I loved Steig Larsson’s “The Girl Who…” series (formally known as the Millennium series). But then I read the first of David Lagercrandtz’ continuation of Steig Larsson’s books. I was not impressed at all by them and I vowed off. This was not the Lisbeth Salander I knew.

BUT! it’s been a long time – years. So in trying out the local library’s Overdrive system I was able to get The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye, the next in the series. (And the next one comes out in August.). This is good.

*******
The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye
by David Lagercrantz
2017 / 348 pages
read by Simon Vance – 10h 50m
rating: B- / crime thriller
*******

Maybe because it’s been a few years since I read The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Larsson (#3 of the Millennium series – 2010) I was able to accept this version of Lisbeth. She’s not quite the same girl that Larsson wrote but she remains interesting, brilliant, different and dangerous. But there’s not quite enough of her – although there’s quite a bit.

This story opens with Lisbeth in a high security prison for participation in the events of the last novel (which I remembered, with Langercrantz’ backstory bit). There are dangerous people where she’s confined, but true to form, she’s up to it and before 40 minutes into the book she’s got connections.

The investigative journalist Mikael Blomqvist is also on hand needing some help of his own and entertaining the women. Of course, Lisbeth’s troubled childhood is still the overarching issue and plot line as well as the international aspects of it. It gets a bit complex for my tastes.

There’s an interesting plot involved but for my tastes, a bit too much pointless “thriller” and violence.