Meny

Sample of literary figures

  • Eva Ström

    Female

    An energetic young detective inspector, born in Vietnam and adopted in Sweden. Eva Ström had a difficult childhood, but trained to become a police officer, and started to work in Ystad. She is later transferred to Malmö. She works in tandem with Jonny Lilja in the books by Olle Lönnaeus. She lifts weights at the gym, has a compact body, a wide face with slanting eyes, and lives together with her girlfriend Britt in a house in the countryside.

    Further reading

  • Jack Reacher

    Male

    He is a former officer in the US Army military police, but after being discharged he lives as a vagabond who – usually in a violent manner – solves criminal cases and other problems in books by Lee Child. The well-built Reacher’s parents and only brother are dead, and he steers clear of permanent relationships. He sometimes suffers from claustrophobia and likes to listen to music that he can memorise in an unusual way.

    Further reading

  • Mma Ramotswe

    Female

    In Botswana’s capital, Gaborone, Mma Precious Ramotswe runs The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency. The cases she works with, don’t usually concern major crimes, but are more about solving everyday problems for the clients. Mma Ratmotswe loves tea and her husband, the kind J.L.B. Matekoni, as well as their two adoptive children: all tenderly described by the Scottish author Alexander McCall Smith.

    Further reading

  • Carl Hamilton

    Male

    The Swedish secret agent Carl Hamilton, code name Coq Rouge, was born in 1954 to an aristocratic family and later became a leftist activist. He trained as an attack diver and after being trained by the CIA he worked for the military intelligence organization OP5 and was later appointed director general of the Swedish Security Services. Hamilton is the protagonist in about a dozen bestselling thrillers by Jan Guillou.

    Further reading