The Couples Trip - by Ulf Kvensler (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

**Swedish Academy of Crime Writers' Award Best Debut of the Year**
**Shortlisted for the Crimetime Award 2022**

Two couples set out together on a hiking trip that goes terrifyingly wrong in this addictive psychological thriller for fans of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley.

Anna, Henrik and Milena's annual hiking trip is just around the corner. This year, however, Anna and Henrik have a hard time saying no when Milena asks if her boyfriend, Jacob, can tag along. The hike soon spirals into mayhem when the three friends come to realize that taking Jacob was a decision that could change their lives forever.

From the austere mountaintops of northern Sweden, this highly anticipated thriller traverses through the unexplored wilderness--here, there's nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.

Review Quotes

"One of the best suspense novels I've read."--Camilla Grebe, award-winning author of the Hanne Lagerlind-Schon series

"Sarek is a small masterpiece that offers its readers uninterrupted spine-chilling suspense, and I envy every person who has not read it yet. Incredibly well written!"
--Kristina Ohlsson, award-winning author of Unwanted

"This is the kind of book that has the reader in a tight grip from the very first page. "--Upsala Nya Tidning

"[Ulf Kvensler] knows exactly what to do to catch the reader's attention and how to keep it until the very last page. ... Fast-paced, clever dialogue, clues and misleadings. While the characters are trying to stay alive, the reader is on a quest for the truth; one can sense the direction, but Kvensler also manages confound. Can he write a novel? Yes. Is the book bound to be made into a movie? You bet!"--Göteborgs-Posten

"With precise prose, skillful shifts between past and present, a well-paced and intriguing plot, grand settings, a dialogue filled with underlying tension that drives the plot forward, interesting characters, and a razor-sharp portrayal that captures both details and larger contexts, the author Ulf Kvensler has written what has to be one of this year's must-reads in Swedish."--BTJ

"This is one of those books that grabs the reader from the very first page and refuses to let go."--Norrköpings Tidningar

"This excellent and horrifying hiking tale is an utterly immersive page-turner with a highly engaging psychological drama between the four hikers. /.../ Ulf Kvensler's background as a screenwriter shines through in this assured and well-composed narrative. Adding to that we have the milieu depictions from Sarek National Park. At times sunny with fragrant and vibrant splendor; at times snowy, rainy, cold and with a landscape enveloped in fog. Wuthering heights and pernicious depths. I'd warmly recommend Sarek to all those who enjoys the combination of suspense, horror and epic nature settings."--Skånska Dagbladet


"Ulf Kvensler has a sure sense for horror ambiences, tempo, human aggression, and nature's relentless dangers alike, and also manages to twist and turn the plot several times around towards the end."--Dagens Nyheter

"A claustrophobic chamber play of infinite nature, ever winding towards the inevitable disaster."--Swedish Academy of Crime Writers

"Everything is expertly executed, the suspense almost has a physical presence at times."--Stavanger Aftenblad

"This thriller grabs you immediately, and keeps you in its grip. You are invested in the characters, and Kvensler throws enough ingredients into the pot along the way so that you never lose interest."--Bok365

"The rhythm of the novel is supple and dense and its atmosphere thrilling."--Savon Sanomat

"Kvensler is adept at tightening the screws ever more deliberately... This claustrophobic and paranoid debut is guaranteed to set readers on edge."--Caledon Enterprise