A Literary World of Female Empowerment

In celebration of International Women’s Day, we are shining a light on the talented female narrators and translators behind some of Saga’s top titles!

We’ve picked out our top five titles featuring women in translation and the top five that showcase brilliant female narrations. This collection of titles is touching, powerful, and entertaining – and today we celebrate the women involved in bringing them to life.

•  Nominated for multiple awards, and a top listened-to title ‘White Lilac’ is a captivating, thrilling, and authentic close-up of society. Perfect for fans of Jo Nesbo, Karin Fossum, and Lotte Petri.  – White Lilac by Cecilia Sahlström
   
• This classic has gone on to inspire numerous plays, films, and TV adaptations such as an episode of the Twilight Zone “Something in the Walls”. – The Yellow Wallpaper (Premium) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
  
• Scroll down to get an exclusive sneak peek of the talented narrator Shona White in action at PRL Studios – A Bridge in Time by Elisabeth McNeil 

See the full list of metadata by downloading below.

Summer is coming to Lund, a university town in the south of Sweden, and the students are looking forward to their summer holiday. But tragedy soon casts its dark shadow over the city, when a young woman is found brutally beaten in Lund City Park. Not far from the crime scene, a young man is also found assaulted. Both victims are found holding a white lilac in their hands.

Chief Inspector Sara Vallén is put on the case but is quickly removed when her son turns out to be the primary suspect. To clear her son’s name, Vallén decides to start her own investigation.

White Lilac is the first in the ‘Sara Vallén’ series about her and her colleagues at the Lund Police Department.

The perfect cosy crime read starring Mrs. Mortensen, the senior citizen we all know from our own family: colorful clothing, strong opinions about her granddaughter’s name, and snarky remarks about other people’s table manners or lack thereof. Follow Mrs. Mortensen as she pokes her nose into the mysterious events that start to happen – if the police don’t want to do their job properly, it’s almost a social duty to help them!

A number of deaths occur among a group of volunteers in a secondhand shop in a small Danish provincial town. The police are convinced that the deaths are due to natural causes, but retiree Anne-Maj Mortensen doesn’t believe that.

In the middle of her day-to-day life filled with family dinners, weight loss diets, dog training, and garden work, Anne-Maj persistently starts looking into the case herself and is determined to uncover the truth.

“The Mystery at the Second Hand Shop” is Anne Grue’s first crime novel in the series about Mrs. Mortensen. Be sure to mark the calendar for this release!

A provincial town in Northern Denmark. A buried corpse disappears. A child is kidnapped. A woman suddenly vanishes. The only clue left behind at the crime scenes are mysterious Chinese symbols

Eva finds herself in the eye of the storm, after suffering from a sorrowful loss. Eva is fighting to get her life back on track with with her husband who recently, and inexplicably, became paralyzed and is now unable to take care of himself. 

Trying to escape her grief, Eva embarks on her own investigation to find out who is behind these violent crimes. And why. It turns out, the past will play a chilling and completely unexpected role…

For more on Sarah Engell – have a look at our interview: Sarah Engell Author Interview | In Depth

Mother-of-three Emelie is in a tough spot in life. Since the father of her children moved out, she has struggled to make ends meet. Budgets are tight, work is boring and she’s reluctant to start dating again. She’s just not ready. When things seem at their darkest, she receives an unexpected letter that changes her life forever.

Emelie has inherited a house on the island of Sardinön. And the house is chock-a-block full of Christmas decorations! Her children thrive in their new life on the island and want to stay so it’s not long before the move to the Island is a done deal. All that’s left is to figure out the answers to two important questions: first and foremost, what’s the deal with Andreas, the good-looking guy who inherited the guest house on the plot? And second, what on earth is she going to do with all the Christmas stuff?

You might also enjoy a look at the sequel: Exclusive Sneak Peek of ‘Home for Easter’

One ordinary Wednesday morning, Inspector Hannah Kaufman is unexpectedly called to Stockholm South Hospital, where she’s confronted by a far-from-ordinary event. Armed men are inside the children’s hospital, threatening to kill one child an hour if their demands aren’t met.

Follow Hannah and her colleagues as they face a dramatic hostage situation with enormous media attention.

For fans of Ian Rankin, James Patterson, and the popular Netflix show ‘Money Heist’.

In this new audio edition, acclaimed ‘Alienist’ actress Rosy McEwen delivers a masterful narration to this timeless classic

‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ follows a series of journal entries made by a woman diagnosed with hysterical tendencies by her doctor husband. Prohibited from working or writing, she is confined to the nursery of an old New England Colonial mansion to recuperate. Trapped in this room with barred windows and sickly yellow wallpaper, the narrator begins to feel the room come alive and evolve around her.

The wallpaper is animate, shifting and writhing, changing before her in the moonlight. There has to be someone in the walls – she knows it.  

This story highlights the struggle women face in a man’s world, where their few rights can only allow them to write. This is a must-read for any Sylvia Plath fans. 

You might also enjoy: Introducing the Saga Premium Classics Collection

For generations, the oldest village in Scotland has remained unchanged but now it is 1853 and the railway is coming to Camptounfoot. Shy and beautiful Emma Jane Wylie is determined to fight for her father’s dream – the construction of the railway bridge that will carry the new track southwards. Her father’s demise puts Emma in charge.  But during the two years of its construction, the project is beset by drama and tragedy: cholera rages, the men down tools, murder and conspiracy are in the air – and then a landslide threatens to destroy all their endeavours.

Inspired by her father’s vision, and with a strength of mind and resolve at odds with her Victorian upbringing, Emma Jane takes on the world – and is determined to win.

A dramatic and riveting saga of survival for fans of Ann Bennett, Catherine Gaskin, and Rosie Clark. 

Check out this behind the scenes exclusive clip of the talented Shona White in action at PRL Studios.

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After graduating from Oxford University, Chaya is torn between her duty to family and her life in the UK since her traditional Sri Lankan parents want her to settle down.

Gimhana is hiding his sexuality from his family, and it’s getting harder and harder to turn down the potential brides his parents keep finding for him.

When Chaya and Gimhana meet, a marriage of convenience seems like the perfect solution. Together they have everything – friendship, stability, and their parental approval. But when both Chaya and Gimhana find themselves falling in love with other people, they’re left with an impossible decision – risk everything they’ve built together or finally follow their heart?

It’s autumn in Stratford-Upon-Avon, and twenty-something Kelsey Anderson has moved from her Scottish home to live in the beautiful town. Her Shakespeare tour guide days behind her, she’s now happily working as a photographer and totally loved up with American actor boyfriend Jonathan – even if long-distance relationships are hard.

When best friend Mirren moves down from Scotland, Kelsey is delighted to have her friend at her side – and as the nights turn colder, Mirren throws herself into dating the eligible bachelors of Stratford, until she finds herself growing closer to journalist Adrian.

But as Mirren uncovers a long-buried scandal while working at the local newspaper, it seems that her big scoop might throw Kelsey’s – and Jonathan’s – life upside down. Will she choose her career over her friends’ happiness?

When Jonathan returns from the US and discovers the secrets Mirren has uncovered about his family, it throws his relationship with Kelsey onto shaky ground. Can they find their way back to love, before it becomes the winter of their discontent?

Nominated for the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Romantic Comedy Novel Award 2021, this feel-good, contemporary romance is perfect for fans of Sarah Morgan, Carole Matthews, and Holly Martin.

There’s a stash of heroin waiting to be imported, and no one seems sure what to do with it . . . But Ayla’s a gardener, and she has a plan.

Offering a fresh and funny take on the machinery of the North London heroin trade, Keeping the House lifts the lid on a covert world thriving just beneath notice: not only in McDonald’s queues and men’s clubs, but in spotless living rooms and whispering kitchens. 

Spanning three generations, this is the story of the women who keep their family – and their family business – afloat, juggling everything from police surveillance to trickier questions of community, belonging and love.

Great for fans of Zadie Smith, Monica Ali and Brit Bennett.

For more information about these titles, or our full English catalogue contact Nadia on – nadia.lamond@sagaegmont.com or simply book a meeting.