The Girl in the Spider's Web

Oh Dear!

Well, where can I begin?
The opening in introduced with a VERY loud 'ppeerr ppeerr chow' sort of 'music' - it really gave me such a start as I was listening on earphones.
After that introduction things just got worse. before listening I had re-listened to the last of the original trilogy to remind myself of the story.
1. The main characters have all changed their personallities - Clear thinking Blomquist is now a bumbling idiot has-been
2. Erica seems to be called by a different name - was 'Berger' is now 'Beryer' - sorry about spelling have only read audio books. Her husband too - was 'Gregor' is now something different.
3. Erica and Blomquist seem to have changed the tone of their friendship - 'she fell into his arms' - was never the way they were staying together, things were much more matter of fact.
4. At chapter 8 - I started to think - 'Ye Gods - how long does this go on?' - only to discover that I was but a quarter through - I hought I should at least stick it out to half way - but I am now at chapter 10 and really ...... I don't think I can go on with it.
5. Lisbeth has only appeared briefly so far - but her character too seems to be different, no longer the quiet yet forceful individual, she seems far more openly aggressive.
6. I am currently at the stage where I don't really care anyway - so I think I will cut my losses and leave it now.
7 The whole tone of the characters is wrong, I am sure that Mr David Lagercrantz is a good writer in his own way, but this does a mis-service to Stieg Larsson - I have waited so long for this follow on, and am so disappointed, I did so want to enjoy it.

29 of 35 people found this review helpful

An unnecessary continuation

I really enjoyed the Millennium trilogy and they finished quite tidily, so i was intrigued by what an addition to the series by another author could bring. The answer, nothing. Unfortunately this is a book that need not have been written. The character development is poor, the story is badly structured and lacks depth. Having finished it I would have no interest in any further additions to the original trilogy. Declan Hughes in the Irish Times, September 26th captures my views quite succinctly:

"Larsson continuation

David Lagercrantz’s The Girl in the Spider’s Web (MacLehose Press, £14.99) is a continuation of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy, and will probably outsell any other crime novel published this year. It is ineptly structured (the murder that finally incites the action takes place on page 130, a good 100 pages too late), repetitive, and fatuously in thrall to brands and buzzwords, as if simply naming them brought them to life. It often reads more like a prospectus than a book. Hackers! The Dark Web! Autistic Savants! The Russian Mafia and the NSA!

At its heart, of course, is Lisbeth Salander, that manic pixie dream girl with abuse issues, a scowly face and piercings. Piercings! Salander remains part comic-book superhero, part male fantasy, but she still deserves better than this cynical, curiously disengaged production."

My advice: go back and listen to the original trilogy again instead of investing time in this.

40 of 49 people found this review helpful

Lisbeth Salander is back, a cyberpunk reboot.

This is a revival of a series millions love with a character that has the admiration and sympathy of millions of readers, so one third of the book is a clever re establishing of the old ensemble of characters while lying down the new ones and the plot for the new story, and I am happy to say that it works without feeling forced or awkward, yes it is not the same writer but it is very much the setting Stieg Larsson created, the plot line moves and references previous books in the series with ease and respect .
If you liked the other books you will enjoy this one, it is a good thriller that brings back old friends and delivers a good continuation. The technical computer language, AI, ASI, or artificial super-intelligence discussions, very much set it in our present with references to what has transpired in our world recently, grounding the story in our present, while creating a sense of a future with cyber singularity and possible digital event horizons.

The sound production of this book is excellent and ingenious, with many little tricks they should use in other books, Saul Reichlin is a superb actor and uses all his power to make this a very good listen.

46 of 63 people found this review helpful

Not what I hoped for.

I know a little of the story behind Steig Larsson's legacy and how his estranged family apparently seized on their rights, but I did not really care too much as I have a fond memory of the Millenium trilogy as enjoyable, if sometimes slightly cartoonlike, thrillers. I felt like something easy to listen to and I was not about to let authenticity or ownership worry me. It had been a while so I thought I'd see what the chosen writer did with the characters to move the series on.
Mistake.
It seems to me, admittedly at half way through, that Instead of going his own way Lagercrantz has reproduced the formula almost exactly. (Magazine under pressure, Solander's far fetched family at the heart of all evil again, etc). This over familiarity, combined with long passages of narrative expo given in the authors own voice as unrealistic dialogue, and the habit of seeing every moment of significance from every point of view possible, just bored me to death.

Cynical.

9 of 12 people found this review helpful

A tough brief

I'll take my hat off to David Lagercrantz, this was a tough brief and for the most part he carries it off in decent style. Larsson's wonderful series and characters deserved to continue and while I did think it dragged in parts it had the series hallmarks of complexity, depth and some interesting concepts to digest.

I see that Reichlin is dividing the crowd. I'm kind of in the middle here. As a narrator he is very clear and smooth but for me he is not well suited to these characters. To my ear he made the characters sound consistently older than they should have and the urgency wasn't there. It's a matter of personal taste of course but I can see why some people seem to love his performance and others have a problem with it.

This is a worthy continuation though and it's great to be able to spend some time with these characters again. I will definitely get any more that come out.

8 of 11 people found this review helpful

dreadful

What would have made The Girl in the Spider's Web better?

If Stieg Larson had written it.

What was most disappointing about David Lagercrantz and George Goulding - translator ’s story?

The boring, long-winded writing. I thought there was a 'show don't tell' rule for thrillers. This was explain every detail at the expense of the pace.

Did Saul Reichlin do a good job differentiating each of the characters? How?

I love Saul Reichlin's narrations, but he was greatly hinder by a plethora of inconsequential characters.

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

It finally finished?

Any additional comments?

Such a disappointment. The pace was very slow and boring, but I am proud of myself for seeing it through to the end. Sadly, it didn't improve.

16 of 23 people found this review helpful

Awful

I liked the darkness & secretes of Salanders character. This book, clumsily unpacks her & her family with such unoriginality, it kills her & the story :(

9 of 13 people found this review helpful

Fourth in series - "just" sneaked to a 5 star

"Ummed and ahhed" about whether to give it four or five stars, but in the end, there's a lot of average books out there, and there's been too many that have been downright impossible to get on with. As a "standalone" it gets 5, but in comparison to the "real" Millenium books, it's a 4 star.

The story whizzes along, the themes great, the characters well known. Really enjoyed the style and story - it's definitely "in the style". It's a long time though since I read the originals though, which makes it hard to compare.

I do feel though that characters are slightly more 2D than the originals. There's something not quite there about Lisbeth Salander - that "something" which made her such an "endearing", "likeable" hero of a character. However, it doesn't spoil the book.

So, highly recommend giving it a listen!

5 of 7 people found this review helpful

4th in the Trilogy!

All in all, I thought it was pretty good. Lagercrantz has picked up Larsson's style and pacing pretty well and it helps that the majority of characters are already well-established from the first three books. This gives substantial consistency, as does keeping the redoubtable Saul Reichlin as narrator. The storyline is a fairly natural extension from Larsson’s original series, develops the situation nicely – and leaves the door wide open for another book in due course.

Keeping a best-selling series going after the original author’s death is bound to fraught and polarise opinion, as indicated by other reviews. I’m sure the publishers don’t mind too much so long as people pay up - and I think this one is good value and hope you enjoy it.

17 of 25 people found this review helpful

Beautifully done!

Would you listen to The Girl in the Spider's Web again? Why?

Yes, just the matching up of detail in the Millennium Universe is deep enough to admire again, especially as it is a different author - well studied and authentically written. Achieving the same thrills and OMG experiences the originals did. I've just recently listened to those, and it was a total surprise to see the new edition - it will too get the honor of a re listen or rather re immersion.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Girl in the Spider's Web?

The total opposite world of Salander's sister.

Have you listened to any of Saul Reichlin’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Yes, it has been the reason why I chose a book. This one fits in seamlessly with the others, aside from the decidedly different way to pronounce Salander, and Berger, or was her name changed? I need to mention that I have re listened to pieces in the millennium series just because of wanting to hear the engaging performances and execution of characters and scenes Saul Reichlin manages. The character representations he achieves through the use of accents, tone and timbre is extraordinary. The phone conversation effect is great!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When Salander vowed "he will never do that to you again" or something to that effect, to the autistic boy after revealing the abuse to her. It was as if you knew she meant what she said, and he was very fortunate to have her on his side, very fortunate. Roger and mate were not so much.

Any additional comments?

If you've read the others, click the "add to basket", no point wasting time, if you have not, don't click here, you're the lucky ones, first get the others!

8 of 12 people found this review helpful