I was cautiously optimistic when I started this one. Lisbeth and Mikael are beloved characters to me and I wasn't sure if continuing the series without the original author would work. And for me, this one didn't.

I didn't recognize these characters. Sure, they are older and have been through some things, but there were some fundamentals I thought I knew about them that I felt were different in this one. I also felt the unnecessary violence and hate in this one. It could have been shorter but I felt like the plot was bogged down by POV I didn't need and gory violent details about abuse that also could have been left with implied and not detailed out.

I wish I'd liked this one but it was a miss for me.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Enjoyable return to the world of Lisbeth and Mikael. Lots of twists and surprise relationships. Very atmospheric with wonderful descriptions. Took a bit to grasp the author’s style of writing but once in, the story and plot were compelling..

Thanks to NetGalley and Borzoi Books/Alfred A Knopf Publishing for the ARC to read and review.

The Girl in the Eagle's Talons is the latest installment in the Millennium Series. Karin Smirnoff does a great job with continuity in a series with various authors. Lizbeth Salander is brought into a situation she wants nothing to do with involving guardianship and her niece Svala. Svala's mother disappeared, and Lisbeth begins to help Svala investigate. Mikael Blomkvist also ends up where Lizbeth is for his daughter's wedding. Their paths cross as Mikael's grandson is abducted, and all of the disappearances and trouble are related. I really enjoyed the return to the series and the characters. Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC!

This story just seemed to drag. There were so many people and situations, some that made no sense and didn't help the story at all. I won't be reading any more of these for sure.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this Advanced Readers Copy of The GIrl in the Eagle's Talons by Karin Smirnoff!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a chance to read this one, all opinions expressed are my own. I have been an avid follower of this series since the first book and always read the newest one as soon as I got my hands on it. This latest installment unfortunately left a lot to be desired. This book was so hard for me to get into, and I had a hard time following and connecting with the various characters and points of view. There were too many storylines going on to be able to flush out a select few and really make the story as thrilling and suspenseful as the previous books in the series. I'm not sure if something got lost in translation but this book was my least favorite in the series thus far, not sure if I'd continue on with this series should this become a new triology of books.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited to dive into the next installment of this series, but first penned by this author. This was an interesting read, but I expected a bit more page time for our MCs from the rest of the series. Definitely a fresh take if you want to dive back into this world!

Lisbeth Salander returns in another Millennium Series book this time by Author Karin Smirnoff. Lisbeth and Mikael are back to tackle corporate greed and government corruption while dealing with old enemies and new friends. I think Stieg Larson is a lot to live up to and I'm not quite sure Smirnoff did that. The plot itself is slightly confusing, told from different POVs. Very slow in the beginning and once it does pick up, it just didn't have the same drama as we are used to in the Dragon Tattoo series. The writing isn't great, but I couldn't tell if that was just because of the english translation. Lisbeth herself, also seemed like a different character. Missing a lot of the grit from the first 3 books.

Thank You Knopf and NetGalley for the free e-galley.

I'm a huge fan of the Lisbeth Salander series first written by Steig Larsson. After his death, the series continued seamlessly by David Lagercranz continuing to team Salander and Mikael Blomkvist in razor edged battles against the most evil villains in fiction. This seventh book takes a different approach. Introducing new sadist villains, Salander and Blomkvist are almost secondary characters. Missing is the computer hacking and combat skills of Salander, the journalistic drive of Blomkvist, and the page turning excitement of previous books. The plot was convoluted with too many offshoots that never fully developed. The bright spot in this installment is new character, Svala and as most of the book does center around her, I expect we will be seeing more of her in the future.

I have read all the books in the series and I enjoyed this one as well. Knowing the series helps you keep the characters straight and this author has kept Lisbeth’s character true to form. I’m hoping her niece Svala will appear in future books as they make a great team. I would have liked more about Blomkvist I hope they work together again soon. Leaves room for more development of other characters like Pernilla as well. Fast paced and a winner in my book! Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC.

The book continues the acclaimed Millenium series by Stieg Larsson authored by Karin Smirnoff. I loved the first three books of the series written by Larsson and was looking forward to a riveting read. The story was based on an interesting premise of Government corruption in the allocation of natural resources, climate change and corporate manipulation and resistance. It was nice to once again meet all the familiar characters - Lisbeth Salander, Mikael Blomkvist leading the retinue. However, the book was somewhat lacking in the pace and twisty-turns of the original. I do not know if something was lost in translation. I did manage to read it to the end but it was not a mind-blowing experience. The book is supposedly the first in a series.

Thank you Netgalley and Knopf Publishing Group for the ARC

Where oh where is Lisbeth Salander…....

Book Information

"The Girl in the Eagle’s Talons" authored by Karin Smirnoff, is a 368-page mystery/thriller published on August 29, 2023. It’s the latest release in the “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” series. Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book for review.

Summary

In the remote and resource-rich northern parts of Sweden, big changes are happening. Criminals are taking the lead in a gold rush, but that's not what brings Lisbeth Salander to the quiet town of Gasskas. She's there because she's become the guardian of her niece, Svala, whose mother has gone missing. Two things are clear: Svala has some incredible talents, and someone is keeping a close watch on her. Meanwhile, Mikael Blomkvist is heading north too. His life is falling apart as Millennium magazine is about to close, his relationship with his daughter is strained, and there are troubling rumors about her fiancé. When these rumors turn violent, Salander becomes Blomkvist's last hope.

My Thoughts

I was a huge fan of the original “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” series written by Stieg Larsson so I was excited to have a chance to read the latest installment in the series.

"The Girl in the Eagle’s Talons" by Karin Smirnoff kicks off slowly, with the first third of the book feeling somewhat uneventful. The writing frequently veers into ambiguity, leaving readers unsure about certain events, which could be attributed to artistic style, translation gaps, or less-than-stellar writing. Whatever the case, it diminishes the overall reading experience.

A notable aspect is that the series protagonist, Lisbeth Salander, is absent for a significant portion of the book, making her first appearance only around the 20-30% mark, and even then, her involvement in the narrative is limited. This may disappoint fans expecting more of Lisbeth.

The story unfolds through various viewpoints, offering insights and building intrigue at times, but also causing confusion in certain sections. The distinction between characters' thoughts and spoken words is sometimes unclear, adding to the complexity of the narrative, and making the book somewhat challenging to follow.

For me, this book doesn't fall into the category of easy reads. Between ambiguity, translation nuances, multiple points of view, numerous plotlines, and a multitude of characters, readers must have unwavering focus to navigate the storyline.

The plot itself is uneven and often confusing, particularly for those who cherished Larsson's original Lisbeth Salander. Lisbeth in this book almost appears as a different person altogether. However, the book does redeem itself in its final third, as Lisbeth becomes more involved, and various plotlines converge, injecting some much-needed excitement into the narrative.

Recommendation

While "The Girl in the Eagle’s Talons" starts slowly with occasional ambiguous writing and lacks Lisbeth Salander's presence for a considerable portion, it eventually picks up in the final third. The complex narrative structure demands attentive reading, making it suitable for dedicated fans of the series who can overlook its initial drawbacks.

Rating

2 Wind Turbine Stars

I enjoyed the first three Stieg Larsson books, especially the first one, read the 4th by David Lagenkrantz, and took a hiatus. Decided to jump in with this 7th book to see how Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist were doing and how they had moved on with a new author. I wasn’t disappointed. This was a fun read, it clipped right along, and wasn’t overly complex. Set against the background of Sweden’s northern landscape, the setting is contemporary with the themes of increased population and electricity needs, race for mines and mineral rights, and push to gobble up vast land areas. All this leads to criminal activities intermingled with human and social issues, that are just the things that Lisbeth Salander cannot not jump into. Toss in her niece Svala, whom she’s called upon to take care of, much as she’s reluctant to, and we have a great storyline. And, Mikael Blomkvist? I’d say he was more of a semi-minor character here, which I was just fine with. Overall, I enjoyed this translated book, which had a great sense of place and time. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is one of my favorite series. I was apprehensive when it continued after Mr. Larsson's unfortunate death; however, the authors who have continued the series have done a fantastic job. The Girl in the Eagle's Talons is no exception. It begins with the usual frenzy of so many characters you can barely keep track and then evolves into a fast-paced story that you can't put down. Lisbeth is a more human, empathetic character in this iteration. It works! If you are a fan of the series, continue to read the new books!

This superb new outing for Lisbeth Salander, the seventh in the series playing out the late Stieg Larsson’s vision for a 10-book sequence of his Millennium series, gets written for the first time by a Swedish woman. Karen Smirnoff kicks the whole series up a notch with her tight plotting, exploration of complex family and friendship dynamics, insights into the characters’ motivations and feelings, feminist spin, and overall thrilling read.

The action brings us to a small northern town in Sweden, Gasskas, in, where journalist Mikael Blomkvist has come to attend his mostly estranged daughter’s wedding to the town’s head commissioner, Henry Salo, as well as to further beyond with his only grandson. Blomkkist has quit his Stockholm magazine Millennium, as the print side closed to move instead to podcasts which Blomkvist disdains. Salo, a wheeler, dealer and overall not great guy, has been focused on luring companies to base wind turbine electric production facilities in the vast woods and mountains around town – with an eye to lining his own pocket in the process. Plus, he’s been cheating big time on his bride to be. Standing in his way on the energy deal: his Mom living in a remote cabin in the woods and refusing to leave her property, as well as a clan of reindeer herders whose living is threatened by the potential shutting down of grazing land.

At the same time, Lisbeth Salander arrives at Gassdas because her 13-year-old niece’s Mom (Lisbeth’s sister-in-law) has vanished along with access to $400 million in bitcoin. Overcoming her deep loner tendencies, Lisbeth sets out to vigilantly protect her niece and search for the girl’s missing mother. Her niece, Svala, who’s being watched and clearly in danger, emerges a fierce independent spirit as she partners with Lisbeth to figure out what’s going on and bring back her mother alive. Look to Svala to emerge as a young Lisbeth Salander in the making.

Lastly, there’s Marcus Branco, a sadistic, wheelchair bound CEO who’s intent on winning the energy deal in Gassdas, and who has secretly bought land including a large underground former Swedish military installment. Marcus orders the kidnapping of Blomkvist’s grandson to put pressure on Salo to award the deal to his company.

As Svala’s mom ends up having been kidnapped and Blomkvist’s grandson in the clutches of a serial killer, Lisbeth and Blomkvist once again have to team up to set things right. Throw in a corrupt biker gang, drug smugglers, a long-lost brother, and a gang of neo-Nazi’s, and the action keeps ratcheting up.

Description from the book page:
Lisbeth Salander returns, in a trailblazing new installment to the best-selling Millennium series
Change is coming to Sweden’s far north: its untapped natural resources are sparking a gold rush with the criminal underworld leading the charge. But it’s not the prospect of riches that brings Lisbeth Salander to the small town of Gasskas. She has been named guardian to her niece Svala, whose mother has disappeared. Two things soon become clear: Svala is a remarkably gifted teenager—and she’s being watched.
Mikael Blomkvist is also heading north. He has seen better days. Millennium magazine is in its final print issue, and relations with his daughter are strained. Worse still, there are troubling rumors surrounding the man she’s about to marry. When the truth behind the whispers explodes into violence, Salander emerges as Blomkvist’s last hope.
A pulse-pounding thriller, The Girl in the Eagle’s Talons sees Salander and Blomkvist navigating a world of conspiracy and betrayal, old enemies and new friends, ice-bound wilderness and the global corporations that threaten to tear it apart.
This is the third author to join the Millenium series and I thought she stayed true to Stieg Larsson's original trilogy. Full of pulse pounding action and mind blowing intellect on Lisbeth's part, the story also throws her into a new role as guardian for her niece. Overall I'm happy with how this story fits into the series and I'm hoping it continues.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I had read the first book in this series, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and enjoyed it. I thought I had read more of the books in the series when I grabbed this one but I had not. I don't think it was necessary to have read the other books in the series to read this one, but like most series, you might want to. At the beginning of the book there is a list of characters in the Millennium series. However, the majority of these characters are not in this book. A list of characters in this book would have been nice as there are a lot of them. So much so, that I regretted not keeping a list of the characters. But then again, if you need a list to keep track of the characters, maybe you're not that much into the book and that was the case for me. There's a lot going on in the story, a lot of skipping around, a lot of POV, etc. Maybe a little too much going on. This was more of a keep reading to finish rather than keep reading because I can't wait to see what happens. Just wasn't for me. I received an ARC of The Girl in the Eagle's Talons in exchange for an honest review.

As a huge Lisbeth Salander fan, I was excited to see a new book released in the series that I have grown to love so much. After Stieg Larsson’s death, I thought no one would be able to fill his shoes in bringing Lisbeth and Mikael Blomkvist back to the page. David Lagercrantz exceeded my expectations and dare I say, I may have enjoyed his trilogy even more than the original.

Now we have yet another new writer attached to the series and I thought it was a hot mess. It is clear the author does not have either a journalistic or computer background and quite honestly, I’m not sure she read the previous novels, but instead was given a two sentence summary of the characters. Both Salander and Blomkvist are relegated to background characters in their own story with very little resemblance to the characters Larsson and Lagercrantz worked so hard to craft. There is no hacking. There is no journalistic search for the truth, no matter the cost. Instead of being the independent, devil-may-care super hacker that she is, Lisbeth is sidelined as a guardian to her niece and spends most of the novel worried about her safety. Mikael spends his time brooding about being a terrible father . The villains are over the top, the setting of a small municipality is unrealistic, and the coincidences and intertwining relationships completely jump the shark.

Many have suggested that the translation may be the problem, however the translation does not negate the fact that Lisbeth and Mikael are mere shells of their former selves and the typical Scandinavian eco-thriller plot does not save the book either.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

In this Book #7 of the Millennium series, Lisbeth Salander is back in full force, but in a little bit different capacity. She has taken her niece, Svala, into her care as Svala’s father (Lisbeth’s brother) is deceased (did Lisbeth kill him?) and her mother is missing. As there is no other relative willing to take her in, Lisbeth is asked by social services to care for her until someone else comes available.

Svala is a precocious 13-year-old who is as remote, uncommunicative, and brilliant as Lisbeth is. However, Lisbeth has always been the young genius in the past, but now with a gifted 13-year-old around, Lisbeth seems older, off-balance, and a little bit out-of-touch. But after all that, when it comes to implementing a plan to save those she loves, she is still the genius Lisbeth Salander that we all know and love!

This one has lots of twists and turns, and all the characters seem to be intertwined in one way or another. With the help of Mikael Blomkvist, the pieces all come together. It is an exciting addition to the series, that kept me on the edge of my seat. I think Karin Smirnoff did an excellent job, and I look forward to the next book in the series!

I’d like to thank NetGalley, Karin Smirnoff, and Knopf for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

This is the seventh installment in a series that I was not familiar with. The Girl in the Eagle's Talons seemed like a read I might be interested in, but this author didn't seem to grab me with this one. The story was a bit confusing from some of the points of view of the characters. I wasn't familiar with language where I would know what was going on. The lead that I was familiar with Lisabeth Salander didn't seem to be as prominent as in the beginning novels. The author did bring the story together by the end, but it was just not my cup of tea. I appreciate the opportunity to receive this arc. Others might enjoy this complicated story and please give it a try, but I like a nice flowing plot where I know where I am going.


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