The Occurrence

After a traumatic birthing experience at a Spanish hospital, Cecilie Holmegaard, her husband and their newborn son return to their beautiful flat in the old city centre of Madrid. They hope to enjoy this time together as a new family, but instead another culture clash looms, now with the Spanish family-in-law.

Their view of child rearing is dramatically different from that of Danish Cecilie and the resulting conflicts weigh on the new parents. While Cecilie’s husband becomes increasingly tyrannical, strange occurrences begin to take place inside their flat. Soon, Cecilie is consumed by only one thought: saving her child from the disaster, which seems more and more inevitable.

The Occurrence is a psychological horror story about a culture clash in modern day Madrid.

Anne Sofie Allarp (born 1972) is a Danish author, columnist and lawyer, who put a career in international relations and foreign policy behind her, when her first novel was published in 2011. It was nominated for the literary newcomer of the year award.

The Occurrence (Hændelsen, 2012) is her critically acclaimed second novel, a psychological horror story, based in Madrid, Spain, where she also lives with her husband and two small children.