Copenhagen isn’t just a beautiful city; it’s a place where fascinating stories unfold. Authors have used its streets, canals, and distinct atmosphere as the backdrop for tales of mystery, history, personal change, and human struggle.
If you enjoy stories set in Denmark’s capital, here are five books that might capture your interest.
Smilla Jaspersen lives in Copenhagen but holds Greenland deep in her heart, especially its snow and ice. She understands ice like few others. When a young Greenlandic boy, Isaiah, falls from a snowy roof to his death, the authorities call it an accident.
Smilla sees his tracks in the snow, reads them, and knows they are wrong. Her search for the truth starts on the cold Copenhagen docks. It leads her through a web of secrets connected to powerful people and far-off places.
Smilla is a unique character, sharp and solitary, and her insights into both the physical world and cultural differences are fascinating.
This story transports you to 1920s Copenhagen, a city of art and shifting ideas. Einar Wegener is a landscape painter married to Gerda, who paints portraits. One day, Gerda asks Einar to stand in for a female model, putting on stockings and shoes.
This small act awakens something profound within Einar. The novel follows Einar’s transformation into Lili Elbe and explores the complexities of identity and love within their marriage. Gerda’s paintings of Lili become famous.
Meanwhile, Lili seeks to live authentically as herself, a path that leads her towards pioneering gender confirmation surgery. The book paints a picture of their life together against the backdrop of Copenhagen’s artistic circles.
Imagine the person you love most changes suddenly, dramatically. This happens to Mia when her husband, Frederik, a respected school headmaster, is diagnosed with a brain tumor. The tumor alters his personality; he becomes impulsive and loses his inhibitions.
He even gets caught up in a major financial scandal at his school. Mia must confront difficult questions. Is this still the man she married? How much of our personality is just brain chemistry?
The story moves between their life in Copenhagen and the courtroom drama that unfolds. It really makes you think about identity and responsibility.
Kirsten Thorup’s novel introduces us to a young woman called Baby. She arrives in Copenhagen carrying burdens from her past and finds herself adrift in the city. She works low-paying jobs and drifts between different social scenes, from affluent apartments to gritty squats.
Baby tries to find her place and build connections, but loneliness often surrounds her. The novel provides a raw look at the margins of society in Copenhagen. It shows Baby’s vulnerability and her quiet search for stability and belonging in a world that feels indifferent.
For fans of historical adventure, this book drops you right into Copenhagen in 1807. It’s a dangerous time. Napoleon looms over Europe, and Britain is about to bombard the Danish capital to prevent its fleet from falling into French hands.
Richard Sharpe, a tough British rifleman, is sent on a secret mission. He must find a missing treasure intended to bribe the Danes and protect a spy, all while chaos erupts around him. Cornwell vividly portrays the fear and violence of the siege.
Sharpe has to navigate treacherous alliances and brutal street fighting within the city walls.