Lisbeth Salander and her niece Svala is a force to be reckoned with. Svala adds more to the story giving some extra thrills as she and Lisbeth embark to find her mother who as gone missing...
Blomkvist is still here in a world of consipiracy. We have kidnapping, climate change issues and a dam good thriler. this is compulsive reading at its best.. Love Love loved it five stars for me

I really enjoyed the original trilogy of these books. Lisbeth is a character you can't help but root for. I didn't read the subsequent trilogy as I wasn't convinced that another author could capture the essence of what made the originals so good. When this book came up I was tempted to see what a third author would do with the character. This isn't a bad book but for me it just falls short. The excitement and anticipation isn't there and it doesn't really get going until the second half of the book. With the original books I cared what happened to all the characters but I'm afraid that I didn't engage with them in this book.

I had high hopes for this book as I adore the millennium series but whereas this is an ok read it’s not as gripping as the original.
I found there wasn’t the same dynamite relationship between the 2 characters .
Not a bad read but not amazing either

I've read the original series of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and was excited to read this continuation of the Millennium series. The story starts when Lisbeth gets a call asking if she call look after niece as her grandmother is dead and her mother missing. Meanwhile, Mikael is also in the same town in northern Sweden to attend his daughter's wedding to Henry Salo, head of the municpality. Mikael instinctively dislikes Salo and begins investigating him, but before he can get far Salo's nefarious deeds get his stepson, Mikae'l's grandson kidnapped. The two strands of the story come together, as you would expect, with several twists, lots of violence, and some bad language.
It took a while for me to get into this book. There were a lot of characters in the beginning and the writing was somewhat choppy. I found the Swedish references were not well explained and I was left floundering as to what they were talking about. Further the italics and asides or voices from others were confusing and somewhat unnecessary and slowed down the action.
It wasn't until the last third that I really began to enjoy the plot and the action in the way of the earlier books. For my part there was too little of Lisbeth and Mikael left, but I can see that the new characters might well lead to a new series. A good effort to replicate Larson's books but sadly not for me.
With thanks to Netgalley and Quercus Books for an arc copy in return for an honest review.

If you enjoyed the originals you wont be disappointed to be returning to Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist - I enjoyed the book tremendously and felt the author did justice to the characters and the storyline.

Karin Smirnoff takes on the mantle of writing the next three follow-ups to Stig Larsen's Millennium trilogy. Elisabethg Salander, now a IT security business owner in Stockholm, travels north because her sister has vanished. Strangely enough Michael Blomquist travels up to the same town, where his daughter is getting married - to the boss of the local authority who is currently negotiating a huge development project. Unfortunately he is crippled by gambling debt and thus open to manipulation by some of the seedier outfits who are trying to get in on the development and there are some very bad actors indeed. Much murder, torture ands mayhem ensue delivering a cracking 5 star thriller read..

In a continuation to the Millennium Saga, there is the usual trouble, baddies trying to put one over on the rest, everyone else trying to continue their life in the harsh north.
In an ecological push wind farming appears to be coming to Lapland.
Only a few landowners are standing in the way of the big corporations. What will happen.
Lisbeth Salander is called to the area to look after her niece. Will she find enough to do to keep her happy.

Karin Smirnoff continues the hard hitting writing started by Stieg Larsson. David Lagercrantz carried on where Stieg left off, and now it is Karen's turn.

Excellent setting, excellent storyline, brilliant writing.
Many thanks to the author for a great book, and thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy for honest review.

Lisbeth Salander is back and I have been so looking forward to this next instalment of the Millennium series as I have read all the previous novels but I’m sorry to say I didn’t enjoy this quite as much as I thought I would. I struggled somewhat with the storyline I felt it to be disjointed and trying to follow the plot was difficult for me , this in all fairness could possibly be because of the translation but I don’t normally have a problem with translated book. I was disappointed with Lisbeth’s character she has always been one of my characters of all time but something was just missing I felt in the book and couldn’t warm to the characters at all.
I did finish the read and if there is another instalment in the the future I would give it a go , it can’t be easy taking on another author’s character so all credit to Karen Smirnoff for giving it a go and putting her own spin on the series.
So just a 3 star read for it was a bad read just not quite was I was expecting.
My thanks to NetGalley and Quercus Books, MacLehose Press for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The seventh instalment of the Millennium series. And the first from Karin Smirnoff.

The return of Lisbeth Salander, is a little bit of a let down. In my opinion.

The first two thirds of the book, are slow with very little actually going on. If the entire book could have been as fast paced, have the interactions going on and the general embodiment that the final third of the book had. It would have been a really easy five star read.

I had missed the other trio of instalments, in mourning. There was as far as I know anything that could come close to the original trilogy. And, having read this, my opinion remains the same.

Status: Completed

Rating: 3.5/5.0

I admire any author who takes the reins of this epic series, but surely they must do just as good or more importantly better than the original. Unfortunately for me this book did not make the grade. Don't get me wrong it is still a good read but where was the tension and suspense and the interaction I always had with main characters. Do I want to read more? This reader is still on the fence.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the Arc in return for an honest review.

Having read the Millenium Trilogy, I was looking forward to this continuation of the story of Lisbeth Salander.
However I was so disappointed. The setting is really contrived, with Mikael Blomkvist, Lisbeth and the motor cycle gang, all happening to be in the same small northern town at the same time. New characters are introduced and were quite interesting.
The story involves mining and renewable energy contracts in the northern forested area, blackmail and threats. It could have been so much more but spent a lot of the novel building up to a climax that never really happened. The ending was rushed and after the build-up, was over in just a couple of pages. It left me feeling like I'd missed a couple of chapters.

Girls disappearing; Reindeer being displaced; land owners being threatened; Windmills on the march. Money and nature versus lives and deaths. Henry Salo, the Head of the municipality of Gasskas, in the Far North of Sweden, is determined to convert a large forest area into the World’s largest wind farm, cheap electricity for the area and huge profits from selling the surplus to the rest of the planet. If only the stubborn land owners would see the light! The development will require outside investment and skills, and one of the three contenders for the contract is Branco Group, run by the mysterious Markus Branco, whose will is enforced by subtle and not so subtle violence. Henry, who has the decisive vote on who gets the contract, has weaknesses, so Branco group compromise him and then threaten him with serious harm to his nearest and dearest. Primary of those is his soon to be wife, Pernilla, and her son, Lukas. Pernilla is the estranged daughter of Mikael Blomkvist, erstwhile journalist for the magazine, Millenium, and long time friend, colleague and ‘love interest’ of Lisbeth Salander. In a rare example of paternal duty, Blomkvist has travelled up to Gasskas to give the bride away.
Over a decade ago, Lisbeth had arranged the death of her psychopath brother and is, therefore, the aunt of Svala, who lives in relative poverty in Gasskas with her mother, Marta, and her grandmother. Svala possesses many of the intellectual and physical characteristics of her aunt, but neither is really aware of the other – until the grandmother dies and Marta cannot be found, the latest girl to disappear. As the next of kin, Lisbeth has to go to Gasskas. So Mikael and Lisbeth are reunited in the middle of a maelstrom of murder, blackmail, coercion, and kidnapping, driven by the desires of Marcus Branco.
This is the 6th book in the Millenium series, and the first to be written by Karin Smirnoff. It is a solid entry to the canon, but not outstanding – though to be fair none of the sequels to the original has been as good. It is certainly inventive and twisty, with lots of separate lines with an over arching plot. None of the twists are particularly difficult to unravel, and the dramatic sequences could be tighter; Lisbeth uniqueness, in particular, is under used. The series has always had a distinctly political overtone, but this one is a bit OTT in its take on the environmentalist role in Contemporary Sweden. However, overall it’s an interesting and enjoyable read.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

This was a real let down.

I had such high hopes, but this just does not compare with the Stieg Larsson trilogy,

The story lacked continuity and I found myself jumping pages hoping for something to happen.

The Dragon seemed more like a small lizard.

I could not recommend this to anyone.

Having read Stieg Larsson's Trilogy, it was with keen interest that I spotted a similar title; The Girl in the Eagle's Talons by Karin Smirnoff. Apparently Karin succeeds David Lagercrantz who was previously appointed by Larsson's Estate to continue writing more in the series, this being the seventh novel.
The Girl in the Eagle's Talons has been translated from Swedish to English by Sarah Death. It should be said that a knowledge of Nordic languages by the reader, would enrich the reading experience. Perhaps the final release version will be different.
Anyway, it is a cracking thriller set in the North of Sweden and very much of our time. Big business moves upon a fairly unspoiled, forested area of Sweden in an attempt to generate huge amounts of renewable energy from a massive wind farm project, not content with that, the local coucil wants to make sure that the heavy users of that energy will be opening factories in their town, mines too. Plenty of scope for dirty dealing especially when one of the bidders for the land is a very unsavoury character who will stop at nothing to secure it. It isn't long before Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander arrive on the scene for completely unconnected reasons and are initially, unaware of each other's presence. What follows is a tense thriller which builds towards a showdown in the labyrinth of a former military bunker.
Sadly, the conclusion deprives the reader of justice (even rough justice) served. It blatantly leaves a barn door wide open for a sequel without any subtlety. Which in a way is good news, as I would like to read more, although I would like Mikael Blomkvist to play more than just a cameo role.

As a fan of the Millennium Trilogy, I was keen to read this as it promised to continue the saga of Lisbeth Salander etc. It had a definite feel of the previous books by Stieg Larsson, with references to the characters and plots. The reader also certainly feels immersed in the Swedish winter in the far north, so it is well written and quite faithful to the originals. I'm not sure that it would stand up as novel without the reader knowing Larsson's previous work, but for an existing fan of the Millennium Trilogy it was a good read.

If this book was a one-off, stand-alone crime thriller I would rate it as a fine effort by a relative newcomer to the Scandi-noir genre. As it is a continuation of the celebrated Millennium series, created by the incomparable Stieg Larrson and continued in very creditable style by David Lagercrantz, featuring two of the most memorable characters in modern crime thriller fiction in Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomqvist, it has to be judged against a high standard and high expectations. Against that standard and those expectations, I consider it to be something of a disappointment. The book has admirably retained the core themes of the Millennium series such as violence, abuse of power and contemporary socio-political currents (in this case, climate change); however, the plot relies on too many coincidences in order to put Salander, Blomqvist and some old adversaries in the same place at the same time. One or two of the characters are well drawn and are interesting additions to the Millennium cast (eg Svala), but others are mere sketches and one main character, Branco, comes across as a second-rate Bond villain while Salander and Blomqvist are relegated to relatively minor roles. I will persevere if there is another book in the series, probably again by Karin Smirnoff, but I will expect much more.

An interesting modern story told around the huge climate change concerns of the day.
Lisbeth Salander is back and was written very much as herself. I was relieved that she was similar to the character in the trilogy with some differences explained by the time lag.
Lisbeth’s character is challenged by family and she finds herself vulnerable to the challenges.
The setting in the depths of a Swedish winter, is also challenging and adds to the story.
The characters are well drawn and interesting.
The final chapters are scary and I really appreciated the writing which allows the reader to make accurate assumptions without detailing every issue.
Recommended

The Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson was a phenomena introducing readers to Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist; the mantle was then taken up by David Lagercrantz and now Karin Smirnoff takes up the mantle bringing us more adventures and escapades of the eponymous duo.
As the series has progressed it feels that reality needs to be fully suspended - coincidences are overloaded in this latest venture when Blomkvist finds himself further involved in international criminal intrigue linked to natural resources within the local community of Gasskas when attending his daughter's wedding; whilst Salander just happens to be asked to be guardian of her young niece, Svala- in the same town as the wedding -whose missing mother happens to be associated with the same events. and some of Lisbeth's previous foes.
Events move at a rollercoaster pace with a good dose of violence and mayhem including a Bond-like villain trying to control all around. The relationship and dynamic between Blomkvist and Salander isn't filled with as much tension as previous books - in some sense Lisbeth seems mellower - if that's possible
If you enjoy a good rollicking escapist thriller then you will love this but with the Millennium magazine now finished (and a podcast) Blomkvist didn't seem to have such a prominent or purposeful role. The introduction of Svala opens up future storylines and hopefully the next book in this much loved series will have a plot that doesn't rely so much on coincidence.

I really enjoyed this book, although Lisbeth (and Mikael) have lost some of their original depth since they were first created, no surprise since this is the 3rd author to add to the series. The storyline and the way that everything comes together is clever and enjoyable, the book is dark but not too graphic and I think the author has a done a great job of creating new characters who I’m hoping we’ll meet again. I’m really happy I had a chance to read this, thank you to NetGalley and the Author/Publisher

Stieg Larsson.'s Millenium Trilogy was always going to be a hard act to follow and I must admit I haven't read any of the intervening books until this one. It started off well with a sly shock in the opening section and I was intrigued as to where the story was going. It turned out that the initial sequence was in a very different style to the rest of the book. It soon became mired in numerous characters, lengthy explanations about wind farms etc and quite a bit of navel gazing. The story itself, when isolated from all this verbiage, was quite interesting and I persevered with it.
Blomkvist has turned into a sad replica of the man he once was and Lisbeth was definitely under-used. All in all, it was a disappointing read, although a valiant effort to emulate Larrson.
I was supplied with an advance copy of this book in return for an honest opinion. All opinions are my own.