The Spider by Lars Kepler is the 9th book in the Detective Inspector Joona Linna series and it’s another spine chilling case.
In short, it begins with a gruesome murder and a message from the killer that there are a further 9 white bullets intended for another 9 victims connected to Saga and she must solve the clues to save the victims and ultimately Joona…and this killer doesn’t just want to kill his victims, he wants to obliterate them!
I simply love this series and The Spider is yet another taut, twisty thriller which hurtles along at a breakneck speed with nasty surprises around every corner. It’s a great read which leaves you craving for the next instalment, I highly recommend.
Big thanks to Lars Kepler, Bonnier Books UK and NetGalley for this eARC which I chose to read in return for my honest review.

Magnificent compelling story of the hunt for a serial killer who provides information as to the identity of her next victim by riddles and tin likenesses of the prey. Each of the murders are graphically described which I found somewhat disturbing but impossible to look away from. All victims are either known or part of the investigating team who develop deep suspicions against one of their number. To say too much is too reveal too much so suffice to say read this with all your lights on!

Three years ago, Detective Saga Bauer received an odd package in the mail: a postcard describing a distinctive gun and white bullets, listing an intention to kill nine victims -  with her former partner Joona Linna as the final name on the list. Whoever sent the message made it clear that Bauer held the answers to saving Linna, but she dismissed the claims as a hoax.

Bauer is now struggling to be reinstated on the police force, after events which threaten to end her career. But when a decomposing body is found wrapped in plastic, and a white bullet is found at the murder scene, she is suddenly at the centre of the case. Linna wants Bauer back on his team to help solve the riddles the killer keeps sending, goading the police to work out who the next victim is before their fate is sealed, and her apparent personal connection to the killer is key.

However, both Bauer and Linna's psychological scars, and their closeness to the motivations of the killer, are clouding their judgement. Can they solve this spate of murders before the killer comes for them?

I was first introduced to the work of Lars Kepler, in Joona Linna's last chilling book The Mirror Man, which I loved, so I could not wait to dive into The Spider! This case harks back to two of Linna's earlier stories Lazurus and The Sandman, so you need to be aware that there are spoilers in The Spider. I actually have not read either of them, but this book works well as a standalone - and, in fact, whets your appetite for the earlier books rather than spoiling the surprises.

This is all about the troubling legacy of serial killer Jurek Walter, whose horrific exploits have been kept secret by the authorities. His crimes have touched the lives of both Linna and Bauer, leaving them with psychological injuries that haunt them. A new serial killer is emulating Walter, following his unfinished project by taking out people connected to them both, in a revenge spree that is as gruesome as it is relentless. The past is out to get them, but there is little in the way of evidence to identify the killer.

There is tension galore from the very first page in this intensely gripping mystery, and the suspense ramps up with each new murder, as the clock counts down to the final target - Joona Linna himself. In a bizarre game, each killing comes with a series of clues about the identity of the victim, the location of the crime, and a trail that indicates where the bodies will be found. It takes all of Linna and Bauer's ingenuity to solve them, in a breathtakung race against the clock.

The stories of several charismatic serial killers weave together in this book, and there is no room for squeamishness as Kepler delves into the details of their crimes, and the sinister way they infect others with their darkness. Riddles abound, and I thoroughly enjoyed the way Bauer and Linna approach solving them in their own way, heading off into separate directions that diverge, and then collide as the terrifying story plays out.

In many ways this is a showcase for Bauer's skills, and an exploration of the way her fractured psyche and misplaced guilt have shaped her. Bauer is definitely the key to solving the brutal murders, but not in the way you expect. The reveals, when they come, knock you sideways, in an orgy of violence. Linna's character development is rather intriguing this time around too, as the unconventional methods he has come to rely on to feed his intuitive flashes begin to work against him. 

I devoured this book in a matter of hours, despite its hefty 500-odd pages. The writing flows beautifully, carrying you along through all the thrills, spills, twists and turns. There is a serious injection of darkness that ticks all my demanding Nordic noir boxes, making this story grittily enjoyable. I loved it, and cannot wait for the next book!

Warning-this is not for the faint of heart, the dice are rolled from the prologue where an eerie and atmospheric murder sets the tone for a sadistic and brutal series of killings.

Here, we find Joona and his partner Valeria in a relationship laden with secrets, Joona is using opium to help him recover from the trauma of past cases whilst being able to focus on what the cases he is being handed at work. As a recovering drug addict, Valeria is highly unlikely to want to continue a relationship with Europe's most successful serial killer hunter, and yet, in spite of how precious Joona's connection is with Valeria, he cannot bring himself to give it up.It points to the constant and ongoing stressors of his job, dealing with the most evil and twisted minds in Sweden. The conflict bubbles away under the surface, adding to the tension already implicit from a too-close-to-home murder which kicks off The Spider investigation.

Joona's opposite number, Saga, is currently on administrative leave from the police following her own personal, and professional trauma, leaving her working as a private detective for hire , for the odious and criminally deviant Henry.As Joona punishes himself with his about to implode relationship, Saga punishes herself physically and mentally. A very unhealthy relationship with an anaesthetist had me genuinely twisted in knots hoping she would use the fire she displays at work to bring it to an end. At work, she is instinctive, fearless and thorough-if not always honest about her methodology.

She is brought back into the police to support an investigation into the disappearance of a mutual acquaintance, and the clue which has been left behind implies a link back to their toughest adversary, and a link of 9 white bullets-one for each of the murders that will be their most brutal and challenging investigation to date. There is just one problem-their antagonist, and his accomplices, are either dead or securely locked away. (trying not to give away any spoilers here!)

So in the absence of an identifiable target, but with a clear link to crimes of the past, how can they begin to identify not only the people whose bodies are destined to take a bullet, and, more importantly, how can Joona and Saga stop them, when the end goal is Joona's name on the last bullet?

This is a thrilling , tense and gory novel, where you feel Joona, Saga and their team are trauma bonded by their experiences. The ones who are able to maintain relationships outside their jobs are still at risk from it being ended in a violent death, one which will see their professional triumphs superceded by their connection with the murderer. This is why, I think, you are over half way through the book before the killer is given the moniker The Spider, and it's not by either the police or the media. It allows the reader to not only feel part of the team as they work towards this point in profiling the killer, it makes the losses that they have been through all the more human, wrenching and painful. It is their names and the breaking of the news to the relatives that stays with you, the violence and methodology is not used to shock as such, it's to illustrate the evil to which people will stoop when they believe that they are in the right.

It's very dark, and a great example of Scandinavian noir, the way that it is written really brings Saga and Joona to life whilst balancing the complex aspect of detailing police work and forensic investigations. The plot and characterisation dovetails so neatly, I felt it was an incredibly balanced work that looks deep into the abyss of the human soul, whilst illuminating those who fight the monsters you might find there.

Tense thriller as Joona Linna has to catch a serial killer with nine white bullets - and the last bullet is intended for him. Parcels arrive with small tin figures depicting the next victim and clues on the location of the murder but the police can't solve them quickly enough. Linna also has to consider whether Saga Bauer is involved on the wrong side of it all. Well paced and plotted, Kepler ramps up the tension and creates a real page-turner. Recommended.

Although it’s possible, as I did, to read and enjoy this book if you’re completely new to the work of Lars Kepler, I would suggest reading the other books in the series. The plot of The Spider builds from the aftermath of the preceding book and certainly gives away the ending of that novel. The character of Joona Linna also feels fairly thin in this book - I would guess that his character is fully fleshed out and established earlier in the series.

Despite missing much of the backstory for the reasons above, I thought this book was brilliant. I couldn’t put it down. The author writes in present tense, a choice I tend not to be fond of, but it completely works here, drawing the reader completely into the scene and increasing the tension.

A gripping, gritty page-turner. Highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zaffre Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the 9th book in the always dark Joona Linna series and I recommend that you read the others in the series as it does have some recurring characters other than the police duo. Lars Kepler (actually a husband and wife duo) specialises in complex mysteries, innovative and deeply creepy murders and pretty disturbing serial killers.

In The Spider, Detective Superintendent Joona Linna of Sweden’s National Crime Unit is working with his colleague, Saga Bauer. Saga plays a leading role in this book and we see that, just as a spider weaves a gossamer thin web to trap his flies, so this Spider is setting out to entrap our intrepid duo.

An old threat, almost forgotten, suddenly comes to the fore. A series of figurines arrive suggesting a string of victims and it is not long before a violent and macabre murder is committed and the body displayed in graphic style. Through a series of complex riddles, our perpetrator appears to give the police the opportunity to stop this series of murders. It does not take long to discover that an enemy we thought had long gone has reappeared and is bent on vengeance.

Joona Linna and Saga Bauer are caught in a deadly battle to stop this murderer, but in this web of deceit, has the spider already woven his silver threads around this pair? Just like the predatory spider, this murderer is leaving a trail designed to ensure that Joona and Saga will walk straight into his trap and his lure is the series of gruesome and lurid murders that lead straight to this sticky web.

The inventiveness of the serial killer, the complexity of the riddles and the pace of the story deliver plenty of action and excitement as a deadly psychological game plays out. This killer is both cruel and cunning; he knows exactly how to draw Saga and Joona into his lair.

This is a very well-conceived race against time, with the threat to each victim seemingly offering another step forward on the path to finding the killer. Kepler uses innovative killing methods married with an insight into the mind of this loathsome protagonist – a killer who plays on the fears of each of the victims, leading to a scary and nightmare inducing read. Each of these murders resonates hard with Joona and Saga and every time they fail to stop the next murder, they lose a little of their confidence in their ability to catch this most heinous of killers.

The speed of the violence strikes hard, and the series of puzzles lead the reader down a path that ends in yet more dramatic and very graphic displays of death. This is evil personified and he’s not going to stop until he has our duo in his pincers. This trail is chilling, surprising, and leads down a path of no return.

Verdict: The pace is incredibly strong and the puzzles complex. The plot relies on the fast pace and the graphic, almost cinematic, style of the murders to carry the momentum forward and keep the reader on the hook. It is the increasing despair of Saga and Joona Linna though that makes this book as taut as a zip wire as our duo become increasingly frantic in their search to stop this monster. Not for the faint-hearted.

I usually start my reviews with a quick synopsis but as this is Book 9 in a series I don't want to give any spoilers for anyone wanting to read from the beginning. With a lot of crime series it is completely fine to read a book from the middle or end as a standalone but I would really encourage anyone interested to work their way through these stories in order. The Spider in particular references an older case and gives away a lot of the details from an investigation earlier on in the series. Luckily this isn't a problem at all because the whole series is brilliant and there's no doubt anyone would want to read them all after reading The Spider anyway.

One of the characteristics of Nordic Noir is that the stories and police investigations are very dark, but having read a lot from this sub-genre I have to say that the Joona Linna series is right up there with the best (or the worst depending on how you look at it!).

Last year I read The Mirror Man and there is one scene that has stuck with me ever since for its creepiness and for painting such a purely terrifying idea in my head. If I think back throughout the year to all of the crime and thriller books I've read, it's this scene that jumps out at me for being the scariest. I'm pretty sure that the same thing is going to happen with The Spider. There was one scene very early on that made me stop reading for a minute - it was so vivid and horrific.

Lars Kepler's writing process is just fascinating for me. I don't know exactly how they divide the writing but I can picture them egging each other on to make the storyline darker and more alarming throughout the book. The tension they manage to create in The Spider is taken to another level. It honestly rivals any high-octane blockbuster or thriller film I've ever seen. The stress of having a deadline to save someone's life and the struggle to solve the clues in time certainly raised my blood pressure and I think I'm going to need a few days to recover before I start on another book!

The Spider is Nordic Noir at its best. Perfect for fans of Anders Roslund, Jo Nesbo, anyone who loves this type of dark Scandi police procedural or serial killer thrillers.

After absolutely loving The Mirror Man last year, I was excited to read the next book in the series, The Spider, and this is another gritty Scandi noir that's most definitely not for the faint-hearted.

A deadly cat and mouse chase, a ruthless serial killer, and a web of past mistakes, The Spider has all the good qualities of a chilling detective thriller and it definitely delivers in intensity, complexity, bloodshed, and character development.

I love it when crime thrillers make the reader feel part of the investigation, and there's a lot about this one that is exciting to try and piece together. The game could have been more engaging by giving the reader the chance to figure out the clues for themselves, but it was still very impressive to see the team figure out the serial killer's complex puzzles.

There's a lot of darkness to the story and some scenes are quite uncomfortable to read, but I still wanted more darkness in the murders. There are nine people on the serial killer's hit list. But while the first murder is detailed in gory detail, the others aren't given the same attention so this did let me down ever so slightly.

It would have also really helped to have more understanding of the characters as many of the victims are known to Joona and Saga, so maybe this is why the killings didn't have the same impact for me. Having not read the start of this series, I was still able to enjoy this book, but I think knowing the characters, their relationships, and details about their past cases would have helped a lot.

However, I'm sure fans of the series will find this an absolutely gripping instalment. Me? I'm left really intrigued by Saga Bauer's character who was also briefly mentioned in The Mirror Man, so I'm definitely interested in reading more of this series to find out what happened in her past.

I have not read any books by writing due Lars Kepler before but when I had the chance to read the latest in the Joona Linna series I jumped at it. Having listened to them talk about their books I knew that they would be ones that were right up my street, and I wasn’t wrong. Despite this being book 9 in the series I didn’t feel that I had missed out on anything or that the book didn’t make sense to me and that in itself is a skill, if you can engage the reader no matter where they join in the series then it’s a big win.
Saga Bauer is drawn back into an investigation when the body of someone she knows found in a sack in the woods. As the investigation progresses and more bodies are found it is clear that it has links to both her and Joona Lina and a postcard Saga received several years earlier. What they can’t work out is who is behind it and how the victims are being chosen. Always seeming to be one step behind time is running out before the final victim is within the sights of the killer.
Saga definitely felt like she had something to prove as she wanted back in a job she had temporarily been removed from and at times she was like a loose cannon, going off alone which did not help her or the case, especially when her colleagues began to wonder if she knew more about the killer and the intended victims that she is letting on. She does not trust easily as she does not feel that she has the right to be happy and chooses relationships that are unhealthy as a way to punish herself. Joona seemed to be the only one that truly believes in her but even he is up against it as he works with her to solve the case. He does have a vested interest in it as he is supposed to be the ninth and final victim. He is struggling with his own demons that could affect both his personal and professional life.
This is definitely a book that grabs you from the start and the method that the killer uses is definitely one that is brutal and shocking. It took me a little while to get into my stride but once I did I found that I quickly became consumed by the investigation and the puzzles that were being set. The flaws of the main characters sometimes hindered the case, but it was their imperfections that brought another element to it and had you wondering if ultimately they would work against them even when the killer and the motive were revealed there was still plenty more twists and turns to keep you hooked to the end. This is one I would 100% recommend and I look forward to more and in the meantime I have 8 other books in the series I can catch up on.

Unfortunately a let down.
It was very slow, way too long and to say the author(s) have written previous books, I would’ve thought it would be better.

This was the first book I read in this series and thoroughly enjoyed it: twisty, dark, entertaining.
I liked the solid plot, the well developed characters and the storytelling.
Loved ther riddles and couldn't guess the culprit
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

After a disappointing previous book I was skeptical about the next in the series. I needn't have worried. Joona is back to his best!

The story picks up threads of earlier books and deftly weaves in new narrative. Saga is also nearly recovered and features heavily in this book, her absence in the last one being to it's detriment.

The pace is slick and stylish, with lots of different moving parts, culminating in a shocking denouement that leaves the reader anxiously awaiting the next in the series.

The Spider is a fantastic thriller and I couldn't put it down.
Pretty gruesome in places, it's fast-paced and keeps you guessing.
I'm caught in the spider's web!

Well, I am definitely trapped in the Web. From the lack of description I was forced to judge a book by its cover. And I definitely don't regret it- this was a thrilling read

A sack with a decomposing body has been found tied to a tree in the forest. Soon after this, the police begin to receive complicated riddles from the killer, providing opportunities for them to stop the murders of future victims. Joona Linna and Saga Bauer struggle to solve the riddles and save further victims before it's too late.

Thank you Net Galley, Bonnier Books and Zaffre for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved the last book, The Mirror Man and I was so excited to read this this! This is the 9th Book in the series. Unfortunately I felt really let down by this! I’ve not read the first 7 books in this series. Unlike the mirror man, I felt I would have benefited and enjoyed this way more if I had read the other books.

I know this isn’t the books fault per se, but as the Mirror Man could be read much better as a stand alone, I was just caught off guard and left dissatisfied. I think I will have to read the whole series now and give this another chance- but it is going to be a very big commitment!

If you like dark thrillers, with twists and serial murder then you will like this. Great plot, keeps you guessing until the end. Thank you to Bonnier Books UK and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

My first Lars Kepler but I will definitely be reading the rest of this series.
Very dark and quite eery in parts, one to read during daytime.
Definitely kept me guessing on the whole story till the very end, and boy! What an ending.
There were a couple of sexual encounters that I felt didn’t really need to be there, but on the whole a cracking fast paced read. I’d heard good things about Lars Kepler and I was not disappointed.
Thanks to NetGalley for this book in exchange for an honest review.
#TheSpider #NetGalley

I've enjoyed most of this series but this for me is perhaps the last one I will read. It's getting a bit boring now for me and far too violent for violent's sake. I felt it was written for the shock factor and the plot got lost. Not for me but many will love this.

A serial killer is on the loose and detective joona linna with help from sude kick saga bauer must find the killer before more victims are murdered. But they are running out of time. I have always loved nordic crime books and lars kepler is top of his game.a dark fast paced book that gets you hooked from the first page .thank you netgallery for allowing me to read the book. Review sent to goodreads