By Sandra Ratesson | Head of media section
At almost 38 years old, Sandra Ratesson has seen many television shows, hosts and reality TV candidates. A member of the Club Dorothée generation, she saw the appearance but also the disappearance of numerous programs. She saw the scene of physical rapprochement between Loana and Jean-Edouard in the Loft Story swimming pool live thanks to a period ADSL subscription.
The author Johana Gustawsson did not have a very good time moving to this country which is part of the European Union. And for good reason, she did not feel accepted. She spoke to “Gala” magazine.
Johana Gustawsson, the French queen of thrillers, disappointed after settling in one of the happiest countries in the world: “I felt a certain rejection”
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Published in around thirty countries at only 46 years old, the Marseilles Johana Gustawsson has become one of the queens of thrillers in the world. His latest work, The Bites of Silence, a chilling thriller where the reader himself becomes the investigator, is already a great success. The magazine Galaon newsstands January 23, 2025, decided to interview him. And we learn that this French woman has decided to live thousands of kilometers from France.
-Studied law in Aix-en-Provence, then at Sciences Po, journalist in Paris, living in London for 10 years to follow her husband Mattias who works in finance… Johana Gustawsson now lives in Sweden, still following her other half . The plan, initially, was not that, with their three boys (the twins William and Alexander, 7 years old, and the eldest Maximilian, 11 years old), the couple had to settle in Marseille to be closer to the author’s family, but the Covid crisis turned everything upside down. So direction the island of Lidingö, connected by a bridge to Stockholm.
The one who helped Laëtitia Milot write her biography, I wanted to tell you… and whose thriller We will meet again was adapted into a TV film for TF1, loves living in this country for several reasons. “Social laws are very feminist. Women can have a career without having to struggle and we often see more dads picking up their children after school. The redistribution policy is also appreciable”she says. Another good point, the dentist is free for all children up to 18 years old.
But not everything is rosy in Sweden, at least when you come from abroad. Although she knew the country having been there many times, living there is different. “When I moved there for good, I felt a certain rejection. A lack of interest. People didn’t want to connect with me. Many Swedes go abroad but they always come back and are very attached to their traditions. Furthermore, if I understand this language, I speak English more willingly and that poses a problem. In fact, it’s like I went to stay with my best friend and discovered that she wasn’t the person I thought she was. This made me angry“, reveals Johana Gustawsson.
A complicated adaptation but one that she put aside to write her new novel, the plot of which takes place precisely on this island. And then, she is happy to see that her children are thriving in Sweden: “I am delighted to see my sons growing up on this island, between sea and forest, playing sports every day. Live in freedom. They are happy and that is the only barometer that matters to me. They have an idyllic childhood, like in a cocoon.”
Remember that in 2024, Sweden was among the Top 10 happiest countries in the world according to the World Happiness Report. This is based on people’s assessment of their happiness, as well as economic and social data on six key factors: social support, income, health, freedom, generosity and freedom from corruption.
