The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

(hb; 2007, 2009: third book in the Millennium series. Translated from the Swedish by Reg Keeland.)

From the inside flap:

"Lisbeth Salander -- the heart of Larsson's two previous novels -- lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She's fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she'll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her frind, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge -- against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

"Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander is fighting back."


Review:

Hornet's Nest sports all the charms of its two predecessors: intriguing characters, (mostly) fleet-footed plot and action, and life-true character-based twists.

Where Hornet's Nest differs from its prequels is that the pace slows down midway through the novel, when the history and internecinic political manueverings of the "Zalachenko Club" are given full expression. While this is necessary, up to a point, to logically link the characters and their motives, it does run a bit deep and long; during this chapter I thought I was reading a John le Carré novel, not a Stieg Larsson novel.

This doesn't ruin Hornet's Nest, but it does provide a short pause in the action.

The ending echoes those of Dragon Tattoo and Played With Fire while satisfactorily wrapping up the events and characters of Larsson's amazing trilogy.

Worth owning, like the first two Millennium books.

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A Swedish film version was released in Denmark and Sweden on November 27, 2009. A stateside release date of October 29, 2010 has been announced.

Michael Nyqvist played Michael Blomkvist. Noomi Rapace played Lisbeth Salander. Lena Endre played Erika Berger. Annika Halin played Annika Giannini.

Jacob Ericksson played Christer Malm. Sofia Ledarp played Malin Erikson. Tomas Köhler resumed his role of Plague (from The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo).

Michalis Koutsogiannakis played Dragan Armanskij. Mirja Turestedt played Monica Figuerola. Johan Kylén played Inspector Jan Bublanski. Tanja Lorentzon played Sonja Modig. An uncredited Per Oscarsson played Holger Palmgren. Tehilla Blad played "Young Lisbeth Salander".

Georgi Staykov played Alexander Zalachenko. Micke Spreitz, billed as Mikael Spreitz, played Ronald Niedermann. Niklas Falk played Edklinth. Hans Alfredson played Evert Gullberg. Lennart Hjulström played Fredrik Clinton.

Anders Ahlbom (billed as Anders Ahlbom Rosendahl) played Dr. Peter Teleborian. Magnus Krepper played Hans Faste. Niklas Hjulström played "Richard Ekström - Prosecutor".

Daniel Alfredson directed the film, from a script by Jonas Frykberg and Ulf Ryberg.

The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson

(hb; 2006, 2009: second book in the Millennium series. Translated from the Swedish by Reg Keeland.)

From the inside flap:

"Mikael Blomkvist, crusading journalist and publisher of the magazine Millennium, has decided to run a story that will expose an extensive sex trafficking operation between Eastern Europe and Sweden, implicating well-known and highly placed members of Swedish society, business and government.

"But he has no idea just how explosive the story will be, until, on the eve of publication, the two investigative reporters are murdered. And even more shocking for Blomkvist: the fingerprints found on the murder weapon belong to Lisbeth Salander -- the troubled, wise-beyond-her-years genius hacker who came to his aid in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, and who now becomes the focus and fierce heart of The Girl Who Played With Fire.

"As Blomkvist, alone in his belief in Salander's innocence, plunges into an investigation of the slayings, Salander herself is drawn into a murderous hunt in which she is the prey, and which compels her to revisit her dark past in an effort to settle with it once and for all."


Review:

Played With Fire picks up a year after the events of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

A worthwhile sequel, this:  Played With Fire capitalizes on the many strengths of its prequel -- intriguing characters, fleet-footed plot and action, life-true character-based twists, and an ending that left this reader wanting more, now!

Not only that, but Larsson's first Dragon Tattoo sequel maintains the fresh plot-structural feel of the first book: both are non-formulaic (but familiar enough to be bestsellers) and character-true.

This, too, is worth purchasing.

Followed by The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest.

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A Swedish film version of The Girl Who Played With Fire was released in Denmark and Sweden on September 18, 2009. The film graced stateside screens on October 13, 2010.

Michael Nyqvist played Michael Blomkvist. Noomi Rapace played Lisbeth Salander. Lena Endre played Erika Berger. Michalis Koutsogiannakis played Dragan Armanskij. Jacob Ericksson played Christer Malm.

Peter Andersson played "The Lawyer Nils Bjurnson". Per Oscarsson played Holger Palmgren. Yasmine Garbi played Miriam Wu. Paolo Roberto played himself.

Johan Kylén played Inspector Jan Bublanski. Tanja Lorentzon played Sonja Modig. Magnus Krepper played Hans Faste. Anders Ahlbom (billed as Anders Ahlbom Rosendahl) played Dr. Peter Teleborian. Niklas Hjulström played "Richard Ekström - Prosecutor".

Micke Spreitz, billed as Mikael Spreitz, played Ronald Niedermann. Georgi Staykov played Alexander Zalachenko.

Tehilla Blad played "Young Lisbeth Salander". Sofia Ledarp played Malin Erikson.

Daniel Alfredson directed the film, from a script by Jonas Frykberg.

The Man On The Balcony, by Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö

(pb; 1967: third book in the Martin Beck Police Mysteries. Translated from the Swedish by Alan Blair.)

From the back cover:

"In the once peaceful parks of Stockholm, a killer is stalking young girls and disposing of their bodies. The city is on edge, and an undercurrent of fear has gripped its residents. Martin Beck, now a superintendant, has two possible witnesses: a silent, stone-cold mugger and a mute three-year-old boy. The police force works night and day, but their efforts have offered little insight into the whereabouts of the killer. Then a distant memory resurfaces in Beck's mind, and he finally may have the break he needs."

Review:

This is an especially vicious, high-profile case for Beck and his crew: a child rapist-murder is on the loose, accruing victims at an increasingly acelerated rate. Of course, the media is having a field day reporting the crimes, and the public is demanding that the rapist-murderer get caught, pronto.

There are few revelations in this disquieting, hard to put down read, but Balcony doesn't need any revelations. Balcony is solid, logical, character-rich and -expansive, its action and pseudo-twists revolving around many of its core/series characters.

Another excellent entry in the Martin Beck Mysteries.

Followed by The Laughing Policeman.

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A film version of The Man On The Balcony was released in Sweden on November 26, 1993.

Gösta Ekman reprised his role of Martin Beck. Kjell Bergqvist reprised his role of Lennart Kollberg. Rolf Lassgård reprised his role of Gunvald Larsson. Jonas Falk reprised his role of Stig Åke Malm. Ing-Marie Carlsson reprised her role of Gun Kollberg. Bernt Ström reprised his role of Einar Rönn. Niklas Hjulström reprised his role of Skacke.


Daniel Alfredson directed the film from a script he co-authored with Jonas Cornell (based on Rainer Berg's treatment-story).

Roseanna, by Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö

(pb; 1965: first book in the Martin Beck Police Mysteries. Translated from the Swedish by Lois Roth.)

From the back cover:

"On a July afternoon, the body of a young woman is dredged from Sweden's beautiful Lake Vättern. Three weeks later, all that Police Inspector Martin Beck knows is that her name is Roseanna, that she came from Lincoln, Nebraska, and that she could have been strangled by any one of eighty-five people. As the melancholic Beck narrows down the list of likely suspects, he is drawn increasingly to the enigma of the victim, a free-spirited traveler with a penchant for the casual sexual encounter, and to the psychopathology of a murderer with a distinctive -- indeed, terrifying -- sense of propriety."

Review:

Solid, tautly-penned police procedural that thrills with its spare descriptions of Beck and his fellow cops as they slowly piece together what happened to Roseanna McGraw, a visiting American who had a fatal encounter with a murderer. Despite the authors' acknowledgements of time passing, their writing is quick, days passing in as little as two sentences, months experienced in a paragraph.

The tone of the novel is melancholic, steeped in mundane but telling details and moods; excellent authors that they are, Sjöwall and Wahlöö make this work for their narrative, as they steadily increase the tension of the tale for an emotionally-explosive, exciting finish.

Excellent novel, this. Promising start to the Martin Beck Police Mysteries.

Followed by The Man Who Went Up In Smoke.

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Two movies resulted from Roseanna.

The original Roseanna was released in Sweden on August 14, 1967.

Keve Hjelm played Martin Beck. Tor Isedal played Gunnar Ahlberg. Gio Petré played Roseanna. Michael Tolan played Elmer B. Kafka. Kersten Tidelius played Sonja Hansson. Leif Liljeroth played Stenström. Mona Malm played Siv Lundberg. Hans Ernback played Folke Bengtsson.

Hans Abramson scripted and directed the film.

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The filmed-out-of-series-order remake was released on video in Sweden on October 6, 1993.

Gösta Ekman reprised his role of Martin Beck. Kjell Bergqvist reprised his role of Lennart Kollberg. Rolf Lassgård reprised his role of Gunvald Larsson. Jonas Falk reprised his role of Stig Åke Malm. Ing-Marie Carlsson reprised her role of Gun Kollberg. Bernt Ström reprised his role of Einar Rönn. Niklas Hjulström reprised his role of Skacke.

Ingvar Andersson reprised his role of Per Månsson. Lena Nilsson reprised her role of Åsa Thorell. Torgny Anderberg reprised his role of Evald Hammar. Anita Ekström, this time credited, reprised her role of Inga Beck. Birger Österberg reprised his role of Kvant. P.G. Hylén reprised his role of Kristiansson.

Daniel Alfredson directed the film from a script he co-wrote with book co-author Maj Sjöwall, Jonas Cornell, Rainer Berg and Beate Langmaack.