The girl who takes an eye for an eye

by David Lagercrantz

Other authorsStieg Larsson (Creator.), (Translator) George Goulding (Translator.)
Paper Book, 2017

Publication

New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 2017.

Collection

Call number

Fiction L

Physical description

vii, 347 p.; 25 cm

Status

Available

Call number

Fiction L

Description

Fiction. Mystery. Suspense. Thriller. HTML:INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER Lisbeth Salander is back with a vengeance. The series that began with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo continues as brilliant hacker Lisbeth Salander teams up with journalist Mikael Blomkvist to uncover the secrets of her childhood and to take revenge. Lisbeth Salander�??obstinate outsider, volatile seeker of justice for herself and others�??seizes on a chance to unearth her mysterious past once and for all. And she will let nothing stop her�??not the Islamists she enrages by rescuing a young woman from their brutality; not the prison gang leader who passes a death sentence on her; not the deadly reach of her long-lost twin sister, Camilla; and not the people who will do anything to keep buried knowledge of a sinister pseudoscientific experiment known only as The Registry. Once again, Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist are the fierce heart of a thrilling full-tilt novel that takes on some of the world's most insidious… (more)

Media reviews

The reader is repeatedly told that Salander and Blomkvist are driven by a desire for justice, but because we spend so little time in close-up with the book’s heroine, it is not convincing. There is a sluggishness to the plotting and much of the tension relies on orchestrated interruptions and
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delays, which irritate. Lagercrantz has all the elements of the Millennium series at his disposal, but the adrenaline is missing: it feels as if one has gone to a restaurant, ordered a rare steak and been served soggy fish fingers instead.
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User reviews

LibraryThing member annbury
A great read, and Slander is back along with all of her
buddies, including Mikael Blomkqvist. A great read and a good takeoff on the last of the Larsen books and one he might have written. The story concerns a Swedish group in the 50s that separates twins at birth and measures the differences over
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time, if any, The problem with these nuts is that they love their science so much they are willing to kill for it.Much better than the first book by this author.
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LibraryThing member nyiper
LOVED this one! Especially helpful was the brief descriptions of the continuing characters in the series right at the beginning of the book---I was immediately reminded of who was who and was able to get happily right into the story. I hope he Lagercrantz continues to find more things for "our
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girl." I think Sieg Larsson would be pleased.
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LibraryThing member camharlow2
The fifth book in the Millennium series continues Lisbeth Salander’s search for those responsible for mistreatment of her mother and her as a child and her wish to bring them to justice. Intertwined with this is her rivalry with her twin sister Camilla, who wants revenge for Lisbeth’s previous
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attacks on her criminal ventures. Lisbeth’s quest is aided once again with the research provided by Mikael Blomkvist and his team at the Millennium magazine as the action centres on the streets of Stockholm and the near surrounding area and the plot revolves around Sweden’s notorious state abuse of minorities in the early to mid twentieth century.
As in the earlier books, the pace is relentless and leads to an enthralling climax and David Lagercrantz once again proves a worthy successor to the series originator, Steig Larsson.
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LibraryThing member thewanderingjew
The Girl Who Takes an Eye For an Eye, Paul Lagercrantz, author; Simon Vance, narrator
If you liked the Lisbeth Salander Millenium series, you will love this one. Although there are periods when the reader will definitely have to suspend disbelief, it is still an exciting page turner.
Lisbeth Salander
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is in trouble again. She is in prison for a crime most people think she should have been rewarded for, not punished, but she refused to help her own case in court and was found guilty. While in prison, her life was threatened so she was transferred to a maximum security prison known for its discipline, supposedly for her own safety. When she arrived there, she discovered that it was not as well controlled as its reputation and being safe there was an implausible option. Because of corrupt prison officials and threats made by a nefarious prisoner, the place had become the victim and plaything of this woman who called herself Benito. Well connected inside and outside the prison, she was running her own little organization within its walls. Lisbeth ignored her threats and took it upon herself to protect another prisoner from her brutality, making herself an enemy of Benito. This other prisoner’s name was Faria. She was the victim of Islamic extremism on the outside, and Benito was tormenting her on the inside. Her family believed she had dishonored them, and as a result, she was paying a high price for their behavior and her own. In Salander’s own inimitable fashion, she blackmailed the warden into helping her to stop Benito’s reign of terror, and in turn, it would also protect Faria. This, she convinced him, would help them both, as she forced him to also allow her access to his computer.
Then uncharacteristically, Salander engaged the help of Mikael Blomkvist. He was eager to come to her aid and when he discovered her guardian, literally on his deathbed, he became deeply involved in the circumstances surrounding his murder. His investigation led to the discovery of a long-term, unethical, clandestine experiment that had been conducted on twins, both identical and fraternal. They were separated and placed in foster homes or adopted out to homes that were opposite in all ways to see the effect the environment would have on the siblings. The cruelty of the scientific study was exposed and those behind it were ferreted out. Salander discovered that she had been part of it and sought to expose the group.
Although at times it was confusing as the time line jumped around and the themes went off on tangents, some which stretched the imagination a bit too far, it was an exciting read that will hold the attention of anyone who enjoys this series.
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LibraryThing member shazjhb
Still love these people although the real author was much better. I will be willing to continue to read about her and her life.
LibraryThing member nbmars
This is the fifth book in the “Millennium Series” that was started by Stieg Larsson and continued by David Lagercrantz after Larsson’s 2004 untimely death.

We continue with the same characters as in previous books including Mikael Blomkvist, the crusading journalist obsessed with social
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justice, and Lisbeth Salander, “the girl with the dragon tattoo.” In this book, the author begins with a very helpful section providing short descriptions of the important continuing characters and groups featured in earlier books. I love authors who respect short memory spans of readers!

Lisbeth has been the undoubted star of the series, but doesn’t play as large a role in this book. Nor does Blomkvist for that matter. The focus is more on the criminals being investigated, who however, have interactions with both Mikael and Lisbeth, both of whom get involved because of their devotion to right wrongs. Moreover, as the plot unfolds, it turns out that the crimes involved are very much related to Lisbeth’s childhood.

Like the previous books, the beginning of this one is very complex; the author takes on some very timely topics. One is that of Russian disinformation campaigns - the “modern form of warfare” in which lies are used “as a way of creating chaos and confusion.” A second topic is Islamic radicalization, and the deleterious repercussions it has, especially with respect to women. Third, the author brings into focus the recrudescence of racism and the ideological devotees attracted to racial policy and biology.

We find out how all of these plot strands are connected as the action unfolds and the tension and danger escalates.

Discussion: Lagercrantz raises plenty of thought-provoking political and philosophical issues. I enjoyed it immensely, especially as it neared the exciting conclusion. Jim would have preferred to see more emphasis on Salander and Blomkvist. But he agrees the heart-pounding denouement was exceptional.

Evaluation: This is an intelligent series of thrillers, with the latest installment by no means a disappointment.
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LibraryThing member benuathanasia
This would be pretty good if it were just a book. But it's not. It's part of the Millennium series. And as such, it feels like mediocre fanfiction. Thankfully, Lagercrantz didn't really expand on Salandar's background again since the last time he did that it almost completely missed her
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personality. However, the reason we don't get much Salandar background is because we don't get much Salandar. She and Blomquist were secondary characters in their own series. This book focused on the holy uninteresting twins - Leo and Dan - and the nature v nurture debate while buying into the Islam = bad, Muslim = terrorist bs that permeates thrillers.
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LibraryThing member TheCrow2
After the previous, a bit mediocre volume I was worried a bit if this were even worse... But no, this book even a bit better than the fourth. The only thing I really didn’t like was the totally unrealistic response to Lisbeth’s violence against the prison director.
LibraryThing member DarthDeverell
David Lagercrantz's The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye continues his extension of Steig Larsson's Millennium Trilogy. The novel begins with Lisbeth Salander in prison following the events of The Girl in the Spider's Web. There, Salander works to help another inmate who was abused while Salander
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herself is under threat from a gangster with connections to Salander's sister, Camilla. Meanwhile, Mikael Blomkvist works to help clear Salander's reputation and follow-up on a case she delivered to him: something is amiss with one of Sweden's top financial analysts and may have connections to Salander's past.
The case leads to an exploration of Salander's origins, with Lagercrantz going beyond those answers Larsson provided in The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Holger Palmgren, Salander's guardian, provides information that some of her childhood troubles were the result of a program run by the Swedish Twins Registry and the Registry for the Study of Genetics and Social Environment, formerly part of the State Institute for Racial Biology, a eugenics institute (pg. 217). Perhaps most alarmingly, rather than allow for some questions to go unanswered, Lagercrantz explains the exact origin of Salander's dragon tattoo as part of the events from Salander's past that are now coming to light (pgs. 276-277).
The writing continues to feel more mechanical than the fluid noir style of Larsson's novels and the story, while containing interesting elements, is rather simple (connections to other books notwithstanding). While page length does not necessarily reflect quality, this is the shortest novel in the Millennium series. As entertaining as it is to follow the adventures of Salander and Blomkvist, this story lacks the weight and feeling of necessity of Larsson's work or even the high stakes of Lagercrantz's The Girl in the Spider's Web. A good beach read for those looking for something light, but unlikely to enter the zeitgeist like the other books.
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LibraryThing member DrApple
Lagercrantz does an excellent job of continuing Stieg Larsson's series of books on Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist. Salander is once again battling to save an innocent from the forces of evil, As with previous tales, broader evil is also involved. It's a page-turner!
LibraryThing member ecataldi
Written in the same style, voice, and intensity of the original trilogy, the fifth book in the Millennium series was still a little lackluster for me. I thought the dueling story-lines were a bit much and I didn't care for the characters as much as I had in the past. Also, I noticed that Lisbeth
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Salander is becoming less and less of a central roles in these books. That being said, I didn't hate it. I was intrigued enough to keep going and try to figure out how the story would conclude and to discover the hidden links that merged the two plots together. Of course we have Blomkvist, the ever persistent journalist digging deep and following the thread as well as a few new characters and villains. Not great, not bad - here's to hoping I like the sixth one better.
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LibraryThing member brangwinn
The Lisbeth Sanders mysteries continue, and I like the new author better. This story didn’t seem quite as violent as the first two. Lisbeth has retained her cold uncaring iceberg of a personality, but as in the other books, she is a strong advocate for the underdog, in this case a Muslim girl who
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has been sent to prison for the murder of her brother.
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LibraryThing member diana.hauser
THE GIRL WHO TAKES AN EYE FOR AN EYE is a ‘Lisbeth Salander novel’ and continues Stieg Larsson’s Millennium series. David Lagercrantz is the author and has written one other Lisbeth Salander novel - THE GIIRL IN THE SPIDER’S WEB. These sequels to the original Millennium series are very
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faithful to the original and do not disappoint..
This title reveals much info about Lisbeth’s early life and the ‘System’s’ manipulation and exploitation of her family.
As Lisbeth investigates the case of Bangladeshi prisoner, Faria Kazi, who she befriends in prison, Mikael Blomkvist begins an investigation into Lisbeth’s childhood situation. The two plot points merge into a fascinating mystery. Also, readers learn about the significance of the famous dragon tattoo on Lisbeth’s back.
Interesting, fast-paced, well-written with detailed characters and sense of place - THE GIRL WHO TAKES AN EYE FOR AN EYE is an exhausting and exhilarating read.
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LibraryThing member michigantrumpet
The fifth of the Millenium series finds Lisbeth Salander serving a two month sentence in a maximum security prison for her part in the events of book four. Happy to spend the time solving complex mathematical problems, Salander is nevertheless compelled to act. Gang leader Benito (known for killing
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with special daggers) has the run if the poorly run prison. The focus of her abuse is Faria, a young, sad Muslim woman who has killed her brother. In the meantime, Salander's advocate and friend, Palmer Holmgren is in danger for uncovering further unsavory secrets about Salander's mistreatment as a child.

It is well known the original author died only three books into the wildly popular series. His estate hired Lagercrantz to continue the planned ten book series. Two books later, how has Lagercrantz fared? There are fair criticisms of too much exposition particularly about research on identical twins. The action plods along for a good 250 pages - unforgivable for an action thriller. Once you've worked your way past that, however, the book does take off at a satisfactory pace and suspense. The most successful portions of the book are those when Lisbeth finally takes center stage. For the most part, she forgotten in the tale. Lisbeth Salander is one of the most original and intriguing female characters in decades. What a shame she is given such short shrift. As a basic thriller, it is passable. Those hoping for a continuation of Salander's saga will be disappointed
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LibraryThing member Verkruissen
I was a huge fan of Steig Larsson's original Millennium trilogy and I did enjoy David Lagercrantz's first book continuing the series but I felt what many reviews I read said. That Lisbeth Salender just didn't take front and center stage as she had in the original series.
Now in this book she did
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have more of a presence but the story still had other characters that took the spotlight.
The story takes up with Lisbeth serving two months in a women's prison for the supposed kidnapping of the young boy she saved in the previous book, The Girl in the Spider's Web. She doesn't mind being there as she studies quantum physics for fun and studies the other inmates especially the one who seems to run the place. She is trying to find out more about the circumstances in her childhood and how they tie into something much more sinister to the children of Sweden when she was young.
Overall a pretty good book, I just wish that Lisbeth played a more visible roll instead of pulling strings from behind the scenes.
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LibraryThing member skraft001
A Lisbeth Salander novel -- began with her being in prison, and is usual for this series there was a fascinating plot in the the private lives of the characters. Was though not as captivating as others in the series, with the original being the absolute best.
LibraryThing member Doondeck
Thrill a minute. Carries on the tradition of Larsson's work.
LibraryThing member alanteder
Not my Salander
Review of the Audible Audio edition narrated by Simon Vance

After my disappointment with "The Girl in the Spider's Web" (2015), the first of the post-Stieg Larsson continuation series of Millenium novels, I didn't have any great compulsion to pick up "The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an
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Eye" when it was released in 2017. I did pick it up though when I saw it on sale at Audible and also noticed that veteran narrator Simon Vance was the reader.

Continuation series have become a guaranteed income generator in the detective and thriller genres since the time of Sherlock Holmes. The best of them are able to recreate the beloved traits of the lead characters in recognizable ways for fans while increasing the scope of their experience. The worst of them read as barely acceptable fan-fiction. Lagercrantz's Millenium series continuation falls somewhere in the middle of the pack.

Lisbeth Salander captured people's imagination as an underdog character who possessed unique computer skills which she often utilized to assist co-lead character Mikael Blomkvist in investigative journalism. She would act as a nerd vigilante hero to right wrongs that society was unable to correct. On the surface this might seem easy to duplicate, but Lagercrantz just doesn't seem to be able to do this in any sort of compelling manner. The setups are all in place but there is a lack of authentic feel to the follow throughs.

This somehow results in Salander and Blomkvist feeling like secondary characters in their own series. A subplot related to separated identical twins (no further spoilers here) is actually more intriguing than the main plot here. You can't just capture Salander by putting in a few defenses of the weak, some random computer hacking and a vigilante revenger fantasy. Some actual in depth character development is required. Otherwise it just feels like going through the motions and ticking off boxes in a paint-by-numbers recreation of a character that first captured readers' imagination.

The narration by Simon Vance was outstanding of course, no fault to be found in that.
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LibraryThing member macha
not nearly enough of Lisbeth Salander to suit me. and for that matter not enough Mikael Blomkvist either. to top it all off, there was a desultory tone to the book, in spite of all the complicated subplots - partly due to the very short scenes in a succession of different settings and times, i
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think. mostly it just lacked the conviction that carried the books of the original trilogy.
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LibraryThing member Bookish59
As usual in the series, this novel is fast-paced, and dramatic. And all about the ongoing battle between good and evil; humanity and kindness against control and corruption; and truth against lies and misinformation.

I found it odd that Salander would allow herself to be sent to prison. Not
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surprised at all that she would take on helping the underdog Faria Kazi from the manic, terrorizing fellow prisoner Benito as well as Kazi's misogynistic brothers.

Additionally odd, Salander appears to temper her reactions more thoughtfully, i.e.she allows Faria's oldest brother Bashir to hit her again and again. A sign she is maturing? Possibly but it doesn't mean she has forgotten how poorly social services failed her mother and herself when they needed help desperately. And how the 'professionals' tried manipulating the family as well as many others for their own devious purposes in the name of science.

Another strong and exciting read.
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LibraryThing member Andy_DiMartino
Very nice addition to the Millenium Saga. Really enjoyed it
LibraryThing member boredness
I had a hard time getting into this book, having started it two or three times. But once I got to the middle of the story it became more interesting for me.
LibraryThing member JBreedlove
Well written but not enough lisabeth and too much of Leo & Dan. The ending also seemed like it was patched on. These books seem lighter than Larssons.
LibraryThing member fastforward
3.5 stars

This is a tough book to review because even though I liked it for the most part, it just felt slightly off when comparing it to the first four books of the series. Part of the problem for me was there was little Millennium newsroom storyline which I didn't realize until now I actually
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needed in these books. Couple that and Lisbeth in prison, and everything just felt different in this one. I know other people had a problems with the fourth book but I honestly thought it was a fairly good attempt and I did feel like I had stepped back comfortably into Blomkvist and Salander's world. I don't think the author captured that feeling as well with the fifth book.

In some ways though, this book was better than the fourth. While the action switched back and forth between different characters, it didn't feel as overwhelming and hard to follow as with the last book. Many of the characters will be familiar to readers as they have been featured in other books. The story line was also easier to follow as it didn't get into weird technology and NSA type stuff.

Overall, I did enjoy the book even though I had problems with it. If you liked the previous book, I think this one is a safe bet if you don't go into it with super high expectations. While this one might be the weakest in the series, it still makes for a good thriller.
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LibraryThing member mattries37315
Months after confronting her sister and feeling that she is become far to well-known, Lisbeth Salander can’t help but stand up for the underdog as well get revenge on those that made her childhood hell. The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye is the fifth book of the Millennium series and second
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written by David Lagercrantz that follows Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist as they examine the twisted history of Sweden’s recent past.

Nearing the end of a two-month jail sentence for crimes committed while protecting August Balder, Lisbeth Salander observes that Bangladeshi prisoner Faria Kasi is tormented nightly by ruthless prisoner Beatrice "Benito" Andersson. Already needing to use a computer after a visit from her former guardian Holger Palmgren informs her that she was involved in something called the Registry. Suspicious, Salander forces the Warden to let her use his computer, where she learns the Registry is a secret project that places exceptional children in specific environments to test the effects on their growth. Salander asks journalist Mikael Blomkvist to investigate in her stead, pointing him to wealthy businessman Leo Mannheimer. Blomkvist learns that Mannheimer had been acting strangely lately and comes to suspect that not only does he have a twin, Dan Brody, but Brody has been going around pretending to be Mannheimer. Meanwhile Palmgren’s investigation alerts Rakel Greitz who poisons him and takes the file. Blomkvist arrives too late, but Palmgren tells him to find Hilda von Kanterborg, a former Registry agent whose initials were in the file, before he dies. Blomkvist tracks Hilda down and, though she doesn't believe Dan stole Leo's identity, she confirms that they are twins. She also tells him that Greitz tried to take Salander away from her family as a child as part of the experiment, only for her to react violently and escape. Blomkvist confronts Mannheimer who, after saving him from Greitz' henchman Benjamin, reveals that he is Dan and why he’s impersonating his brother. While this is happening, the Warden of Flodberga makes plans to transfer Benito to another prison. Upon learning this, Benito prepares to kill Faria, which she reveals she was hired to do by Faria's brothers. However, Salander stops and severely injures her, sending her to the hospital. After Salander is released, she investigates Faria's history, learning how she ended up in prison and that her brother Bashir hired Benito. Salander tricks Bashir into confessing on video and convinces Faria’s younger brother Khalil to do the same to the police for a murder he committed. She then plans to go after Greitz after talking with Blomkvist, only to be kidnapped by Bashir and an escaped Benito. She gets an alert out to her hacker allies, who manage to track the truck they're in and alert the police. With Faria's help, the police find them just as Salander escapes and arrest Benito, Bashir, and their colleagues. After recovering from a wound sustained in her escape, Salander confronts and subdues Greitz and Benjamin, deciding to spare the former so she can suffer the shame of her reputation being ruined as she's arrested. Faria's charges are lowered and she's presumably released. The people involved with the Registry are sent to prison as Millennium publishes Leo and Dan's story. Everyone who knew Palmgren gather for his funeral, where Salander makes a speech about her guardian.

While the novel is entertaining in areas, the plot is sluggish and the tension relying on an overreliance of annoying tricks. In fact, the book doesn’t feel like a Salander novel as it’s labeled because compared to the Larrson trilogy she’s only an instigator to the plot while Blomkvist feels to be more important of the two main characters. Lagercrantz’s own created characters were focused on more than Salander thus making it seem like she’s only billed on the cover to sell books. Its hard to know that if this book wasn’t connected with the Millennium what I would think of it, but given it is I’ve got to rate it the lowest of the series so far even after a good previous installment.

The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye feels off from the rest of the Millennium series and doesn’t measure up to David Lagercrantz’s previous effort in the series. While some parts are entertaining and add to Salander’s mythos, she is in the background of a book that bills her as the main character.
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Awards

Audie Award (Finalist — Mystery — 2018)

Language

Original language

Swedish

Original publication date

2017-09-12 (original Swedish)
2017 (English: Goulding)

ISBN

9780451494320
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