Plague Flowers

Autumn 1710. The plague spreads its black wings over Stockholm. Even the most privileged houses in the city are not protected from the disease, which some believe to be God's punishment. Magdalena and Ebba's mother dies, and the girls are sent to wait out the epidemic in Svarddamm Castle, where their aunt, Baroness Katarina, lives. Although she is their mother's twin sister, she turns out to be her complete opposite - a ruthless, domineering prude. The Baroness has a sixteen-year-old stepson, Axel, but no one has seen him for a long time; the sisters are forbidden even to ask about him. One night, Magdalena accidentally meets Axel, and they become each other's comfort and support in a harsh and dark castle that holds more than one terrible secret. "Plague Flowers" is a beautiful and creepy story about dark family secrets, forbidden love, ghosts and family history. A beautiful and intelligent book, the tense plot takes your breath away - Strandberg knows his stuff!
"Expressen"What makes the strongest impression is not the descriptions of the plague, ghosts and cruelty, but the subtle depiction of the relationship between the sisters. Having overcome difficulties and trials, they find each other again. Strandberg's real demons hide among the living; the dead do not wish us harm.
"Dagens Nyheter" by Mats Strandberg makes the reader gasp with tension. A beautiful and clever book. And very scary. Because Strandberg knows his stuff.
«Expressen»«Plague Flowers» has all the necessary ingredients of a horror story in the right proportions. In addition, Strandberg touches on the issues of women's rights and prejudices about what a "real man" should be. This makes the book relevant, despite the fact that the action takes place in the 18th century. «Skonska Dagbladet»About the authors:Mats Strandberg is a recognized master of Swedish horror. At the age of ten, he discovered Stephen King, and preferred the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm to Disney cartoons. Since 2005, he has been writing columns for the largest Swedish newspaper «Aftonbladet». In 2006, he debuted as a prose writer and since then has written for children and adults. His books have been translated into 25 languages. Many of them have been filmed, several plays and even a musical have been staged based on them.Victoria Popova is an illustrator. She was born in Moscow. Since 2012, she has been engaged in illustration. She has collaborated with the publishing houses Samokat, Belaya Vorona, Nigma, EKSMO, Rosman, Nikeya, and Peshkom v istorii. In 2020, illustrations for the book Gianni Rodari's Theater were included in the Gianni Rodari. Opere edition by Mondadori. In 2020, the book From 1 to 10 became a finalist in the Unpublished Picturebook Showcase competition, and in 2022, the book The Magic Forest. From A to Z was also a finalist. For Belaya Vorona, Vika has illustrated almost all of the books by Maria Gripe and Jean-Claude Mourlewa, Complex Numbers by Ingrid Ovedi Volden, Ilsa Janda - About Fourteen by Christine Nestlinger, and Gianni Rodari's Theater.