Åremorden (Netflix series, 2025) & Karppi (Netflix series, 2018 - 2022)

I’ve got two Nordic reviews for you today. First up, Åremorden (or The Åre Murders) is a new Nordic Noir series based on the books by popular Swedish thriller author Viveca Sten. I also re-publish my review from 2022 when the third and final season of Karppi was released.

ÅREMORDEN (Netflix series, 2025)

This five part series is basically two books rolled into one. The first three episodes cover Åremorden: Hidden in the Snow, while the last two, slightly longer episodes are an adaptation of Åremorden: Hidden in the Shadows.

The series takes place in a town called Åre, which is in the middle of Sweden (not too far from the Norwegian border) and is well-known for its ski resorts.

In the first episode of Hidden in the Snow a teenage girl goes missing in the night after she leaves a party celebrating St. Lucia’s Day, which takes place in the middle of December.

Pretty soon a search party is organized, but to no avail. The investigation is led by Daniel Lindskog (Kardo Razzazi), but he soon gets help from Hannah Ahlander (Carla Sehn), who (for somewhat mysterious reasons) is on leave from Stockholm, but who is also one of those persons who can’t stop working when there is a case to be solved.

Hannah and Daniel don’t really get along at first, but we’ve seen pairings like this before. As they both have our sympathy, it just means they have to get used to each other, before becoming real partners with excellent chemistry.

In Hidden in the Shadows various parts of a man’s body are found buried in the snow. The man, Johan, was a famous alpine skier and his demise sets a new chain of events in motion.

Unfortunately, this all happens just a day before Daniel is supposed to go on paternity leave, which means this will have to be delayed til the crime is solved (even though he still has to take care of the baby!). Hannah, though, is now more firmly based in Åre, so they can once again support each other when things get tough.

Åremorden doesn’t really break new ground, but it is a totally solid show, that simply wants to give Nordic Noir aficionados what they want. The actors are fine, there are lots of interesting supporting characters, the pacing is deliberate and the wintry landscapes add lots of character to the series as a whole.

The series was written by Karin Gidfors, Jimmy Lindgren and Viveca Sten herself, while directing duties were shared by Alain Darborg and Joakim Eliasson, who all did a professional job.

Viveca Sten previously wrote The Sandhamm Murders, which took place in the sunnier Stockholm archipelago and became a successful television series.

As there are more books coming out in this series as well, The Åre Murders could very well become a successful streaming series.

Classic Series: KARPPI (Netflix 2018 - 2022)

Finnish crime drama Karppi (a.k.a. Deadwind) is back for a third season. The good news: Karppi is still the best Scandi Noir after the conclusion of The Bridge.

The beginning of Karppi is intertwined with the ending of The Bridge. Karppi’s first season aired in 2018, the same year The Bridge was winding down with its fourth and final season.

Crime fans in need of a new Scandi fix migrated from moody blonde Saga Noren to moody blonde Sofia Karppi, and before you could say ‘rip-off don’t remake’ Karppi became a perhaps unexpected international success and a second season was announced.

To be honest, I really liked that first season. Pihla Viitali is wonderful as Karppi. I also liked the intrigue around the discovery of the body of a young woman on a construction site, triggering a chain of events that threatened to destroy Karppi’s life, while she was still mourning the death of her husband. I also liked her chemistry with co-star Lauri Tilkanen, who plays detective (and possible love interest) Sakari Nurmi.

I thought the story of the first season was well thought out and genuinely thrilling.

The second season was interesting as well. It concerned two murders and their possible connection to an enormous construction project. I just didn’t think the plot was as strong this time around.

The third season takes place a year after the conclusion of the second season. Karppi has been on leave for a year after trying to keep her daughter’s drug smuggling a secret. For a police woman to cover up a crime is a very bad thing, for a mother it is logical to want to protect your child. For Nurmi to arrest the daughter of his partner was the right thing to do, but in a friendship it’s killing.

However, at some point the past is the past and when a woman doctor is found in a cage brutally murdered, Karppi and Nurmi need to work together again and focus on learning everything they can about the victim, her troubled son, her pharmaceutical company that specializes in medicinal drugs, and her possible enemies.

Junkies seem to be a big problem in Finland. We are informed that ‘Everybody wants them off the street, but nobody wants to take care of them.’

Soon, the bodies start to pile up. Also, the murderer has a habit of leaving odd symbols on his victims corpses.

I like the fact that there is a lot at stake this season. Not just with the murderer, who communicates in riddles, but also with the relationship between Karppi and Nurmi. They are disappointed in each other. They let each other down - and now they don’t know if they can trust each other. As Sean Connery said to Catherine Zeta-Jones in Entrapment: ‘First we try, then we trust.’ That ‘s a great engine for a story like this.

Also, Karppi has to rebuild her relationship with her daughter Henna after she is released from jail. She is another person who can’t seem to stay out of trouble.

And the series comes full circle as Karppi begins to receive clues that her husband’s death was a crime instead of an accident.

There is a lot to process in this third season of Karppi, and fortunately, the writing is up to the level of the first season again. The series is also nicely shot, with some beautiful photography of the Finnish landscape. I know this is not the main point of the show, but to me this is an added value element.

The third season of Karppi may be its best yet. The eight episodes will keep you hooked. So buckle up and enjoy the ride!