New accolades for Elina Pitkäkangas, Maria Turtschaninoff, and Max Seeck!

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We have many happy news from last week’s Helsinki Book Fair to share with you!

First up, Elina Pitkäkangas won the Kuvastaja award for best Finnish fantasy title published in 2022 with her genre-breaking novel SANG! The jury said:

“The author challenges our perception of what is a fantasy world in different ways, especially by including elements that remind us of modern technology, such as geren and HeavenNet. Why should fantasy worlds be only pre-industrial societies? [–] There are also other interesting elements in the book, such as the use of sign language and the matriarchal succession.” 

Massive congrats, Elina!
SANG has sold to Germany, Denmark, and Turkey – rights in other territories are still available!

Download the materials for SANG here!

 

Secondly, Maria Turtschaninoff received flowers and the Young Aleksis award for her novel INHERITED LAND! The award is given by the high schoolers in Finland, and the jury said:

“Inherited Land is a beautiful recounting of Finnishness, nature, and folk traditions. The winning work is an easily approachable nature description. [–] The title fits for many different readers and is interesting in its narration and style.”

Huge congrats, Maria!
INHERITED LAND has sold to 23 territories – rights are still free in Spain, Portugal, Japan, Lithuania…

Download the materials for INHERITED LAND here!

 

Last but not least, Max Seeck finally received the physical award for the Glass Key win! THE LAST GRUDGE was chosen as the best Nordic crime title in August, and this was celebrated at the Helsinki Book Fair. The Glass Key jury said:

“The Last Grudge combines a classic locked room mystery and an action plot with murders and all, thus reminding one of both the world of Peter Wimsey, by Dorothy L. Sayers, and of the media-sexy descriptions of a battle of power within a powerful family, as evidenced by HBO’s Succession-series. The title is written in a gripping and exciting way, merging homeliness and horror in a way that’s very popular in crime literature at the moment.”

The Jessica Niemi series has so far sold to over 40 territories, but the rights are still available in e.g. Japan, China, Brazil, Georgia…

Download the materials for JESSICA NIEMI series here!

About author


Elina Pitkäkangas

Elina Pitkäkangas is an author from Nokia, Finland, and an active advocate of YA literature. She has studied creative writing and did hermaster's degree in the University of Helsinki majoring in literature. Her works seamlessly combine elements of fantasy, social criticism and moral questions. Her accolades include winning the Topelius Award 2023, the City of Tampere Literature Prize 2023, and the Kuvastaja Prize 2023. Pitkäkangas has written five novels and produces book-related videos to TikTok and Instagram on her channel @elinapitkakangas.

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About author


Maria Turtschaninoff

Maria Turtschaninoff is known for crafting lyrical, historically inspired fantasy stories starring strong female protagonists. In addition to J.R.R. Tolkien, she counts Philip Pullman, Ursula K. Le Guin and C.S. Lewis among her favorite authors. She is a two-time winner of the Society of Swedish Literature Prize, winner of the Swedish YLE Literature Prize, winner of the Thank You for the Book Award, a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (2020-2024), and winner of the 2014 Finlandia Junior Prize. In 2024, Maria Turtschaninoff won the Eeva Joenpelto Literary Prize (10,000 euro award) for her literary masterpiece Inherited Land.

Her Red Abbey Chronicles YA trilogy has been sold into 30 languages, while her first adult novel Inherited Land has been sold to 23 territories. Maria has a Master of Arts in human ecology and works full-time as a writer.

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About author


Max Seeck, New York Times Best Selling Author

Max Seeck - New York Times Bestselling Author of THE WITCH HUNTER.

Winner of the prestigious Glass Key Award 2023 for his novel THE LAST GRUDGE.

“Another star has been added to the firmament of thriller writers,” announced Iltalehti newspaper, when Max’s debut novel was published in 2016. Four books later, Max Seeck’s novels have been sold to more than 40 countries, including US, UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Nordic countries and as far as Korea!

His Jessica Niemi series landed him on the New York Times Bestseller list! 2024 will see the release of his independent novel MILO, which is already creating buzz internationally with several rights pre-empts ahead of the Finnish publication!

Max Seeck has a background in sales and marketing, and has lately been able to dedicate his time to his lifelong love of writing. His interests include well-conducted research, reading Nordic Noir and listening to movie soundtracks as he writes.

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