Milla Ollikainen. Aki Ollikainen has published three novels and won the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize in 2012. He has also been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and Prix Femina in 2016. Milla Ollikainen has published three crime novels and won Like Publishing and the Finnish Detective Society’s Crime novel writing competition in 2012. Cargo is their first novel together and the Winner of a National Crime Novel Competition. 

Bibliography


2022, Crime & Suspense

Swing

A. M. Ollikainen


2021, Crime & Suspense

Cargo

A. M. Ollikainen