I’ve read David Lagercrantz’s “sequels” to The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo series. You can read my reviews of The Girl in the Spider Web here, The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye here, and The Girl Who Lived Twice here. Although Lagercrantz is no Steig Larsson, I found his thrillers entertaining enough to keep reading them.
Dark Music is the first in a new series featuring a genius Professor Hans Rekke (aka, updated Sherlock Holmes) who uses incredible logic and dazzling observation like you-know-who to solve crimes. Rekke has a smarter, politically connected brother named Magnus. Instead of Watson, we get Micaela Vargas, a Chilean political refugee, who has become a streetwise cop in Stockholm. You get the idea.
The Stockholm police invite Rekke to assist them in solving the murder of an asylum seeker from Afghanistan murdered after a soccer match. But Rekke’s investigation leads to some CIA Black Sites and potential explosive revelations that put Rekke and Vargas at risk.
While Sherlock Holmes had his “seven percent solution,” Rekke goes way beyond that. Here’s Vargas, early in her relationship with Rekke, quizzing him on the drugs he’s ingested:
“What have you taken?”
“Two or three opiates, benzodiazepines, a dash of antipyschotics, and my pointless antidepressants.” (p. 85)
Rekke’s depression and drug abuse can be a source of annoyance when Lagercrantz overdoes them. But, hopefully, Lagercrantz will tamp down Rekke’s bipolar behaviors in the next book. GRADE: B
I read his three sequels to The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and enjoyed the first two. I didn’t like the third one at all. I have seen this and may read it or may not. Depends when I finish the thousand or so on my tbr read pile.
Steve, I know that feeling of a 1000 books waiting to be read all too well!
CIA Black Sites is what puts me off. I am tired of worrying about the black web. I need to go back to a drop of arsenic in the tea kind of books.
Patti, I just delivered the Agatha Christie collection (all of her mysteries) to Katie in Boston. She’s wanted them for years. Plenty of arsenic and other poisons in Christie books!
I wasn’t a fan of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series so I’ll probably pass on this one.
I’m with Patti. I’ll skip the CIA black sites and this overly-drugged Sherlock Holmes.
Beth, I liked the Sherlock Holmes-clone Lagercrantz created…but he was just a little too drugged and needy for my tastes. But, maybe Lagercrantz can clean him up for the next book!
What I am more tired of is all the human trafficking books.
Jeff, there’s more of a focus on the backstory of the murdered man than the other tangential subplots in DARK MUSIC. It’s complicated.
What are CIA Black sites?
Neeru, the CIA operated (and may still operate) “Black sites” in foreign countries where they can do things not allowed in the U.S.–torture being one of them.