Summer at Villa Hilda

Michaela von Kügelgen

Original title: Sommar på Villa Hilda

Author: Michaela von Kügelgen

Published: 2025

Publisher: Schildts & Söderströms

Genres: Commercial/Upmarket, Romance

Pages: 285

Part of a series: Villa Hilda series

Reading material:

English sample & synopsis, Swedish manuscript

Many people dream of a second chance in life, but how many dare to take it?

Far out in the Stockholm archipelago lies the island of Halsterö. Journalist Thomas and former celebrity chef Louise travel there to work at the Villa Hilda guesthouse. They are both broken after many setbacks and are hoping for a fresh start. But setting up a summer paradise is not as easy as one might think, not even on the idyllic Halsterö island.

One day Louise stumbles across a collection of old love letters. Who wrote them, and what stories does Villa Hilda hide in its dusty attic? And how will Thomas manage to take care of his dementia-stricken mother while setting up an archipelago guesthouse?

Summer at Villa Hilda is about how difficult it is to be human among other people, but also about how, with the help of others, one can find one's way back to life.

This novel is the first part of the Villa Hilda series and will be published in June 2025. The following titles will concentrate on the people living on the picturesque Halsterö island and will tentatively be published in February 2026 and August 2026.

“I could literally feel the sun, smell the delicious food, and now I’m longing to try the perfect cinnamon buns that Louise bakes for her guests. The writing is so warm and beautiful that it feels as if you’ve been there yourself – a book like a perfect summer vacation.”

– Heide Kloth, publisher, Aufbau Verlage, Germany

Download reading materials

Rights sold:
FINLAND: Schildts & Söderströms (orig. Finland-Swedish), Schildts & Söderströms (Finnish), SWEDEN: Schildts & Söderströms
DENMARK: Lindhardt og Ringhof
ESTONIA: OÜ Hea Lugu
FILM & TV: Good Hand Production
GERMANY: Aufbau Verlage
HUNGARY: Athenaeum Kiadó
NETHERLANDS: Singel Uitgeverijen
NORWAY: H. Aschehoug & Co

Foreign covers

About author

Michaela von Kügelgen

Michaela "Kugge" von Kügelgen (1986) has four published titles under her belt. Her most recent novel, Sommar på Villa Hilda, will be published in eight territories and has been optioned for the screen.

Since 2020, Kugge offers highly regarded online writing courses, which have attracted participants from both Sweden and Finland. Her newsletters on writing and entrepreneurship have 1,600 subscribers. In the newsletters she shares her journey, offering encouragement to others while candidly discussing her own challenges and triumphs. Together with author Anne Hietanen, Kugge is working on a crime novel series with book #1, The Last Word slated to be published in 2026.

In addition to her writing career, Kugge plays handball, has recently developed a passion for second-hand fashion, and slow travels to Berlin whenever she can — after having lived there for two years.

Photo credit: Frida Lönnroos

Bibliography


2026, Crime & Suspense

Michaela von Kügelgen

The Last Word


2026, Commercial/Upmarket

Michaela von Kügelgen

Home to the Island


2025, Commercial/Upmarket, Romance

Michaela von Kügelgen

Summer at Villa Hilda