Saga Signs 14-Book Deal with No.1. Bestselling Author Katz Krefeld
Danish author Michael Katz Krefeld’s most recent thriller Imperiet (The Empire), book seven in the proclaimed series about private detective Ravn and his English bulldog Møffe, is currently a number one bestseller in Denmark’s largest bookstore chain and has been for four weeks in a row.
And now his entire catalogue of novels is set for a huge international launch after he and Lindhardt & Ringhof’s digital publisher, Saga, signed a remarkable e-book and audiobook deal.
Saga snaps up entire backlist and unpublished work to be translated into nine languages
Saga has acquired all of Krefeld’s work, ranging from his award-winning debut (2007) to the yet unpublished third book in the trilogy about the uncompromising and controversial police officer Cecilie Mars, which will be completed next year.
A total of 14 titles will be translated into nine different languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Swedish, Finnish, Polish, and Dutch, and find their way to readers and listeners through 450 distribution channels worldwide.
“Michael’s books are world-class – it’s going to be big. We’re taking on 126 translations and we think it’s fantastic to be able to launch one of Denmark’s best-selling authors to the world. This is the future, and this is the capacity and reach we can now offer our authors,” says Natalie Uldbjerg Hansen, Editor-in-Chief of Saga Originals, the editorial team within Saga that will oversee the process of translating and marketing Krefeld’s work.
New opportunities for Danish authors
Krefeld’s books are Nordic Noir thrillers set in Copenhagen; a genre that has proven to be in high demand internationally for the past two decades.
“I’m looking forward to this amazing journey and to working with the editors in all the markets. My books have a very Danish setting, and I am proud to contribute to getting Danish literature out into the world and meeting new readers there. Møffe is already wagging his tail,” says Michael Katz Krefeld, referring to Ravn’s English bulldog – beloved by many readers of the series.
It’s not only the plot that is set in Copenhagen but so is Saga’s headquarters where native-speaking Spanish, German, French, Swedish, Dutch, Polish, English, and Italian editorial teams work to publish high-quality commercial literature throughout the world.
“The book industry is in the middle of a revolution,” says Literary Director Sune de Souza Schmidt-Madsen: “We can sit at our headquarters in Copenhagen and publish all over the world. We had our first breakthrough this spring, when Steffen Jacobsen became a bestseller in Sweden. Previously, Danish authors and publishers had to knock on the door of the big international publishers and go through the eye of a needle to reach out internationally. Now we have the team and infrastructure to do it ourselves, and when it comes to an author like Michael Katz Krefeld, with whom we have worked for so many years on so many books, it’s an incredible opportunity.”
Praise for Imperiet:
“Michael Katz Krefeld is a stylish and thoroughly experienced tour guide, who, with the help of swaying and info-filled dialogue, fluently and relevantly shifts scenes without the urge to shout, “Wonderful Copenhagen!” and by virtue of Ravn’s (almost) always exalted composure, provides the reader with an easily digestible but really, really tasty crime experience. See you again, Ravn!” (Berlingske)
“The rich, the beautiful, the young and the dead. Michael Katz Krefeld’s seventh crime novel about private detective Thomas Ravn and his bulldog Møffe remains in the familiar snoop territory we know from countless books and TV series from Philip Marlowe onwards. But (…) Krefeld, as usual, writes well and fluently.” (Politiken)
For more information about these titles, or our full English catalogue contact Nadia on – nadia.lamond@sagaegmont.com or simply book a meeting.
