Book Review: The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye

With this fifth and final book coming to an end, I felt a tinge of sadness at having to bid adieu to Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist – two iconic characters that had taken the literary world with storm. I was quite uncomfortable with the first book in the series but slowly got accustomed to the sexual violence which is a recurring theme of the series. It’s so good to see how Salander pays back to all those who indulge in crime against women. I wish all women are as courageous as Lisbeth Salander!

Lisbeth Salander is in prison where she protects a vulnerable Bangladeshi Muslim prisoner who is accused of murder from bullies and in turn makes a new set of enemies who want her dead at any cost. During her time at prison, Salander has been researching her past which points her to an organization called The Registry. She calls on Blomkvist for help after her original guardian, Holger Palmgren, visits her in prison with disturbing news from her past. But when Blomkvist reached Holger, he found him murdered. Now Salander is committed to find Holger’s killer and take revenge. When Salander comes out of prison, she has a whole lot of enemies looking for revenge from her- from a devout Islamic community to the prison gang leader to the ones who ran The Registry and will not allow their secret to be revealed. Will Salander escape her enemies and discover how The Registry influenced her life and numerous others beyond imagination?

Lagercrantz has woven an intriguing tale revolving around genetics and human behaviour. He has come close to Larsson’s intense style and brings enough twists and turns in the story to keep the readers engaged till the end. I was a bit skeptical when I took up the last two books in the series but Lagercrantz has done a marvelous job in keeping the series as intriguing as ever.

The characters are well-crafted. Salander and Blomkvist remain the central characters while some new characters have also been introduced who enrich the story. Some further insights into Salander’s backstory are revealed including her bitter relationship with her twin sister Camilla. Her unique tattoo is also finally addressed at length.

The narrative flows nicely but too much details slow the momentum at times. The plot is well-constructed and compelling. I enjoyed the mystery. I liked the conspiracy aspect including the new dark characters. The high quality of the story is maintained throughout. Though Lagercrantz is not Steig Larsson but he is close enough. A brilliant sequel by Lagercrantz…go for it!

© 2018 Shaloo Walia All rights reserved

Book Review: The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye

Title: The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye

Originally published: 2017

Author: David Lagercrantz

Genre: Crime fiction

Page count: 347

Series: Millennium

Preceded by: The Girl in the Spider’s Web

Original title: Mannen Som Sökte Sin Skugga (“The Man Who Chased His Shadow”)

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8 comments

    1. Thanks Meenakshi! I too miss sketching. I have been so caught up with work that not getting any time to draw. Even blogging has taken a backseat 🙁

    1. Thanks Wallace! The entire Millennium series is worth a read- one of the best crime fiction books I have read till date.

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